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Post by spirithawk06 on Nov 7, 2014 1:52:19 GMT
I'd never feel brave enough to post this thread on the other place so let me start by saying thanks for having such a friendly place to post here. Tilley, a 9 year old QH mare, has had an oddly growing hoof since she's a foal. The previous owner said he bought her like that and that it stems from an injury that was not treated properly when she was young. Her frog is lower than the live sole and the toe grows sideways. He said he took her to several farriers and vets and was told there wasn't anything that could be done and she was okay to ride, just not in shows. I had someone come out to trim her and he tried to cut the hoof completely back to where it should be, which caused her to go lame for a couple of weeks while the damage to her live sole healed. I found another trimmer, thankfully before too much damage was done to my horses. He cut Apollo's hooves too short and hit another of my horses in the face with a rasp for pulling away when he hit an abscess. New trimmer is MUCH better. He does barefoot trimming and has consulted his mentor in Texas and another person in MS on Tilley's leg. He said that riding her would be like putting giant rocks in your shoes and walking around with them. When he first started trimming her, she had a huge knot on her fetlock and she walked with a twisting motion on that foot. Now, the knot is gone, and while she doesn't walk normally, she walks much better than she did before. I'll have to see about getting some videos. Anyway, I was wondering what you guys thought. We're trying to do what we can to retrain her hoof to grow normally, if possible. If that's not possible, we want her to be as comfortable as possible. We are not riding her. I won't hurt a horse just for the sake of her being useful. I know you guys are more familiar with hooves than me, and we have some here who trim their own, so I wanted to see what you guys thought.  This was fro several months ago. You can see that the left hind is growing out wrong. I have more pictures that I'm looking for, and will get recent ones since she was trimmed two days ago. |
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Post by spirithawk06 on Nov 7, 2014 2:18:12 GMT
Please excuse the mud on her legs.   I thought I had after pictures from that trim...guess I didn't. Sorry. I know that's not a lot to go on considering you can't see how it looks after a trim yet. I'll get pictures tomorrow. Her hoof grows really fast, to the point where my boys can go 6 weeks and she has to go every 4 weeks, sometimes less if she's having trouble. Time before last, the trimmer said he saw some separation of the hoof wall. This trim saw some improvement. |
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nhg
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Post by nhg on Nov 7, 2014 2:56:05 GMT
Odd but I'm surprised it make her move oddly and possibly not be sound. It makes me wonder if the hoof is actually not bad but she has a leg or fetlock issues that makes the hoof not grow or wear properly. The pressure is wonky on the hoof so it grows like that. Would that make any sense? It looks like the hoof wall isn't think enough to take a show, either, if that's even an option. Have you tried something like a hoof boot on it?
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hugs
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Post by hugs on Nov 7, 2014 2:58:06 GMT
I can't' comment specifically on what to do but over the years the amount of information out there has been growing so much that what was once impossible is now probable. I passed on buying a really well trained and lovey dovey mare because of her laminitis because the farrier we had at the time said, Run, Don't Walk Away! Well within a couple months another farrier knew exactly what to do. And since then, its more common knowledge.
So you keep doing what you're doing. When you have a farrier (or any professional) who has a network of folks to bounce ideas off of, you've actually getting the value of all of those people plus each of their networks. Don't give up (I know you won't, not even an issue) and it'll work out. And of course I have to say that "using a horse" or the idea that you have to ride horse to make it "worthwhile" to own one is utter hogwash.
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Post by spirithawk06 on Nov 7, 2014 3:05:55 GMT
I think I got it backwards, the frog isn't cushioning the foot like it is supposed to.
I hadn't thought to try boots because we aren't riding her but if it helps make her more comfortable, then I'm game to try.
Where I'm from, people don't look at a horse as useful just for companionship. I don't feel that way, but I've been asked why I don't put shoes on her and ride her.
Shoes won't solve the underlying issue, so I would rather solve that and let her be a pasture puff in the meantime and not chance messing up her hoof more since years of improper hoofcare caused a bigger problem to begin with.
Nhg, I will see about getting video if I can get some help to show how she moves.
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leli
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Post by leli on Nov 7, 2014 6:45:50 GMT
We had a horse at the barn who came with a previous leg issue (her lower leg was permanently thicker than the others from scarring and swelling). That hoof always appeared to grow faster because she wasn't using that leg normally. Every time she got trimmed, that hoof was much longer than the others. The farrier, who is quite good, said there's not much you can do to prevent it. The injury changed the way her body moves as a whole so it affected that foot.
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hugs
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Odd hoof
Nov 7, 2014 13:34:10 GMT
via mobile
Post by hugs on Nov 7, 2014 13:34:10 GMT
My BO says so many boarders treat their horses like four wheelers. So sure like you said in this case shoes are only to make up for a problem not a cure. But it could be possible that a specially designed shoe might help retrain hoof growth.
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nhg
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Post by nhg on Nov 7, 2014 15:13:33 GMT
That's what I was trying to suggest Leli but you did a better job. The reason I asked about a boot is I was thinking maybe you could borrow one SH and just see if it helps her move better rather than having to buy some and try to keep one on her all the time. I think if she needed one there would be a better option such as a rubber shoe or something along those lines.
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Post by lorddaxter on Nov 7, 2014 16:15:40 GMT
Her leg looks swollen, is it?.....what's all the black stuff with little blood specks?
