Barefoot Hoofcare Practices Subject of British Government Survey to Veterinarians

A government survey of British veterinarians is taking no prisoners and leaving no stones unturned. While the clear goal of the newly-launched Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs ("Defra") online survey is to collect veterinarians' comments on what they have seen and thought about barefoot hoofcare practices in the field, it's obvious that farriers are under this microscope as well.

No one has ever said it in quite such succinct words, or asked from so many angles, however.

Life's Small Moments: Zenyatta's First Foal's First Trim Is the Privilege of Dr. Scott Morrison

Photo by Alys Emson/Lane's End

Farriers really get a feel for their work when they give a foal its first trim. It's a new experience for a young horse. Foals are known to twist and turn and flip and strike and paw with those tiny hooves, which become sharp little hammers at the end of surprisingly powerful little legs.

They don't mean to hurt anyone, they're just not sure what's going on. They'll climb up over your back. They'll want to be able to see their mothers. The mare will want to be able to see her foal. You have to get the sightlines right and you have to work fast. Then it's on to the next one, knowing you have a date with the chiropractor already scheduled in your book.

And guess what? You're going to need it.

But what if the foal you have to trim next is the most photographed, most written about, and most beloved little Thoroughbred in the whole world? What if his mother was the world-class mare who won just as many hearts as she won dollars?

That's what happened to Scott Morrison DVM of Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington, Kentucky. He spends a lot of time at Lane's End Farm in Versailles, Kentucky, but the other day, he might have taken just a little bit longer to check out the foal who bounces along at the side of 2010 Horse of the Year Zenyatta.

Photo by Alys Emson/Lane's End

How does he look? Zenyatta's pride and joy, who is a son of the hot sire Bernardini, was walked up and down the stall row so Dr Morrison could evaluate his conformation and foot landing patterns. Notice that the barn aisle floor is constructed of non-slip pavers in a herringbone pattern. Not only are they safe for the mares and foals, but they also have an interesting sound effect. There's not as much ring or echo as you'd hear some flooring. Each hoofbeat offers an audible, distinguished tap. Checking foals means using your ears as well as your eyes.

Photo by Alys Emson/Lane's End

Maybe just a touch more off the outside...Baby Z has an interesting little color pattern on his coronet which means that his hooves may be a mixture of black and white horn when he is older. Zenyatta has a similar pattern.

I congratulated Scott on being the first to lay a rasp on Baby Z's hooves. He agreed that it was special to work at Lane's End and on this particular foal.

Photos for this article are courtesy of Alys Emson at Lane's End Farm; reprinted here with full permission of the photographer, Lane's End Farm and Team Zenyatta. Thanks!

In honor of trimming Zenyatta's foal, Dr. Morrison wrote an article about Thoroughbred foal feet and their care for Zenyatta's blog. The last time I checked, the article had 729 comments.

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing; Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. Please, no use without permission. You only need to ask. 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.  

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any direct compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have mentioned, other than Hoofcare Publishing. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

Deformity in Motion: Neglected Hooves Respond in Ireland

Johnny and James are two otherwise anonymous donkeys in Ireland who have been lucky enough to be rescued and find some kind people at The Donkey Sanctuary there.

Horses and ponies and donkeys with overgrown hooves are not uncommon to find. We routinely see photos of them when they are rescued by agencies or brought to farriers and vets for care.

But Johnny and James are different because these are not still shots, these are videos. You can see not just how overgrown they are, but that these strong, adaptable donkeys can still get around. They've had to adapt their gait a bit, perhaps, but they're still on the move.

We are always taught that the hoof wall bears the horse's weight and that the weight is transferred down the bony column of the limb. But nature obviously has a plan B, so that the horse can transfer its weight to the heels.

Another thing we're taught is that the toe is the strongest part of the hoof and the heel is the weakest and most deformable. And yet in these donkeys and so many other neglected equines, the heels are standing up to the job. The foot doesn't collapse, the heels don't rupture.

