Do you know a foot like this?

I went to Dallas to improve my trimming skills and hopeful that I would see a wider variety of feet with more issues than the feet I usually see at home. You can see by earlier posts that I certainly achieved the latter, the former is still being tested.

But then it occurred to me that actually it would be interesting to examine a foot which is often seen in pastured/retired horses in the UK. A foot which is often accepted as 'normal' but which in truth while it might be common, it is certainly not normal for a healthy foot.

This type of foot (see photos below) is a product of hoof management and is neither genetic nor inevitable. If you click on the photos they will enlarge.

As the horse to which this hoof belongs is already dead, we can't discover how long it would have taken to bring this foot back to the healthy model. But I am 99.99% certain that with correct management of the live horse it could have been and probably within months.

With each pair of photos the first picture is the 'before' photo and the second is the 'after' photo.


Notice flare, hoof rings and chips. These are still evident after the trim, but the improvement can be seen and the hoof is starting to look better already.

The sole looks a scary mess - but its actually relatively superficial and just one trim is a significant improvement. Good management could sort this easily.

The heel is running under and the capsule is long. It will take time to fix these, but a good mustang roll (would have) made the horse more comfortable.

It looks better from this side!

Whether shod or barefoot please don't accept a foot which looks like the foot in the 'before' pictures above. And please understand that the foot is the 'after' pictures is a work in progress. To be tolerated while the damage is grown out, but not the end product. :-)

It is not natural, its not healthy and it needn't be.

You might just find that the pasture ornament you know of with feet like this might even come sound if the feet are brought back to health.

And it doesn't take heaps of money or shoes. Just good management, a bit of patience and persistance.

Me trimming

This is me. Apache was a sweetie to work on and his feet were in good shape. Unlike my apron which is seriously long. Because of her physical condition Grace is not so straight forward, so it was nice to work on a horse that can hold a foot up for more than 30 seconds.

Contracted hoof, high heels, compacted sole

I didn't know where to start with this post, nor how to write it without offending somebody. But the case is what it is. I'll post the pictures, along with notes and let you make your own mind up.

HEALTHY HOOVES
These are a couple of hooves which show what horse feet should look like. When we take care of our horses, these models are what we need to keep in mind.

These hooves belonged to a hard working, healthy, wild horse which regularly travelled 20+ miles a day over varied, rocky terrain.

A SICK HOOF
This hoof arrived wrapped in bandage, with two nails protruding from the bottom. There was blood coming from around the nail at the bottom of the picture.

The heel was raised with a wedge pad, held on with an egg bar shoe.

With shoe and wedge pad removed. The material adhering to the sole is old shavings bedding.

With a basic clean up, it can be seen that the front of the hoof has been cut off.

The hoof is abcessed, the heels are very high and contracted. The sole is deeply compacted and the frog has almost disappeared.

Compare these photos with the healthy hooves.

A competent AANHCP trim will work towards keeping the foot in line with the healthy model.

Learning more about trimming

To be a better trimmer I need to see a wider variety of cases. So I have taken myself off to Dallas to train with Jamie Jackson. He has updated his training programme and its much more intensive and rigorous than previously. Which is just as well because I know I have a lot to learn.

We are practising on a mix of cadavers and live horses. Although it is sad and sometimes unpleasant to think about the dead horses, I would rather make my mistakes on them than a live one. The fatal mistakes have already been made on the dead horses and sometimes the evidence is in their feet.

The pictures above show what could have been a good foot that over a relatively short time period could have been rehabilitated. It has bull nose and compacted soles from inappropriate foot care. The later pictures show the compacted sole coming out and what the foot looks like after one trim.

Test your horse management skills - every day

Keeping a horse barefoot is really a horse management test. However unlike SATS everyone gets to sit a different paper, sometimes you get examined daily and the course work is relentless and never ending.

So why do we bother? Because some of us have seen a successful end result and want what we feel is better for our horses. Others are driven by desperation as they have run out of conventional methods and their horse is still lame.

The end result of the soul searching and effort is worth it. When you have a particular horse and its situation figured out the results are very rewarding in so many ways. Whether you just want to ride without worrying about the state of the horse's shoes, or if your aim is to prolong your horse's working life, or you have experienced the joy of riding a barefoot horse.

And where does the daily testing come in? You may have read the 'Heartbreak' post which showed how a bit of well-intentioned, but inappropriate feeding damaged a foot very quickly. Well the photos above taken just 6.5 weeks apart show how if you stick to your guns and get the diet right the foot will heal quickly too.

You can see in the first picture how the foot has lost concavity, the white line is stretched and the sole is one big bruise. That is one rather sore and very miserable horse.

