Zenyatta: Champion Mare Shows Her Toes at Bath Time

Zenyatta, originally uploaded by Rock and Racehorses.

Photographer Sarah K. Andrew coaxed champion mare Zenyatta to show off one of her shiny shoes while she enjoyed her bath at Churchill Downs recently, before returning to California to win her first start of 2009. Thanks, Sarah, for sharing this photo!

Friends at Rest: Farrier Linda Best

Linda Best was very proud of the national champion miniature driving horses that she exhibited and drove herself. (Ribbons for Linda photo)

New Hampshire farrier Linda Best died Sunday morning. The entire New England farrier community and miniature horse world has been thinking of Linda and her farrier husband, Paul, and we all wanted to believe there was hope she'd recover. That wasn't to be and we've lost a friend.

Click here to read a story about a day that will be how we'll all try to remember Linda. A second annual benefit "Ribbons for Linda" horse show had been planned for next Sunday. More info is available at this link.

I hope there will be more details available when the world comes back from the long weekend.

Memorial Day and the Medal of Honor, Farrier Style

by Fran Jurga | 25 May 2009 | Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog

The Medal of Honor of the United States

Everything was in place. The cemetery was a sea of green grass, gray granite markers, tiny flags, and red geraniums. All we needed was a marching band, the Little League, the Girl Scouts, and the Color Guard and we'd be all set.

And here they come, right on cue.

No one comes from a more scenic hometown than I do and there is no day of the year when Shirley Center, Massachusetts looks more idyllic than on Memorial Day.

This weekend, my eye lingered on all the mossy Civil War soldiers' graves (there are quite a few) and I thought about the marker in the center of the Common that honors the ones who didn't come back.

On Memorial Day, anyone who died fighting in any war should be in our thoughts, so I have some interesting names that I'd like to share. These men are listed with the US Congress as recipients of the Medal of Honor (sometimes called the Congressional Medal of Honor), given, usually, for gallantry in action. But they weren't gun-toting combat soldiers; they were hammer-hoisting horseshoers.

Not airmen or artillerymen or scouts or Marines. They were sent with the cavalry to shoe the horses and they somehow ended up performing acts of courage and distinction. They perhaps performed these acts unarmed, except for their tools. George Meach actually captured the flag for the Union forces at the battle at Winchester; I wonder if he still had his apron on.

For many years, the Medal of Honor was the only medal given. It began after the Civil War; up until then, the Americans didn't give medals.

Farrier Recipients of the Medal of Honor

Except for George, who was in the Civil War, these men were part of an army mounted on horseback that was sent to clear the western frontier and make it safe for the migration of thousands of settlers. The Native Americans stood in their way, and the conflict is as much a wound on the national conscience as the Civil War that preceded it.

The Army depended on horses and needed farriers. Lots of them. Many immigrant farriers used their skill to get through Ellis Island's immigration red tape and enlisted right there in the army as a way to gain citizenship with guaranteed pay; others were quickly trained. Four of the farriers who won the Medal of Honor were immigrants. Many, like Ernst Veuve, shod horses in the Army without ever learning to speak English.

I'm sure that, in later wars, there were farriers who were awarded many medals, while serving in combat.

Some other farriers to remember today: Vincent Charley, John Bringes, James Moore, Benjamin Brandon, Benjamin Wells, and William Heath. Those six farriers set out for what was supposed to be a simple week-long maneuver under their general, one George Armstrong Custer. It ended in the valley of Montana's Little Big Horn river on June 25, 1876. I think you know the rest of that story.

Memorial Day began in 1868, when it was called simply "remembrance day". Take a minute today and remember what and who this holiday is really about.

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing. No use without permission. You only need to ask. Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. This blog may be read online at the blog page, checked via RSS feed, or received via a digest-type email (requires signup in box at top right of blog page). To subscribe to Hoofcare and Lameness (the journal), please visit the main site, www.hoofcare.com, where many educational products and media related to equine lameness and hoof science can be found. 