The second video shows that Johnny began to recover once his feet were under him again. The sanctuary mentioned that the hooves were radiographed and that the trim would be fine-tuned over the weeks to come until his weightbearing and gait could be normalized.

The hoof has to be one of the most adaptive structures in nature, yet we always try to make it conform to our ideal--whatever that may be. Surely there is a sweet spot for every hoof, a place where that foot finds optimal function.

The trick is to find it, to find it before it is too late, and to keep the hoof shape and position under the limb within a range of that spot throughout the animal's life.

Visit The Donkey Sanctuary web site to learn more about the charity's work on behalf of donkeys in Ireland--and everywhere.

$176 + $11 P+H US only; ready to ship: Tel 978 281 3222, fax 978 283 8775, email: books@hoofcare.com

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing; Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. Please, no use without permission. You only need to ask. 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.  
 

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any direct compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have mentioned, other than Hoofcare Publishing. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

The Real Mustang Trim: AAEP Task Force Recommends Hoof Trimming for Captive Wild Horses in BLM Facilities

Wild horse warning sign on a highway in Arizona. Photo by Gary Minniss.

Self-help expert Dr. Wayne Dyer has a saying that seems so critical to me that it has made the place of honor in my life: it's stuck with a magnet on my refrigerator.

It's been there a while, and it's faded and curled but I know it by heart: "When you change the way you look at things, the things you're looking at change."

It's there to remind me about analyzing difficult situations, but a press release I received today made me chuckle. What about when a difficult situation is analyzed by people with completely fresh eyes? When you read an article about your hometown written by an out-of-state journalist, do you think, "Wow, is that really where I live?"

That's the power of a fresh set of eyes on something you know so well; it sounds completely different. Sometimes better, sometimes worse, but you stop and think about the way your little town looks to someone "from away", as they say in Maine.

So what would happen if one of the hot-button situations in the horse world was visited by a task force of veterinarians, most of whom live and work worlds away, either on another coast or in academic clinic settings? Would someone who may have little or no exposure to wild horses see them differently from someone who lives and works with them everyday? Is one vet's status quo another vet's no-no?

Dr. Ann Dwyer of New York

When a veterinarian like Dr. Ann Dwyer from upstate New York took a look behind and into the pens at the Bureau of Land Management's wild horse warehouse system in the United States western states, did she see things differently than the BLM's own staff veterinarians and stockmen?

Maybe she did, maybe she didn't, but today the American Association of Equine Practitioners' Bureau of Land Management Task Force released its evaluation--and some critical recommendations--designed to improve the care and handling of the nation's wild horses during gathers and captivity.

Behold the Palomino Valley (NV) National Wild Horse and Burro Center, located north of Sparks, Nevada. The AAEP task force observed horses with active cases of strangles at this facility. Photo courtesey of Visit Reno Tahoe.

The AAEP report comes at the request of the Bureau of Land Management, which asked the AAEP in June 2010 to evaluate the handling, health care, and welfare of the horses and burros at BLM wild horse and burro gathers and holding facilities.  

Dr. John S. Mitchell of Florida

The AAEP agreed to lend its expertise and a task force was formed under John S. Mitchell DVM, AAEP president elect and Task Force chair, who is as removed from the west as Dwyer. Mitchell is a Standardbred racehorse specialist in Pompano Beach, Florida, and the task force he headed was a fascinating cross-section of the United States equine veterinary community. The report notes that one task force member "had visited a BLM facility previously" and another "is a member of a group practice that does contract work for a BLM short‐term facility."

Dr. William Moyer of Texas A&M

From the academic sector came Texas A&M's William Moyer (who is also currently AAEP president) and equine lameness specialist Professor Kent Carter. From the University of Georgia, Susan White, Professor of Large Animal Internal Medicine. From industry, the task force chose Rocky Bigbie, Senior Veterinarian at Pfizer Animal Health. In addition to private vets Dwyer and Mitchell, the task force included some veterinarians from western states: Jacy Cook, private vet in Bozeman, Montana; Roger Rees, owner to a large animal clinic in Utah; Stuart Shoemaker, a surgeon who left Louisiana State University to start a sports medicine practice in Idaho and Beau David Whitaker, an equine lameness specialist vet in Texas with a penchant for humor writing.