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Post by horselady on Nov 7, 2014 18:31:56 GMT
When i looked at this at 7am i wanted to post my opinion than thought better , to look at it again and now make a comment. her problem is with the fetlock i think the old injury she had actually broke or twisted the joint and was never healed properly. like a cast on a broken ankle on a human.
with that said more weight is being put on the outer side of the hoof and is causing the entire hoof to grow lopsided or crooked. (wonky)
have the farrier trim as best as he can. and please keep up with it every 4 weeks.
hoof boots will be great to help compensate for the uneven wear. i would put them on both front feet so she is balanced. it is too late to straighten out that fetlock so you need to correct the hoof.
and i would not breed her again just in case that is a birth defect and not an injury. jmo
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nhg
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Post by nhg on Nov 7, 2014 18:55:35 GMT
I was just looking at the picture of her again and I noticed she looks like she has a hunter's/jumper's bump which would indicate a pelvic issue. What do you know about the injury she had before you got her exactly? I'm thinking she might end up being a pasture pet after all due to an old injury but I hope you are able to help her in some way. Even a quiet walk/trot horse would be great for your daughter in a few years.
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Post by horselover4life on Nov 8, 2014 0:05:04 GMT
She looks to me like she was stepped on as a baby....damage and injury occurred.
By the time anyone saw a problem it was to late to do much reconstructive and supportive treatment.
If your farrier can just get her to the point of using it more like her other limb it will take much strain off the rest of her body.
She stands with a "lightness" of weight bearing that puts a lot of excess stress everywhere else...as you already know.
Unless that hoof can get to near "perfect" and matching condition to her other hind hoof, I would not put any added stresses to her with weight bearing human or equine. Her hoof is precariously holding together with that angle...I am surprised she doesn't have separation and is sound actually.
Her left compared to her right looks to have tissue atrophy....not sure what you can do about that.
It is a very good thing she fell into your families loving hands...
jmo...
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Post by horselady on Nov 8, 2014 1:24:10 GMT
On a note about the trimming of the hooves, see the large hoof line. that means either a change in diet. or stress or fever. it has grown down far and the farrier should trim both hooves to just about that line. not to it. about 1/2 way to it. and make sure the edges are rounded off. and the stress hoof. needs it on the outside so it can balance.
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Post by spirithawk06 on Nov 8, 2014 1:57:01 GMT
I know nothing about the injury other than it happened as a foal and her hoof never grew right since. I know it's not much to go on.
She did have some separation before this last trim. He said it looked better this trim. I was looking at the dates of those pictures thinking those were my more recent ones, but those are from a while back. The flecks on her leg is a mix of black (swamp) mud from her walking through a ditch and some blood from sandflies. I've yet to find a good spray that keeps the sandflies away for more than a couple of hours or a day. They were brutal this summer.
As for breeding her again, the breeding wasn't intended to begin with, and we no longer have any studs on the property or nearby, and I'm done rescuing, so that won't be an issue again unless some freak accident happens and a stud comes calling from far way. No one nearby has horses.
We had tried to go every 6 weeks but the hoof grows so fast that we're going to 4 weeks, even if the other hooves don't grow quite as fast.
We rode her twice when we first got her and the old farrier was trimming her. She was limping for a couple of days after both times and limped for days every time she was trimmed, so I refused to ride her or let anyone else ride her since and found another farrier. From what the previous owner said, she was ridden quite a bit when he had her. She even saved his life by refusing to ride to the back one day. He wound up having a heart attack right after he dismounted. Had she gone to the back, he would have died before he got help. For that alone, she deserves to live out her life as comfortably as possible. The new trimmer said we could put a light kid (no saddle) and walk her when her hooves are trimmed right, but I haven't even tried that. I don't want to put more weight on her when we're trying to fix a weight-bearing problem. It's a shame because she's well-trained and really wants to work, but I won't hurt her more by riding her. My mom loves her, so she offered to take over paying for her care and her be "her" horse. Tilley loves her too, so I let her. She doesn't ride, so she doesn't feel the pressure to make her rideable again. She just wants a horse to love on so she can be a pasture puff and mom will be perfectly happy.
No one I know uses boots. I'll ask my vet to take a look at her and see what kind she'd recommend. My trimmer doesn't do shoes, only barefoot trims, so unless he consults with his mentor, I don't know if he'd know what she needs. It was too dark out to get pictures by the time I got home. I'll have more time tomorrow.
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Post by horselady on Nov 8, 2014 2:28:32 GMT
You are ding the best you can. and the mare will be fine.search out the hoof boots and see which ones are going to fit your lifestyle and make sure there is a soft pad on the inside .like a felt liner. she is a lovely looking mare .  |
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Post by lorddaxter on Nov 8, 2014 13:34:18 GMT
Can you lift her foot up so we can see pictures?
I tried to go 6 weeks with mine but 4 weeks is what they need, even 5 is pushing it, their feet grow so fast some years:(
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hugs
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Post by hugs on Nov 8, 2014 20:51:01 GMT
That is quite a thing that she protected her rider like that. You bet, any one of us would give her all the benefit of the doubt and keep trying to help her, no doubt, no doubt. Hope you keep us up to date on her.
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Post by spirithawk06 on Nov 8, 2014 21:48:30 GMT
youtu.be/ykd3sR_SwJQYes, I was wearing tennis shoes. We were about to go somewhere but I got the video while I had Greg to help me. I usually wear boots when handling the horses.
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Post by spirithawk06 on Nov 8, 2014 22:09:31 GMT
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nhg
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Post by nhg on Nov 8, 2014 22:23:38 GMT
Hmmm... Okay, here's what I noticed and I'm no lameness expert but it did stand out for me. She does bring both of her back legs quite far forward under her as she walks, which is good. But her tailhead actually dips down every time she moves a back leg forward, which is odd. You can see her tail do a little dip. But I don't see lameness in the classical sense. And I don't see a funky way of moving. When is the last time she was ridden and how old is she? I wonder if she's getting better. She's such a pretty mare!
My daughter is pretty good at seeing issues and she doesn't see anything off with her foot, either, other than she thinks there's a hip or pelvis issue as well. |
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