"What Price the Horse?" A World War I Farrier Wondered

by Fran Jurga | 23 May 2009 | Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog

A friend shared with me this photo of a farrier sergeant mounted on what looks like a mighty English hunter who must have been drafted to fight in France in World War I.

Army Farriers Help Retiring Military Horses Hang Up Their Horseshoes in Colorado

by Fran Jurga | 22 May 2009 | Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog

Fort Carson, Colorado hosted a ceremony this week that you don't often hear about. Sgt. 1st Class Possum and Master Sgt. Houdini officially retired from service in the US Army. And they went out in style. Horses are not considered just inventory in the Army, they even have rank and can be promoted (or demoted). But they needed the help of Sgt. Jon Husby and Cpl. John Slatton before they could head out to greener pastures.

The official retirement ceremony for two long-serving and hard-working ceremonial color guard horses meant that a single shoe was tacked onto the foot of each horse and it was saddled up for (according to these photos) what looks like an expedition to go after Pancho Villa.

The horses were then led into the arena and ceremoniously unsaddled. The two farriers then pulled the nails and removed the ceremonial shoes. (Note the shoe pullers in Sgt. Husby's hind pocket.)

Tracking down this story meant interviewing sources at Fort Carson who obviously had never been interrogated about their horseshoeing services before, and there is probably a red terrorism alert in the area this weekend because of unprecedented questions asked about military horse hoofcare. You can blame this blog.

Suffice to say, the military press service was very generous to allow the use of these photos but did not want the farriers to be interviewed. They did say that the farriers get to wear blue jeans instead of government-issue uniform pants, and that Sgt. Husby attended farrier school last year in Oklahoma so he could take care of the fort's color guard's horses' hooves.

Sgts. Possum and Houdini, meanwhile, are headed to Florida, where they will live out their days at Mill Creek Farm in Alachua, which is home to many retired military and police horses.

Both horses have been champions or placed over the years in the National Cavalry Competition on behalf of Fort Carson's honor and glory. Fort Carson is named for the legendary frontier scout, Kit Carson.

The farriers will still have six horses at Fort Carson to shoe, and I hope that keeps them busy.


Along the same lines, here's a brief video supplied by the US Army about the hoof preparation of the horses from the Fort Riley, Kansas color guard who participated in the Inaugural Parade in Washington, DC back in January of this year.

Fort Riley was the longtime western capital of horseshoeing in America, as it was the home of the US Army's cavalry school of horseshoeing. I have often wondered if the reason there are so many horseshoeing schools in Oklahoma is because of the psychic presence of that huge and powerful school in the Midwest for so many years. I hope there is a big plaque somewhere on that military base to remember all those farriers, and I hope to get there one of these days to find out!

Photos for this article provided by the United States Army.

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing. No use without permission. You only need to ask. Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. This blog may be read online at the blog page, checked via RSS feed, or received via a digest-type email (requires signup in box at top right of blog page). To subscribe to Hoofcare and Lameness (the journal), please visit the main site, www.hoofcare.com, where many educational products and media related to equine lameness and hoof science can be found. Questions or problems with this blog? Send email to blog@hoofcare.com.

New DVD Announcement: "From the Ground Up" Hosted by Ian McKinlay, with Trainers from All Sports, Is Big Brown's Legacy

by Fran Jurga | 20 May 2009 | Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog

This brief trailer is a promotion for the two-disc 3.5 hour "From the Ground Up" video library compiled by hoof repair specialist Ian McKinlay and many leading horsemen (see list below). The set is sold for $50 plus $6 post in the USA; $12 elsewhere (USA format DVD only). To order call 01 978 281 3222. fax 01978 283 8775 or email GroundUpDVD@hoofcare.com.

"Quarter Crack" might be Ian McKinlay's middle name. A year ago, you couldn't turn on the television or open a newspaper without seeing his face, as all eyes turned to the hoof repair specialist for insight into Big Brown's chances to win the Triple Crown: would the colt be sound? Could he win with two healing wall separations and a quarter crack?