Surely all or most of these veterinarians could be considered excellent judges of western horses. In their practices, they probably see well-bred and valuable cutting and reining horses, or tend to the needs of wealthy ranchers. The horses they would see in their work for the task force would be the other end of the spectrum, America's ultimate "Unwanted Horses".

If you need any proof of that: The United States Government can't even give these horses away lately. Adoption statistics have plummeted in spite of higher visible of mustangs in the show ring. Yet these horses have powerful friends in high places, like a Congress charged with upholding a federal law, Public Law 92-195, the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971, which was designed to protect the horses.

They also have a few million fans who are happy to hold the BLM's feet to the fire, so to speak, over the care that the horses receive in captivity, and to question even if captivity should be employed. Enter the AAEP with the mission to take a fresh look around.

"One stallion jumped out of the corral at the Pine Nuts gather, even though the fence was six feet high. The horse did not appear to suffer any injury when he jumped out, and was allowed to return to the range..." (AAEP report)

According to the AAEP's statistics quoted in the report, as of June 2011, the BLM had 39,948 horses housed in a wide variety of temporary and permanent facilities or with contracted long-term holding ranches.

AAEP task force veterinarians observed wild horse "gathers" and also inspected the temporary and permanent holding facilities for mustangs. Photo by Jeremy Hiebert.

How the Bureau of Land Management interprets the federal law is a hotly contested issue across the United States. Are government policies "protecting" the wild horses by keeping them in holding pens and farming them out for long-term warehousing? Was it the intent of the law to run these horses on ranches in the Midwest instead of the Western range? Are the gathers in western states that bring in thousands of wild horses each year in the best interest of the horses or of administrative policy? Are the gathers and gatherers guilty of cruel practices that threaten the health and welfare of the horses?

Task force members certainly must have known the issues before they agreed to serve. However, their marching orders clearly stated "It is not the charge of the Task Force to evaluate the BLM program with regard to moral, ethical or economic issues."

Selection of the task force members meant that a wide range of expertise and geographic perspectives were included. None of the veterinarians selected can be described specifically as an academic specialist in equine welfare or behavior or wild horse issues.

"Foot trimming schedules should be created and customized for each facility in accordance with environmental conditions and periodic inspections to reduce the likelihood of excessively long hooves." (AAEP report)

Beginning last fall, the task force visited multiple BLM sites during a six-month period to observe gathers and evaluate conditions at short-term holding and long-term pasture facilities. The task force's data collection was limited to the safety, health status, health management, care, handling and welfare of equids in the BLM program.

"The task force concluded that the care, handling and management practices utilized by the BLM are appropriate for this population of horses and generally support the safety, health status and welfare of the animals," said William Moyer, DVM, AAEP president and a member of the task force, in a press release provided by the AAEP. "However, the task force did see areas that can be improved."

In addition to key recommendations about helicopter herding, anesthesia, biosecurity and other concerns, the veterinarians made suggestions to solidify the footing in the pens at the short-term holding facilities, so that the horses would be able to lie down. 'The overcrowded and wet muddy conditions throughout the pens at Salt Lake Regional Wild Horse and Burro Center in Herriman, Utah, were unacceptable, according to the report. "The conditions posed a health risk for the horses, and did not meet the standard for horse welfare at the time of the task force team visit," the report noted.

An interesting note from the report is that the task force veterinarians thought that the horses in captivity were, in anything, too well fed. "...some horses were fed to excess as evidenced by body condition scores that reflected a substantial amount of body fat," the report explained.

