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macisherfield
Chillin' with the herd
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I plan on getting a farrier out there ASAP. Thank you for your suggestions they will follow through!
Hoof slit, crack, growing uncontrollably fast
- Thread starter macisherfield
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FlaRocky
Chillin' with the herd
Keep us posted on how he is doing...with photos if possible.
Good luck,
Maye
Good luck,
Maye
secuono
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Feet grow faster in the summer.
The hooves look uneven, flaring and possibly under run heels.
You need a real farrier to come out and fix these feet.
The hooves look uneven, flaring and possibly under run heels.
You need a real farrier to come out and fix these feet.
You will need that expert Farrier to return in 6-8 weeks, whatever he thinks is needed.
I expect a Farrier to be able to hot shoe my animals, by carrying a forge on their truck.
Forge heat gives the Farrier more "tricks"by being able to create the shoe if something
special is needed. Farrier who doesn't have a forge, has to work the shoes cold, which
is harder work. Shoe SHOULD fit the hoof shape and most shoes don't match a hoof
without being shaped on an anvil. Hot shoe is easier to shape, but not the only way
to shape a shoe. Farrier should not be rasping off all kinds of hoof wall, to make
the hoof fit the shoe. Have Farrier explain what they are doing and WHY it is needed.
Farrier might see things on hoof after trimming it, that are not evident from your photo
and not seen without a bottom view of the hoof after trimming the walls down.
One shoeing is not going to fix the problems with the split hoof, so the expense is not
done with one visit from the Farrier. But having the shoe
on, should help in preventing the continued splitting as hoof grows down. Horse may
need to be shod for up to 9 months, which is what it usually take to grow a hoof
down from the hairline to the ground. If hoof has continued damage from an old
scar in the hairline, that splitting may be a lifetime issue to deal with. Farrier will
help you by looking at the issue in person, explaining your options. ASK QUESTIONS!
The black hoof does look like an abcess blow-out to me, as was already suggested.
Just getting the hoof in good condition, shaped with toes and heels at the appropriate lengths,
should help the hoof wall grow down and eventually get the hole removed. It may chip
out when hole gets close to the ground, but still should not make a big hole.
Are these two hooves both fronts or hinds or a front and hind? You might be able to do
just shoeing the white hoof and it's other hoof of the pair. You save by not shoeing
the other front or hind pair of hooves. Again, Farrier NEEDS to be coming back on a regular
schedule to keep that split hoof from continuing to split upward. Leaving shoes on
too long is as bad as not having them on at all. Forces the hoof to work in ways it
is not designed to, could injure or sore up the horse because the hoof grows all the time.
You might talk to the Farrier about learning to trim your own animal eventually. Many
will help you get started. Farrier is already coming to shoe the split hoof, they could oversee your work in
trimming, tell and SHOW you what you need to improve. You will need a pair of nippers,
a hoof knife and a sharp rasp to do hoof trimming. Maybe you could find some better
name-brand nippers used, for lesser money. I would not buy at the Farm store, those
nippers are pretty junky, won't stay sharp. Maybe the Farrier has an old pair they
would sell you. Better tools are a huge improvement on how "easy" it is to trim
the hooves.
I started trimming my ponies at about 14yrs old, since there were no Farriers around
our area. My 4-H Leader helped me start by showing me where and how much to take
off, stuff that didn't need removing, how to start with LITTLE removed. He then
checked up on my work over the summer, and ponies got ridden a LOT. So hooves
stayed in good shape with only nipping off a tiny rim of hoof walls, kept worn down with
not much to remove. Kept the chips from road riding smoothed up by rasping the wall
edges to keep them rounded. It has been a very useful skill to have over the years.
I expect a Farrier to be able to hot shoe my animals, by carrying a forge on their truck.
Forge heat gives the Farrier more "tricks"by being able to create the shoe if something
special is needed. Farrier who doesn't have a forge, has to work the shoes cold, which
is harder work. Shoe SHOULD fit the hoof shape and most shoes don't match a hoof
without being shaped on an anvil. Hot shoe is easier to shape, but not the only way
to shape a shoe. Farrier should not be rasping off all kinds of hoof wall, to make
the hoof fit the shoe. Have Farrier explain what they are doing and WHY it is needed.
Farrier might see things on hoof after trimming it, that are not evident from your photo
and not seen without a bottom view of the hoof after trimming the walls down.
One shoeing is not going to fix the problems with the split hoof, so the expense is not
done with one visit from the Farrier. But having the shoe
on, should help in preventing the continued splitting as hoof grows down. Horse may
need to be shod for up to 9 months, which is what it usually take to grow a hoof
down from the hairline to the ground. If hoof has continued damage from an old
scar in the hairline, that splitting may be a lifetime issue to deal with. Farrier will
help you by looking at the issue in person, explaining your options. ASK QUESTIONS!
The black hoof does look like an abcess blow-out to me, as was already suggested.
Just getting the hoof in good condition, shaped with toes and heels at the appropriate lengths,
should help the hoof wall grow down and eventually get the hole removed. It may chip
out when hole gets close to the ground, but still should not make a big hole.
Are these two hooves both fronts or hinds or a front and hind? You might be able to do
just shoeing the white hoof and it's other hoof of the pair. You save by not shoeing
the other front or hind pair of hooves. Again, Farrier NEEDS to be coming back on a regular
schedule to keep that split hoof from continuing to split upward. Leaving shoes on
too long is as bad as not having them on at all. Forces the hoof to work in ways it
is not designed to, could injure or sore up the horse because the hoof grows all the time.
