Equine Podologist / Podologa Equina- More than a barefoot trimmer

27/04/2022

It's great, truly, madly, deeply, that more and more people are waking up to barefoot health for their horse. But this also means more and more are seeing new opportunities to part people from their money. Especially when it comes to hoof boots.
You would go to Rigby and Peller for a correctly fitted bra, and that would be to ´merely` keep your chest comfortably in check. So why, when we speak of the foundations of our horse, the relatively small base on which he or she must perform all day long (just standing needs to be done correctly to not affect the rest of the body) would you ask a local tack shop to supply you, or worse still, recommendations from a non-specific horse collective?

Even sound horses can have varying hoof shapes, and therefore not any and every boot is ideal. There is also the climate, terrain, and level of riding to be considered before finalising a choice. But if your horse is dealing with a pathology, their requirements from a hoof boot for support or protection can be very varied.

Please, ask your equine podiatrist. A professional will either have more than adequate experience of many hoof boots, or will graciously pass you the information of someone who does. A company dedicated to the sale of hoof boots is always going to have more knowledge than your local tack shop, unless they have employed the services of an experienced equine podiatrist or hoof boot fitter.

The initial outlay is not cheap. You don’t want to see your boot flying off into never land after only a few kilometres of use, or worse, causing chaffing, overheating, or any fit-error that could aggravate or initiate a pathology. Correctly fitted boots work out a very wise buy. They will provide proper support for your horse, and last many many kilometres. A healthy (correctly fed, nurtured and managed) barefoot horse suffers far less maladies than a shod horse. So in the end, your hoof boots, correctly fitted, save you money.

Photo from Easycareinc.

27/04/2022

Do you check?
Do you know what to check for?

What comes out tells you so much about what is going on inside. And if the inside isn't right, the hooves wont be right (and it wont end there).

A glossy shine, neat, reasonably firm balls that break up easily and when you lightly squash them some fluid is expressed, are the signs of healthy manure.
Undigested grains or seeds, long pieces of fibre, lava, watery manure, dry manure or strange colours are a number of the signs that one or many things are wrong.

Ask your vet for some facts about the f***l matter.

15/01/2022

Rather brilliant article. Well worth the read.

The horse is a prey animal, the human a predator. Our shared trust and athleticism is a neurobiological miracle

06/01/2022

Halter/bridle shy?
Read on...

This will be strange…

There is a unique region on your horse’s head that can give you information about his/her gut health… Also can cause a LOT of trouble for you…Sounds silly? It’s not!

I’m talking about an acupuncture point that can be reactive if you touch it and there are some halters that can touch that region too, and cause some trouble….

Now you might wonder…

How is this possible? How is their head and GI system connected? Is this really working?

Well the point is interconnected with the stomach via so called viscerosomatic reflexes, this means if there is some sort of stomach discomfort like an ulcer, this point will be also sensitive on their skin (some other regions will be sensitive too)

Sounds interesting right?

Maybe this will be an explanation to you why your horse hates his/her halter… Also if it’s sensitive bilaterally and other GI ulcer specific points are sensitive your horse has an extremely high chance of GI ulceration.

Want to learn more?

Visit https://www.equinebiggerpicture.com/ for more information about acupunture points connected with GI health, herbal management of different GI issues, nutrition and much more!

27/12/2021

Whilst some evils are less so than others, they can cause loosening of teeth, they do cause softening of dentin, a horse has to be anaesthetised when using them (which can cause many other side-affects), so it would be so much easier, so much less risk to just say ´no` to the electric float.

Equine Dental Care - Dr. Andrew is well equipped and experienced with both hand tools and special power floating instruments. These allow him to perform many dental

27/12/2021

Say no to electric floats.....
A horse has to be sedated when using them; immediately removing it's "power" whilst it still remains fully aware of what is going on, turning what could be a pleasant, easily tolerable experience into a recurring nightmare for your horse.
Then there is the damage......