In the second picture concavity is returning, the white line is tightening up and bar one bit of damage the sole is back to its healthy colour. Fungal infections are a challenge where this horse is kept, but the owner does a good job of keeping them at bay. I don't have a picture, but trust me, that horse is positively beaming with happiness now. It is so good to see.

Now you see it, now not so much

Left hand pictures taken 4th September, Grace deshod the day before.

Right hand pictures taken today, 29th November - that's just over 12 weeks apart.

If you look at the left solar view you can see the blood spot in the toe as well as the huge hole at the quarter. In the right solar view the blood spot has completely disappeared and there is just a tiny trace of the hole in the quarter.

The bars which were overlaid are still growing strongly and insisting on being big and beefy.

The side view shows the hole in all its glory (left) and grown out (right). The toe on the left is too long and has a 'bull' nose, the toe on the right is a good length and the bull nose has gone. The coronary band is at a better angle (right) and the the quarter is no longer pushing it up.

No tricks, gadgets or special conditions. Just a better diet, some anti fungal treatment and regular trimming.

A work in progress

Part of me is reluctant to post pictures of Grace's feet, because the trim is not text book perfect. Heck its not even completely technically correct. But its the best we can do within the current framework. So I post a) with the proviso that no one wanders off using these pictures as an example of a 'good' trim and b) with the thought that they might provide hope for those struggling with a horse that is less than straight forward to trim.

The first picture is newly deshod. You can see the nail still stuck in her foot. Took a bit of wrestling to get that out. This foot looks 'normal' for a shod horse. But if you look more closely you can see how the foot is under-run - the heel is scooting forward. The coronary band is almost horizontal and the quarter has pushed the corresponding section of coronary band up too high. The lateral cartilage is weak and under developed. There is also a furrow above the coronary band. The foot is too long.

In the second picture - the mustang roll is not finished (I'd had enough of trimming in the middle of a gale). The whole hoof looks smaller - notice how the furrow above the coronary band has disappeared. The coronary band is at a better angle. The lateral cartilage is building substance. To get a better understanding of the sort of things going on inside her feet look at x-rays of other horses here.

Grace's feet in general look horrible (to me). But they are getting better. Decontracting, the corns have gone, the thrush is 90% gone and so is the fungal infection. The latter is problematic because of the extreme wet weather and a previously very damp bed (roof and walls leaked). But importantly Grace is getting happier on her pins. Her heel first landing is becoming more consistant and she is capable of more manoveres. (Things like turning on the forehand used to be impossible because of the pain in her feet.)

I am slightly dreading next season when I feel we are going to be really challenged on the diet front. But one step (literally) at a time. :-)

Stop Press!

Madam has achieved rock crunching. Way to go girl! Pictures to follow on Thursday. All credit to the dedication and care of her 'Mum'.

About time - heels decontracting at last

Near fore, off fore, near hind, off hind - in order.

At last the heels in front are starting to decontract. It isn't something that should be forced, you have to listen to the foot, follow the live sole plane and let the foot take the time it needs to heal.

Forcing a foot can make the horse lame or take it in the wrong direction - trust the hoof to know what is needed. But of course, look after the gut to prevent laminitis and treat any foot infections as required. The aim with the trim is to only remove what natural wear would have taken off if the horse were living in an optimal environment with optimal exercise.

The heels on the fronts are arguably too long, but taking them any shorter would mean invading the live sole plane which is unacceptable. The owner has been briefed to look out for the sole turning chalky in the seat of corn area.

Madam has been an interesting case - because if you just looked at the outer hoof wall you'd think her feet were fabulous (and in many respects they are). But it has taken an age to get her feet to this stage and if you look at the undersides with a 'barefooters' perspective you can see that her feet can be better still. And we are not being totally aesthetic here - we are looking for function over form.

I suspect Madam's heel contraction is linked to her sugar intake. We had got them to partly decontract last winter, only to have them close right up again in the summer when she had an overload of sugar. It's something to keep an eye on.

Grace's feet

I've decided to post progress on Grace's feet here and keep her blog for news of her rehabilitation and training. We had the vet on Wednesday and I subjected the poor man to a short photo album of the changes in her feet.



The block of 4 photos above are of Grace's off (right) hind. Top two pictures are immediately after she was deshod, the second two pictures are some 8/9 weeks later.

This set of 4 shows Grace's near (left) fore. Again the top two are immediately after deshoeing, the second pair are 8/9 weeks later.