You might talk to the Farrier about learning to trim your own animal eventually. Many
will help you get started. Farrier is already coming to shoe the split hoof, they could oversee your work in
trimming, tell and SHOW you what you need to improve. You will need a pair of nippers,
a hoof knife and a sharp rasp to do hoof trimming. Maybe you could find some better
name-brand nippers used, for lesser money. I would not buy at the Farm store, those
nippers are pretty junky, won't stay sharp. Maybe the Farrier has an old pair they
would sell you. Better tools are a huge improvement on how "easy" it is to trim
the hooves.
I started trimming my ponies at about 14yrs old, since there were no Farriers around
our area. My 4-H Leader helped me start by showing me where and how much to take
off, stuff that didn't need removing, how to start with LITTLE removed. He then
checked up on my work over the summer, and ponies got ridden a LOT. So hooves
stayed in good shape with only nipping off a tiny rim of hoof walls, kept worn down with
not much to remove. Kept the chips from road riding smoothed up by rasping the wall
edges to keep them rounded. It has been a very useful skill to have over the years.
sawfish99
Loving the herd life
I haven't been around, so I didn't see this earlier. I am a barefoot trimmer with 7 years of experience. First, what you need is a good barefoot trimmer, not a farrier. I'm not against farriers, but your horse has always been barefoot. There is absolutely nothing with those hooves that can't be fixed by a legitimate trimmer. Do not put shoes on the hooves because that will lead to new problems.
Here is one listing for WI http://www.tribeequus.com/help.html
The theory that white hooves have more problems and crack easier than dark hooves is a wives tale. There are no actual studies that prove this.
The white hoof (based on appearance I believe this is likely a front hoof):
There is a lot going on. The horse has laminitis, meaning the laminae is separating internally. The hoof wall is being pried away from the internal structures of the hoof. This is occurring because your pasture is not sufficient to cause the horse to self trim and naturally keep a proper shape. Therefore, you must provide the trimming to keep the hooves healthy. His hooves are very unhealthy. Near the ground, the hoof wall is more separated which is causing the flat looking toe. This creates additional force on the hoof wall as the hoof is rolled forward during walking action which continues the cycle of pulling the hoof wall outward.
The vertically running cracks are DIRECTLY related to the problems with the hoof wall. Since there is severe separation at the ground, dirt and small ricks are being driven into the open space. This creates places for bacteria to live and generates the cracks you see. The cracking will heal following a proper barefoot trim that allows new hoof growth.
Since there is no side profile, I can't say for certain, but I expect the heels are under run which is further stressing the internals of the hoof.
The black hoof (I assume a rear hoof based on the structure).
The horizontal crack has 2 possible causes. It very likely could be from where an abcess blew out the hoof wall. If so, it will resolve itself as the hoof grows out. However, it also could be similar to the front hooves where the toe is suffering severe separation and horizontal crack is where the excess hoof wall is preparing to break off. A side view of the hoof would better distinguish between the two. Regardless, this hoof also shows signs of laminitis and separation based on the flaring at ground level.
Course of action:
You definitely need professional help. The family members that are helping out are clearly not adequate for this situation, or the feet wouldn't be this bad. I highly recommend a professional barefoot trimmer, but even a farrier is better than nothing at this point. The cost is whatever it is in your area. Around me in CT, an average trim is $40-60 depending on the experience of the trimmer. If the horse is poorly behaved, then the cost goes up. Those feet need to be trimmed every 4 weeks to rehabilitate. If $40 every 4 weeks is too much, you need to give the horses to someone who can take care of them. If the hoof problems are not addressed, the horse will go critically lame.
Here is one listing for WI http://www.tribeequus.com/help.html
The theory that white hooves have more problems and crack easier than dark hooves is a wives tale. There are no actual studies that prove this.
The white hoof (based on appearance I believe this is likely a front hoof):
There is a lot going on. The horse has laminitis, meaning the laminae is separating internally. The hoof wall is being pried away from the internal structures of the hoof. This is occurring because your pasture is not sufficient to cause the horse to self trim and naturally keep a proper shape. Therefore, you must provide the trimming to keep the hooves healthy. His hooves are very unhealthy. Near the ground, the hoof wall is more separated which is causing the flat looking toe. This creates additional force on the hoof wall as the hoof is rolled forward during walking action which continues the cycle of pulling the hoof wall outward.
The vertically running cracks are DIRECTLY related to the problems with the hoof wall. Since there is severe separation at the ground, dirt and small ricks are being driven into the open space. This creates places for bacteria to live and generates the cracks you see. The cracking will heal following a proper barefoot trim that allows new hoof growth.
Since there is no side profile, I can't say for certain, but I expect the heels are under run which is further stressing the internals of the hoof.
The black hoof (I assume a rear hoof based on the structure).
The horizontal crack has 2 possible causes. It very likely could be from where an abcess blew out the hoof wall. If so, it will resolve itself as the hoof grows out. However, it also could be similar to the front hooves where the toe is suffering severe separation and horizontal crack is where the excess hoof wall is preparing to break off. A side view of the hoof would better distinguish between the two. Regardless, this hoof also shows signs of laminitis and separation based on the flaring at ground level.
Course of action:
You definitely need professional help. The family members that are helping out are clearly not adequate for this situation, or the feet wouldn't be this bad. I highly recommend a professional barefoot trimmer, but even a farrier is better than nothing at this point. The cost is whatever it is in your area. Around me in CT, an average trim is $40-60 depending on the experience of the trimmer. If the horse is poorly behaved, then the cost goes up. Those feet need to be trimmed every 4 weeks to rehabilitate. If $40 every 4 weeks is too much, you need to give the horses to someone who can take care of them. If the hoof problems are not addressed, the horse will go critically lame.