Motorised dental instruments have the potential to seriously damage equine pulp if used inappropriately. Higher speed motorised dental instruments should be used for less time and teeth should be water cooled during or immediately after instrument use to reduce the risk of thermal pulpar damage.

27/12/2021

Was a study really required to tell us the screamingly obvious?

Horses are designed to move from birth. They are designed to move gradually increasing distances within a few short weeks after birth, up to approximately 50 km's a day. Doing this with their little bodies on their almost full size legs prepares their legs in readiness to take their full sized bodies.
The equine skeleton develops such that the distal bones are the first to fuse, within 6 months of birth. Take a look in comments for a simple graph showing the development of the skeleton, and how the focus is very much on those incredible limbs in the first 2 years of life.
It stands to reason a foal kept in a confined space, stall, small paddock with limited movement will not have ligaments, tendons and bones anywhere near as strong and resilient as his wild cousin. Muscles can always be built up later, but are little use if they don't have the scaffolding to hold them up.

Researchers: Understanding the impact of early exercise on growing horses could help prevent bone fractures in the future.

22/11/2021

I was unable to share this from the original authors page - likely due to my technical inabilities! So copy and paste, here we go.

The Lowly Farrier
20 November at 23:54 ·
Barefoot trimmers v Farriers
After 20yrs shoeing horses & 10yrs measuring feet, I’ve noted one main difference between the barefoot trimmer & the farrier & imo the barefoot trimmer has got it right!
The mindset of the barefoot trimmer is to create, restore & maintain a healthy functional hoof capsule.
The trimmer looks at the hoof & sees distortion in the hoof capsule, which they then set about to improve. They find in most cases that by creating a healthy, functional hoof that generally the horse is healthier & happier.
The farrier looks at the hoof & their focus is largely about the shoe, often with less concern for the health & function of the hoof. In fact, often they use the unhealthy hoof as a reason for the very shoes they apply.
And whilst I feel strongly that there’s a need for shoes in our industry, the shoe should come second to, or at least contribute to, the health & function of the foot!
Unfortunately in almost all cases the shoe applied compromises the very thing it was designed to protect & because we have been doing the same thing for hundreds of years, we accept it!
If you look at most barefoot trimmers pages, they will have beautiful, healthy, functional hooves as their main photo.
If u look at most farriers, their photos are all about the shoe that they made, the pretty finish or nail line & in so many cases these shoes are on distorted & less than functional, not so healthy feet.
I started respectfully questioning farriers who were showing their well made handmades etc in feet with significant distortion, in 99% of cases with caudal failure, ‘what are you doing to try to correct the hoof distortion & poor alignment?’
The answer was I was banned from the page, no answer at all &/or that farrier doesn’t post lateral photos anymore. In all of my asking I have received a response from one person.
Now, most of these farriers that I can still see their page do not seem to show lateral photos of their work anymore. It’s like, if I don’t show it, it doesn’t exist!
Surely as farriers we need to reassess our purpose, & the reason behind why the majority of hoof capsules fail in open heel metal shoes. Surely the job of a farrier is to do more than apply metal to protect the foot?!
Whilst I’m not saying I agree with everything barefoot & the ideals of some of the top trimmers, but I much prefer the barefoot trimmers mindset & focus, which is around improving, creating & maintaining a healthy & functional hoof capsule.

25/10/2021

I very much understand their discontent.
People work hard for years to build up a brand, and to do it right.
People can totally blow it in a hot second with their selective science, their purchased studies, and what is, in this case, an out and out fabrication of the truth.
If for nothing else, do please read this as a reminder that not all facts are true!

It’s come to my attention that a certain company out there, who shall remain nameless other than TC, (This Company), has issued a rewrite of a study they’ve carried out, via a newletter, comparing iron content in (one of) their mineral balancers against a range of others on the market, and claim...

22/07/2021

Can you see a shod horse doing this?