A year later, McKinlay is still working quietly on the backside of Belmont Park in the morning but he's just finished a bigger idea, and we're rolling it out this month for you.

"From the Ground Up" is a 3.5 hour 2-disc DVD library that explores what can and does go wrong on the track and in the show ring, and how it affects the people in charge. Ian spent months interviewing his clients and his colleagues--top trainers, farriers and veterinarians--and asking them what their experiences with hoof problems at the highest level could teach to all horsemen.

Ian interspersed their words of wisdom and recollections with cases of nasty hoof imbalance, white line disease, wall separations and quarter cracks. His famous Dremel tool is busy in this series and there is some promotion for his glue-on Yasha shoe toward the end, but for the most part this is an educational production at a very low price.

The six segments of the two discs are: 1. Foundation; 2. Pre-Purchase; 3. Diagnosis; 4. Causes and Solutions; 5. Balancing the Hoof; 6. Prevention.

There are a lot of extremes in this DVD. Some of the trainers speak in vague generalities, and the feet that Ian shows and works on are wrecks from the racetrack that are collapsed beyond what most viewers might ever see; these horses obviously started with a weak foot and nothing was done to help the horse until it was deemed a crisis.

This is not an instructional DVD, per se; I would hope that no one would watch it and then pick up a Dremel drill and start removing parts of a horse's foot. But from nicely-dressed Olympic and Triple Crown trainers sitting in the sun to horses with big chunks of hoof missing, this DVD at least starts to connect some of the dots.

When some of our most valuable horses have some of the most miserable lameness problems, the irony has to be that Ian McKinlay never says the obvious: the best trainers should have the best horses and the best horses should be sound and not need a hoof repair specialist on speed-dial. But it never seems to work this way.

This DVD is a little bit of Entertainment Tonight meets Food Network, or maybe This Old House. Ian is an excellent host. Celebrity talking heads "tell all" about their hoof problems; notable vets and farriers lean on hammers philosophically and sharp knives trim off dead tissue while sheared heels and collapsed frogs make you wonder if gravity will ever show mercy.

Starring from Thoroughbred racing: Bob Baffert, Richard Mandella, D. Wayne Lukas.

Trainers featured: John Campbell (harness racing), Bruce Davidson (eventing), Anne Kursinski (jumpers), Ian Millar (jumpers), Bryant Pace (reining), Havens Schott (hunters), Betsy Steiner (dressage), Ted Turner (Quarter horses)

Farriers featured: Jim Bayes, Doyle Blagg, Tom Curl, Hank Joseph, and Dwight Sanders

Veterinarians featured: Drs John Steele and Alan Donnell.

Note: The DVD would be really long if viewed at once but it is divided into chapters to make it easier to both find points for reference and to view it in parts.

This is a very ambitious project and should stimulate interest in making more DVDs that step back and take a wider look at the "why" of hoof problems rather than just the "problem:solution" approach. Is it a horseowner DVD? Is it a farrier/vet DVD? You can make up your own mind but I know you'll enjoy watching it while you decide.

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing. No use without permission. You only need to ask. Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. This blog may be read online at the blog page, checked via RSS feed, or received via a digest-type email (requires signup in box at top right of blog page). To subscribe to Hoofcare and Lameness (the journal), please visit the main site, www.hoofcare.com, where many educational products and media related to equine lameness and hoof science can be found. Questions or problems with this blog? Send email to blog@hoofcare.com.

Badminton Horse Trials Farriers Prize 2009: Photos of New Zealand's Winning Best Shod Horse

We've been halfway around the world and back again this week to catch up with New Zealand team farrier Andrew Nickalls, who in turn has been celebrating his victory in one of the world's most understated and underrated competitions for farriers, the "best shod horse" trophy at the 60th running of the four-star Badminton Horse Trials on May 7-10 in Gloucestershire, England. Andrew (photo at left) is the sort of fellow you'd want in your life boat when the ocean liner is sinking. 