"The BLM staff explained that (hoof) trimming is done on a rotation and that all horses that have long feet are on a waiting list for the trimmer." (AAEP report)

Of particular interest to Hoofcare and Lameness readers is the task force's recommendation that the horses have their hooves trimmed. "Foot trimming schedules should be created and customized for each facility in accordance with environmental conditions and periodic inspections to reduce the likelihood of excessively long hooves," the white paper report informs us.

"A few horses had long feet in need of trimming," the report tells us. "The BLM staff explained that trimming is done on a rotation and that all horses that have long feet are on a waiting list for the trimmer."

The AAEP task force recommended that the BLM focus on population control. The US Government currently warehouses approximately 40,000 wild horses, according to the report. Photo by Scott Schrantz.

All the veterinarians would be able to pick out a horse whose hooves needed to be trimmed. Dr. Moyer in particular is experienced in hoofcare and would have been looking at the hooves with an experienced eye. The fine line between "long" and "too long" would be obvious to Dr. Moyer.

"The observed horses appeared healthy without evidence of chronic injuries, disease or congenital defects other than a small number with a unilateral club foot (about 1% noted at Adobe Town/Salt Wells Complex). Overall hoof condition of the captured horses was judged good."
(AAEP report)

How do you trim the hooves of a wild horse that has never been touched by human hands, much less had to stand on three legs while its feet are picked up? The report explains:

"The task force teams were told that the average length of stay at the short‐term holding facilities often exceeds 200 days, with a range of 90 to 300 days. Over this confinement period horses do not move enough to wear their feet to a healthy condition as they do on the range.

"Most horses undergo foot trimming during their stay in short‐term holding. The AAEP teams did not observe any hoof trimming but made close inspection of several padded hydraulic squeeze chutes that were used for this purpose.

"When a trim is scheduled, the horse is herded through an alleyway or chute into the squeeze chute. The entry door, sides, floor and exit door of the squeeze chute are hydraulically controlled. Once the horse is enclosed in and restrained with the padded squeeze panels, the chute is rotated 90 degrees onto its side with a separate hydraulic system.

As part of the capture process, horses and burros are checked to see if any privately-branded horses are mixed in with the wild horses. All newcomers receive the BLM's freeze brand on the neck. Photo by Jean.

"The foot trimmer accesses the feet through the floor which opens once the horse is in lateral recumbency. Foot trimming is reported to be a quick procedure, accomplished either with hand tools or a special hoof trimming disc on a hand grinder. The squeeze chutes the task force examined were well designed and appeared safe for restraint.

"The foot condition of most horses was good. Less than 5% of the horses at Broken Arrow had long feet in need of trimming. The staff at the sites acknowledged this, saying these individuals were slated for the trimming process soon. The feet were not deemed to be an immediate health risk to the horses."

Dr. Mitchell concluded, "The AAEP will gladly continue if needed as a resource for equine medical expertise to the BLM Wild Horse and Burro program."

The complete AAEP BLM Task Force report is available for download here. For more information, contact Sally Baker, AAEP director of marketing and public relations, at (859) 233-0147 or sbaker@aaep.org.

 TO LEARN MORE

Wild horse hoof research links:

Where's My Brumby Now: Chris Pollitt Offers Donors a Chance to Ride Along for Hoof Research...by Satellite!

Pollitt Hoof Studies Group Hot on the Trail of Australian Wild Horses

Aboriginal Brumby Walkabout: Pollitt and Hampson Back from the Outback

The Environmental Hoof: Will Wild Horse Feet Adapt to a Sudden Change in Climate and Terrain? Australian Researchers Switch Brumbies, Observe Hooves

Australian Wild Horses at Risk for Laminitis After Floods Turn Scrubland to Pasture

Hoof Research Road Show Premieres This Weekend: Pollitt-Hampson Laminitis and Wild Horse Hooves Headline in Australia

 

 Learn all about it! 3-D anatomy of the hoof and lower limb in animated format for client education, academic studies, self-improvement, professional continuing education. Click for PayPal ordering!