The vet appeared impressed with her feet which I have to take as a good thing. But the cynical parrot on my shoulder keeps squawking in my ear, that the average vet wouldn't know a good barefoot if it hit them. Very rude parrot! Tempered by the fact that the vet introduced an associate as a 'vet' (maybe a student?) and the associate didn't know which were the good feet and which were the bad and they couldn't spot the contraction. So rude parrot, but maybe she has a point.

Grace's heels are decontracting nicely and practically of their own accord. All I have done is to facilitate the process. Grace's bucket feed is the 'barefoot diet'. Now it is winter she is in at night and out at grass during the day. She is potentially 'metabolic' - certainly her feet are full of rings and she has other signs too. But we will wait and see how we get on.

She had terrible corns, but these have now gone and she is developing a reasonable heel first landing when led out in walk. However the yard we are currently at has no facilities at all - I would have to do all her training and rehab on the road. So we will shortly be moving. The yard we will move to is still 'traditional' but it has 3 schools and a variety of surfaces and enough off road hacking to get Grace established.

That is of course if she proves rideable at all.

Proof of the pudding

Madam's feet are well on the way to recovery thanks to her 'Mum's' efforts regarding her diet. And Madam looks so much happier too. Not just in her face, which is softer and relaxed, but her whole body which looks so much more comfortable. And of course her feet which are no longer inflamed or purple.

Barefeet are such effective barometers of a horse's health, I can't imagine wanting to shut that feedback down. I have a lot of sympathy for Madam's Mum (MM) - Madam must fall into the category of 'very hard to take barefoot' because she is so sensitive to sugar and simple starch. But MM is doing a great job in less than ideal circumstances and Madam is reaping the benefits.

The alternative would be a horse that is borderline laminitic all winter with full blown episodes in the spring/summer/Autumn - and if the evidence were covered up with shoes Madam could be in real trouble.

Bearing in mind how purple her feet were in the early days of our guardianship I am relieved that we caught her in time, albeit somewhat aggrieved that this sort of issue is not picked up by vettings. And that standard veterinary advice regarding laminitis is so fixated on dealing with the symptoms rather than the cause.

But let's stick to the positives. The finding we have is that it is entirely possible for a newish horse owner to successfully barefoot a challenging horse, if they are able to manage that horse's Diet, Environment, Exercise and Trim to suit. (DEET)

There is no doubt in my mind that Madam is better off because of her 'Mum's' efforts and that they are both a shining example of what can be achieved. (Especially now the linseed is doing it's work on Madam's coat!) :-)

Horses (and their hooves) don't lie

If the horse doesn't look right, then something isn't right. Its that simple.

I used to compete in Endurance. I liked the fact that my horsemanship was being tested. My aim was to complete the course with a horse that was in excellent condition and happy with their work.

Barefoot does that for me now. It tests my horsemanship. If I fail the results show in the feet. Much more quickly than they might elsewhere, and the marks on the hoof provide a timeline of my successes and failures.

Of course the rest of the horse is a reflection too. A poor coat, a rib showing that shouldn't be. But these are relatively easily managed and past successes and failures are not recorded. A good foot on a metabolic horse is more challenging.

If my heart wasn't already broken

Then I think this hoof scenario would do the job. The deterioration in this foot in less than 3 months is distressing. Fortunately the owner is great and knows better than to slap a shoe on, which would mask the hoof pain, but do nothing to fix the cause.

The first picture, which is far from perfect, shows a foot which is on its way to good concavity, nice thick sole, tight white line. Now an inappropriate diet has put paid to that.

The second photo shows bruising extending across most of the sole, which has lost a lot of concavity. You can also see the extensive flaring of the hoof wall. The third photo below shows just how much concavity there used to be.

This is a super mare, practically perfect. Well trained, well made and pretty. Loves to work and will have a go at almost anything. But everything has a downside right? And hers is her metabolic challenges. If she were human we would probably label her diabetic and treat accordingly. Guess what we do to horses - we nail an iron ring to their feet so we can ignore the problem. But thankfully not (yet anyway) in this case.

I kid myself I am upset for the sake of the horse, which is true, but I am also frustrated at the ignorance of some 'equine professionals' who ruin horse and rider alike.

Foot wear

One of the commonest concerns I hear regarding taking a horse barefoot is: 'I am worried my horse's feet would wear down too much'. As I was trimming Madam yesterday (it took a couple of hours and was very hot) both her owner and I were wishing 'if only!'.

Madam works most days, over a variety of terrain including lots of rough stuff and roads, has lessons twice a week and does endurance. In just two weeks, despite all this work she had grown half a centimetre of foot.

If a horse is in good health and is worked correctly this amount of growth is typical and the more stimulation the foot gets, the more it grows. Wearing the feet out is the least of Madam's worries. If only her diet was as easy.