He simply shot pictures of the horse's feet with his cellphone and emailed them. Mission accomplished. Of course, you can't see much, but he got the job done.

 

The shoe, first: Vortex is a 15-year-old New Zealand Thoroughbred that is at the four-star ("Olympic") level. He finished 20th at Badminton, and the only things on his feet are shoes, nails and studs. That's quite something in itself. The shoes are handmade 3/4 x 3/8" concave, with side clips. 

I asked about the double stud holes, sure that it was some Kiwi trick but Andrew said: "I put two studs in the outside branch due to the fact that it's such a major competition where they are being taken in and out so often and therefore the extra is a spare one in case the thread goes!"

Side view shows the fit and the positioning and relative size and height of the clips. 

While the shoe is set back under the toe a bit, it's fit with some fullness at the heel and quarter, perhaps more than you'd expect for a horse that is going to be scrambling through a cross-country course. Andrew obviously knows this horse and knew what he could and couldn't do there. Some horses are more careful jumpers than others.

 
This is part 2 of this article; for more about Badminton's Farrier Prize, Andrew Nickalls, please read part 1 of this article, showing the horse's front end conformation and the rider's action. Click here to go there. The competition was judged by James Blurton, who has himself won the award three times with three different horses for three different riders. Jim evaluated the horses both before the competition and on the final day, to see how the shoes and feet had held up...and which horses were still sound. 

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing. No use without permission. You only need to ask. Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. This blog may be read online at the blog page, checked via RSS feed, or received via a digest-type email (requires signup in box at top right of blog page). 

LAMINITIS: Proceedings Book and Disk Full of Valuable Research, Therapy, and Medicine for Reference

A montage of thermography images graces the cover of the laminitis proceedings book. The images represent 48 hours of the onset of laminitis; the colors register the relative heat of the foot. If you double-click on this image, you should be able to see it at a much larger size. Image © Dr. Chris Pollitt and Hoofcare Publishing. No use without permission.

Hoofcare and Lameness is happy to announce that a few more extra copies of the proceedings book and cd-rom from the 4th International Equine Conference on Laminitis and Diseases of the Foot, held in West Palm Beach, Florida in 2007, have been added to our listings of books and new media for your library. These are probably the last copies that will ever be sold.

The Proceedings were published by Hoofcare and Lameness summarized in a 7 x 10", 122-page full-color illustrated book describing presentations and lectures with special essays written for the book by Drs James Orsini, Rustin Moore, and Chris Pollitt.

The book is sold alone, or as part of a two part book and cd-rom package.

The cd-rom contains 76 papers, plus many images and a few PowerPoint excerpts, as provided by the faculty and edited and formated by Hoofcare and Lameness. The accompanying book contains a summary of each speaker's presentation, and color photographs.

Included are the special treats of Dr. Pollitt's "48 Hours in Acute Laminitis", as shown on the cover, as well as his previously unpublished sequential CT scans of the blood supply to the foot.

Dr. Moore's essay addresses the significance of laminitis research and education in the aftermath of the Barbaro tragedy and publicity earlier in 2007.

A few other presenters and authors included Steve Adair, James Belknap, Robert Boswell, Thomas Divers, Berndt Driessen, Lisa Fortier, Bryan Fraley, Ray Geor, Aaron Gygax, Amanda House, John Hubbell, Philip Johnson, Fran Jurga, Bruce Lyle, Joseph Mankowski, Catherine McGowan, Scott Morrison, John Peroni, Patrick Reilly, Ron Renirie, Rob Sigafoos, Mark Silverman, Nathan Slovis, Ashley Stokes, Mitch Taylor, Andrew Van Eps, Don Walsh, Kathryn Watts, Mary Beth Whitcomb, Michael Wildenstein and Laura Zarucco.

The cd-rom represents the single largest collection of papers on laminitis and diseases of the foot ever published in one place.

A table of contents for the cd-rom is available on request. Please send an email to Fran Jurga if you would like the contents to be sent to you as an email attachment.