 

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing; Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. Please, no use without permission. You only need to ask. 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.  

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any direct compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have mentioned, other than Hoofcare Publishing. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

Research: Clayton and Bowker's “Effects of Barefoot Trimming on Hoof Morphology” Focuses on Incremental Heel Recovery

"Lights, cameras, heel angles..." Dr. Hilary Clayton uses the most advanced data collection and analysis systems in the world to track how horses move, grow, stand or even sway. Her electronics matched with Dr Robert Bowker's anatomy studies have placed Michigan State University at the epicenter of global hoof research. Since both Clayton and Bowker espouse the advantages of barefoot hoofcare, it's natural that a study with both names as authors would be published. (McPhail Center photo)

Hilary Clayton, BVMS, PhD, MRCVS has an office in the airy, bright new Mary Anne McPhail Equine Performance Center, a state-of-the art equine sports and lameness facility at the Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine. It’s chock full of video equipment, sensors, high-tech saddles that need to be tested or patented, sensors, force plates, remote controls and did I mentioin sensors? There’s a feeling that if something is going to affect a change in the future for horses, its route passes through this building. You also have to wonder what the electric bill is. Everything plugs in and has a stand-by red light glowing in the dark. The sensors are always ready.

Across the parking lot looms the main vet college building and large animal hospital. You go inside and enter a labyrinth of corridors. You descend stairs. Pipes rattle. You walk down more hallways. Turn some corners. And at some point, you stumble into a place that is the antithesis of Dr Clayton’s futuristic electronic world.

You’re facing a mountain of coffin bones. Over here are some old farrier books, and through the microscope, you think you see what the classic professor Robert Bowker PhD DVM wants you to see, that a coffin bone can and does have evidence of osteoporosis.

In this lab, things pile up. They get dusty. The information is layered like the strata of a carefully dug herb garden. Deep historical reference compost and intellectual top soil combine here to make ideas grow. Theories and what-ifs sprout like weeds after a summer shower.

On weekends, Dr. Clayton's interest in dressage makes her showing schedule a living laboratory: she competes her horses unshod. Until last year, her veteran horse MSU MAGIC J competed at the grand prix level. Up-and-coming MSU FANFARE, shown here, currently leads the US Dressage Federation standings in dressage freestyle at second level. Both horses were bred by the university and selected by Dr Clayton for their movement characteristics, not their conformation. She looked for horses with good movement, instead of horses that looked like they could move.

Hilary Clayton calibrates a set of sequential video cameras and hits the “on” switch. Robert Bowker digs a little deeper, reaching for a certain specimen he knows is under the pile. He turns an idea around and realizes he forgot to stop for lunch. And that was hours ago.

Both these laboratories and both these professors study the horse’s foot...at the same university. Both are at the top of the game, and in spite of their proximity, they couldn’t be approaching the hoof from more different perspectives.

And what are the odds that if two professors at the same university were studying the same structure, they’d share a common point of view? Or that they could possibly collaborate on a research project?

College professors are often, by nature, protective of their turf. Someone else on the same campus studying the same thing should be a threat. But Clayton and Bowker have managed to put their well-stocked heads together on research for several years.

This week the latest product of their thinking-alike-but-acting-differently collaboration is a paper on how hoof morphology is influenced by a specific method of barefoot trimming. The paper was published in the Australian Veterinary Journal.

For anyone not familiar with the term, morphology is the study of shape, form and structure in nature. We use the word “morph” colloquially as a verb. When you “morph” into something else, you are changing shape or form.

Foot diagram for trimming protocol. The paper does not contain the word "breakover".

Make no mistake: this paper is not going to tell you how to rehab a horse's hoof. It is, however, going to give more credence to the idea that a specific method of barefoot trimming can successfully achieve a precise goal. Because it did, in the hands of Clayton, Bowker et al.

To be clear, Dr. Clayton is listed as the lead author, with Bowker's name fourth. His inclusion in the study is evident in the discussion section, where information on sensory nerves in the foot is shared. His inclusion also means the study is destined for wide readership among his many followers.

The paper begins with an important sentence that bears repeating. Memorize it: "There is little scientific data describing the effects of any type of barefoot trim, particularly in horses that participate in regular exercise in a riding arena, or how such trimming may affect the overall conformation and health of the foot for an extended period of time."

The problem: horses with mildly underrun heels. The goal: palmar/plantar migration of the heel area of the hoof, increase in heel angle and support length, and an increase in solar angle of the coffin bone. The hypothesis: it's possible.

Michigan State University's McPhail Center is where horses, data and electronics come together.

And not only is it possible, it's possible to do it with a rasp, not a wedge pad or a horseshoe. It's possible to do it so that the inside structures are not disturbed by cranking the hoof capsule into alignment in one shoeing, running the risk of creating separations and flares and adding strain to repositioned ligaments and tendons.

The research project achieved its goals, but it is important to note that this was achieved not by removing shoes, but by applying a specific trimming technique and repeating it, over and over and over.

In the end, the heel angle increased an average of almost nine degrees. The difference between toe and heel angle decreased from 13.8 to 7.2 degrees during the one-year maintenance period.

There are some key elements to this study that must be understood: The horses lived in a pasture, not in stalls. They received regular daily exercise (one to three hours) under saddle on a sand arena in a riding program five days a week. The horses were all Arabians of similar height and weight and age (average 13.6 years).

The horses in the study were barefoot before the research began, so they did not have to go through a transition-to-barefoot period. They were trimmed by one farrier (Cappi Roghan, who deserves some credit) throughout the study; he understood his assignment and acquiesced to stick to the program.

In the end, this study is not a victory for barefoot over shoes. This is a victory for showing that trimming alone can achieve a morphological change.

It just takes a lot of time, that's all.

The timeline of the study would not be considered a victory. It took four months of conscientious trimming to reshape the horses’ hooves, and then 12 additional months for the hoof to grow and stabilize in order to complete the study and prove the trim's effect. The authors felt that 16 months was required, based on the premise that a horse’s hoof grows an average of one centimeter per month, so that each horse, by the end of the study, would have had ample time to grow a completely new hoof.

The interesting aspects of the study are the way that the hoof morphology changed in one aspect then changed back. For instance, the area of the frog initially increased, then decreased.

The authors suggest that the horses’ feet at the beginning of the study illustrated the characteristics of wild horses living on soft sandy substrate, as documented by Brian Hampson PhD at the University of Queensland in his recently completed doctoral thesis, The Effects of Environment on the Feral Horse Foot.

The increase in toe angle during the initial transition period was an average of 2.7 degrees. Because this change was gradual, the authors commented that the trimming technique allowed the foot’s internal structures to gradually adapt, without any pathological consequences such as wall flares.

It should also be noted that the authors concurred that the goals of the trimming—palmar/plantar migration of the heels, increases in heel angle and support length, and increased solar angulation of the coffin bone -- are potentially beneficial to the health of the foot.

The key sentence to this study is found near the end of the paper: “Current knowledge of hoof structure and dynamics is incomplete and these ideas, while speculative, may provide a stimulus for further research.”

Note: The study was supported by the Bernice Barbour Foundation and the American Quarter Horse Association. The research team consisted of, in addition to Drs Clayton and Bowker, veterinary student Sarah Gray and MacPhail Center lab manager LeeAnn Kaiser.

Citation:

Clayton, H., Gray, S., Kaiser, L. and Bowker, R. (2011), Effects of barefoot trimming on hoof morphology. Australian Veterinary Journal, 89: 305–311. doi: 10.1111/j.1751-0813.2011.00806.x

Dr. Clayton on biomechanics of footing for dressage horses, part 1


Dr. Clayton on biomechanics of footing for dressage horses, part 2

To understand the full spectrum of hoof science, it is necessary to consider that it is much more than anatomy and physiology. The hoof is in motion, and how it moves affects its shape, its health and the relative condition of its components. Biomechanics means much more than trying to judge if a horse is landing heel-first or not.