Ordering information: Order book only or book+cd-rom package. Summary book is 7x10, 122 pages, full color. CD-ROM is Mac or Windows compatible and contains all papers in PDF or PowerPoint formats. Papers vary in length and format. All orders must be pre-paid in US dollars, Visa or MasterCard accepted. Book only is $59; Book + cd-rom package is $125 per set. Add $8 postage per book or per set for USA orders; add US$15 per book or per set to other countries.

Click here for faxable order form. Fax to 978 283 8775 or mail with check drawn on USA bank to Hoofcare, 19 Harbor Loop, Gloucester MA 01930. Email orders to Conferencebooks@hoofcare.com. Prices subject to change without notice; supplies are limited.

Conference books and cd-roms were sent to all attendees of the 2007 conference. These extra copies are being offered to libraries and interested individuals who did not attend.

The Proceedings book and cd-rom were sponsored by Intervet and created by Dr. Chris Pollitt and Fran Jurga.

The 5th International Equine Conference on Laminitis and Diseases of the Foot is being planned for November 2009 and will again be held in West Palm Beach, Florida.

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing. No use without permission. Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. To subscribe to Hoofcare and Lameness, please visit our main site, www.hoofcare.com, where many educational products and media related to equine lameness and hoof science can be found. This post originally appeared on September 17, 2008 at http://www.hoofcare.blogspot.com.

Here's Your Silly but Spectacular Preakness Winner!

Like My Silly Face? (Rachel Alexandra), originally uploaded by wendyu.

Two storybook endings. Take your pick. The New Mexico longshot Kentucky Derby winner was chasing the should-she-be-there champion filly to the finish line in this afternoon's second leg of the Triple Crown for three-year-old US Thoroughbreds. Would he catch her? Should he catch her?

There was no catching Rachel Alexandra today, even though her jockey, Calvin Borel, said she had trouble "getting hold of the racetrack" because it was dry and loose and that she preferred a hard, fast track.

If she runs in the Belmont, what will that mean for her feet? She seemed to have a different gait style today, much flatter than when she ran in the Kentucky Oaks. In the Oaks, where she won by 20 lengths, she seemed to run uphill, with her withers high, like a deer, with her front end passing hardly beneath here; today she ran with her back flat. Like every other racehorse.

She wasn't planning to run again in two weeks, let alone against the colts (and one game late-running gelding from New Mexico) but her new owner had a new plan in mind. This is an amazing filly.

Thanks to Wendy Uzelac for this great shot of Rachel mugging while she enjoyed her bath this morning. Let's see what happens next.

What Do Kentucky Derby Winner Mine That Bird and Actor Walter Matthau Have in Common? A Grumpy Old Man Would Be Gambling Today

by Fran Jurga | 16 May 2009 | Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog

They have Leonard Blach in common. The New Mexico veterinarian plays the role of owner in the real life of Mine That Bird; he acted in the role of the veterinarian in the film Casey's Shadow with Matthau. The rest of the time, he actually is a veterinarian.

When you look him up, he checks out. He's a Colorado State graduate, from a ranching family, owns a New Mexico clinic.

But the softspoken co-owner of Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird is actually a veterinarian and race horse owner with Hollywood ties and a movie set past that make the Mine That Bird's story one level more surreal and storybook than they may already appear. This veterinarian has his union card and is ready for his close-up.

And he is fully versed in the world of storybook endings, so bring on the Preakness.

Before I interviewed Dr. Blach, I thought I should do my homework, so I sat down to watch the 1978 horse-racing family classic, Casey's Shadow. And as I watched, I wondered about the fairy tale story that was unfolding before me.

If you can believe this: Walter Matthau plays a washed up Cajun running horse trainer and grumpy (of course) single dad who ruins every chance he has to prove to his sons how much he loves them. For some reason, they stick together. Salvation comes along in the form of a lightning-fast colt, so the family heads to Ruidoso, New Mexico to run against the best in the country for the big bucks and maybe a pickup truck that starts.

Except the colt is iffy in the soundness department. And there's drama. Drama that reaches its zenith late one night when the vet's truck pulls up to the barn and Leonard Blach--yes! Mine That Bird's Dr. Leonard Blach!--gets out and feels the heat in the colt's foreleg.

Blach's warning to Matthau not to risk the colt's life in the American International falls on deaf ears. Matthau has waited all his life for a colt that fast. And he's doing it for his kids. They need the money. It's a gamble. Get out the ice. He's gonna run.

It's interesting to note that this movie must have been written right after the Ruffian tragedy and I wonder how much that influenced the storyline. You know what's going to happen, and yet this is a family movie so there's a twist at the end, even if there isn't a new pickup.

The original title of the movie was Coon-Ass Colt, and there's even a song in the movie by that name, by Dr. John. The soundtrack has some great music. The film was made by Norman Ritt, famed more for social-issues films like Norma Rae.

The Cajun parts of the movie reminded me of the Calvin Borel interview on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno the other night; Leno showed a photo of Borel's childhood home and asked if they had electricity. That may be a good parallel for how much many people in mainstream racing understand about what goes on outside the spotlight of national-broadcast racing.

Blach was happy to reminisce with me about the fun days of filming Casey's Shadow, when Hollywood came to Ruidoso and Santa Fe. Apparently, there's work for veterinarians on movie sets, both in front of the camera and behind the scenes. We were both surprised that the press hasn't drawn more parallels between the film and the real life story that unfolded right before us on May 2, 2009.

Horse racing is Dr. Blach's world, and racing in New Mexico is unique. The purses seem huge for a sprint, the atmosphere seems casual and the technology amassed to reproduce and refine the Quarter horse running machine in utero would amaze anyone who has been parked in the Thoroughbred world's breeding sheds for a while.

Case in point: Consider the recent application of technology to extend Storm Cat's career by retiring him from Thoroughbreds to reinventing him for artificial breeding for Quarter horses; a droplet of Storm Cat's sperm can be bioengineered or "extended" to insure his fertility in the Quarter horse world for a long time to come.

And if you live in that world where talk is not so much of foals but of embryos, you would know the name of Dr. Leonard Blach and his Buena Suerte Clinic. The equine hospital in Roswell has stood some of the leading money-winners in Quarter horse racing, including the greats Go Man Go and Easy Jet.

Dr. Blach thought that if there was something that could come of his group's colorful trek to Louisville and Mine That Bird's inspired romp under Calvin Borel's guidance, it would be to introduce America to The Other Racing. There is another way to race horses. There is another way to breed and raise horses. There is another way to dress and talk and look at the world.

If you rent Casey's Shadow, it looks dated and hokey but there is still something authentic about it, no matter how bad Matthau's attempt at a Cajun accent. It's a good horse racing movie, filmed on location. They didn't try to make Santa Anita look like Ruidoso Downs: they went there, instead, and actors and cameramen alike ate the dust of those horses.

Right now, Dr. Blach and his group from New Mexico have our attention and have put New Mexico on the racing map for many people. But guess what? It was there all along. And thriving.

This afternoon, Americans will gather in front of television sets to watch the Preakness. My guess is more than a few will be wearing cowboy hats in support of the boys from New Mexico and their little horse.

I'll be hoping for another Hollywood ending.

This post originally appeared in a slightly different version on www.equisearch.com. Thanks to repro specialist Gregg Veneklasen DVM of Timber Creek Veterinary Hospital in Canyon, Texas for linking Dr. Blach to the film.

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing. No use without permission. You only need to ask. Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. This blog may be read online at the blog page, checked via RSS feed, or received via a digest-type email (requires signup in box at top right of blog page). To subscribe to Hoofcare and Lameness (the journal), please visit the main site, www.hoofcare.com, where many educational products and media related to equine lameness and hoof science can be found. Questions or problems with this blog? Send email to blog@hoofcare.com.