You may need to adjust the volume on your computer. Watch as Dr. Clayton describes the mechanics of how the hoof of a dressage horse interacts with the arena footing. Filmed at the 2007 Adequan/ USDF Annual Convention in Orlando, Florida, this video is available on DVD with several other lectures on hoofcare and lameness from the USDF web site.

The abstract for this article is available online: The Australian Veterinary Journal: Effects of barefoot trimming on hoof morphology. You can also purchase a download of the complete article.

Click on ad image for details; image from Dr. Bowker's research at Michigan State U.

 © Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing; Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. Please, no use without permission. You only need to ask. 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.  
 

Follow Hoofcare + Lameness on Twitter: @HoofcareJournal

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any direct compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have mentioned, other than Hoofcare Publishing. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

Favorite Photo: Proof That Elephants Are Smarter Than Horses When It's Time for Hoofcare

Why won't a horse do this for its farrier? An elephant offers its foot to a handler for cleaning at Taronga Wesern Plains Zoo in Dubbo, New South Wales, Australia. Giraffes are also being taught to cooperate willingly for preventative footcare inspections and trimming at zoos around the world. The Hoof Blog has a series of zoo photos of hooved mammals being trimmed or treated that we'll be sharing with you. This one was taken by equestrian photographer Caroline Wardrop, who more typically would have a horse photo on the blog!

The inner hoof wall captured in a unique microscopic view from coffin bone to periople at the Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine Equine Foot Laboratory by Dr Lisa Lancaster. Enlightening! Order yours via PayPal today!

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. Please, no use without permission. You only need to ask. 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.

 

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Montana Marathon: Farriers and Veterinarians Trim 31 Donkeys' Hooves After Years Of Neglect

The struggling Montana Large Animal Sanctuary and Rescue gave up. It gave up trying to go on taking care of more than 1000 hooved animals it had taken in. There are camels and llamas and horses and donkeys and cows by the dozens.

According to news reports, they ran out of money, then they ran out of hay and now the animals have been rescued from the rescue. They are in temporary shelters while organizations in the state try to figure out what they will do to re-home them.

What these animals do have, in excess, however, is hoof. It's been years since the donkeys, at least, have been trimmed.

That changed this week when the donkeys were moved and a group of vets and farriers joined forces to get their hooves back to some semblance of normal. That, of course, wasn't easy. Some may be suffering from laminitis. All may be sore after trimming, whether from the trimming itself or the redistribution of load on tendons and ligaments. Donkeys are also prone to white line disease, which would require medication if they are affected.

But the farriers just kept on trimming.

According to the television news report, each hoof was radiographed before it was trimmed, and a farrier spent an average of 15 minutes sawing and then trimming each hoof.

The Montana Animal Care Association, Montana Horse Sanctuary, Montana Office of the Humane Society of the United States and Western Montana Equine Rescue and Rehabilitation all organized the effort to help the donkeys.

It's interesting that about 75 inquiries have already been received to adopt the donkeys, which will be going to new homes in pairs to lessen the stress of having been in a herd for so long. Their plight--and their pain--touched a lot of people.

Donations for the animals can be sent to: Western Montana Equine Rescue and Rehabilitation, P.O. Box 1168, Corvallis, MT 59828 (indicate "for donkeys" on check).

To help the horses, please contact Jane Heath, Montana Horse Sanctuary executive director, via email: ht@mt.net. They'll also fix you up with a camel. Or a llama. Or...

Thanks to KAJ18.com, the website for Channel 18 in Missoula, Montana, all the volunteer organizations, and all the veterinarians and farriers who worked on this rescue and the hoof trimming marathon. Special thanks to anyone who takes in one of these animals and gives it a home, at last.

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing; Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. Please, no use without permission. You only need to ask. 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.
 

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