Quarter Crack Patch Comes in Handy

Carlos Lara of Mustad/Capewell/St. Croix loaned us this photo of an elephant's foot that had been patched with one of Mustad's glueable crack patches. The elephant's foot is fascinating, but many elephants develop foot problems in captivity, with cracks being high on the list. There is a veterinary textbook dedicated solely to diseases of the elephant's foot. Giraffes in captivity seem to have a lot of hoof problems too. Thank you, Carlos, for sending this image!

Barbaro Update: New cast, new progress report

Veterinarians at Penn’s George D. Widener Hospital in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania changed Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro’s cast on Monday, October 9. Barbaro is recovering from injuries suffered at the Preakness on May 20.

“We placed Barbaro under general anesthesia to remove the old cast on his right hind limb and took new radiographs to assess the continued healing of the original injuries,” said Dr. Dean Richardson, Chief of Surgery. “I was pleased with the continued progression of healing and the overall condition of this leg.”

Barbaro had another successful pool-recovery, and was resting comfortably in his stall after the procedure. In addition to replacing the cast, doctors trimmed his feet and applied a new shoe on the right hind foot. A few hours after recovery, he was taken back outside to graze and was comfortable on both hind legs.

“There are no signs of infection and the primary incisions have healed surprisingly well,” said Dr. Richardson. “Because he has had a cast on for so long, there are a few cast sores, but nothing serious.”

Barbaro’s left hind foot, which had laminitis, continues to gradually improve. “There is good growth along the quarters (closer to the heel) but there will need to be much more healing along the front of the hoof,” said Dr. Richardson, who cautioned that “we still have many months of healing ahead of us.

For more information on Barbaro, please scroll down to read previous news articles on this high profile case.

4th International Equine Laminitis Conference in Palm Beach, Florida Planned for November 2007

Mark your calendars for the first weekend in November of 2007, and plan to attend the 4th International Equine Conference on Laminitis and Diseases of the Foot, a.k.a. "Palm Beach Laminitis".

The 2005 event was probably the single largest gathering of Hoofcare & Lameness subscribers ever. I loved every minute of it and look forward to seeing you all again next year!

I'll set up a separate blog for the event and post photos from last year. Watch this space for more information!

In the meantime, here are a few favorites:


Drs. Sue Dyson of England and Jean-Marie Denoix of France, who both spoke at the conference, danced beneath the stars on the top deck of the yacht chartered for all the attendess, speakers, and exhibitors, thanks to our gracious hosts, Mr. and Mrs. John Castle.











A mock trial presided over by judge Susan Hankin (center, a law school professor in real life) pitted two expert witnesses against each other: Drer: Dr. David Hood (left) of The Hoof Project and Dr. Chris Pollitt of the Australian Equine Laminitis Research Un









Speaker Katy Watts of Safergrass.org in Colorado discussed grass laminitis with Ivy and Pete Ramey of Georgia after her wet lab.


All photos copyright 2005 Hoofcare & Lameness Journal.





Wet lab demonstrator Aaron Gygax of Switzerland is currently living in the USA and working as a farrier at Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital's Podiatry Clinic in Kentucky; he is chatting with James Gilchrist, farrier at Palm Beach Equine Clinic in Florida.









Dr. Ric Redden, recipient of the conference's Lifetime Achievement Award, checks something on the laptop of Japanese researcher Dr. Kuwano, who is an expert on white line disease.

Ink and Anvil Claims to Sever Publishing Ties with American Farrier's Association

Ink and Anvil publisher Scott Davidson announced on Monday that his company will no longer publish Professional Farrier, the association magazine of the Lexington, Kentucky-based American Farrier's Association.

"I terminated the contract, effective today," Davidson said this afternoon. "I will have a big announcement in a few days."

The American Farrier's Association may have found a new publisher for the magazine, from hints left on the AFA's bulletin board by acting executive director Michael Nolan.

Hoofcare & Lameness has no official statement from the AFA in this matter. Nolan did confirm on Tuesday that Professional Farrier will continue to be published, although by whom is not clear. He did not have a comment on relations between the AFA and Davidson's company. The AFA signed a multi-year renewal of their contract with Ink and Anvil this spring, soon after Nolan was hired and after David Ferguson was elected president.

Craig Trnka started the AFA in the publishing game during his presidency, when he initiated a split from the American Farriers Journal, which had formerly been sent to members as a benefit. Before Ink and Anvil, Professional Farrier was published for the AFA by Dockery House Publishers of Dallas, Texas.

European Racing Abuzz Over Oxygen Therapy

A mural of Grand National winner Red Rum on the wall of a pub near Coolmore Stud in Ireland.

Got oxygen? Coolmore Stud, one of the world's leading nurseries of Thoroughbreds, has plenty of it. They have just installed a hyperbaeric oxygen chamber at their main stud in County Tipperary in Ireland, home of some of the world's most valuable horses.

According to a report in today's The Times (London), Coolmore co-owner John Magnier plans to use the chamber for soft tissue injuries and laminitis therapy, but also has hopes that it will help with breeding problems of the farm's roster of stallions.

Hyperbaeric oxygen therapy has been used by human athletes for years, and in particular by deep-sea divers suffering from decompression ills. Horses were first exposed to the high-pressure treatments in Canada, where the therapy is common among hockey players.

In the U.S., a chamber is in use at Winstar Farm and at Keswick Equine Therapy Center, both in Lexington, Kentucky and at Alamo Pintado Equine Hospital in the Santa Ynez Valley of California. The therapy is also in use in Australia, according to the Times report.

Farrier/veterinarian Federico Oyuela of Buenos Aires, Argentina built and operates a chamber at the racetrack in that city, and is keen to share his experience and results. Coolmore's chamber cost more than a million euros; Federico has a more economical route to oxygen for horses that may make the therapy a more realistic alternative for therapy centers and veterinary clinics.

Silent Anvil: International Farrier Icon Edgar Stern Has Died in England

Yalding Forge, in the village of Yalding, near Maidstone in Kent, England, is the site of a very old shoeing forge run by the Stern family. (Elsie Bell photo)

News from the UK is that Edgar Stern, MBE, FWCF died last Thursday.

Mr. Stern was the helmsman of one of Britain's great farrier dynasties. Working with his sons Trevor and Clive, and with his wife Joyce running the business, Mr. Stern trained dozens of farriers, judged competitions and influenced farrier profession developments in England and, by extension, the world.

The Sterns' ancient forge outside Maidstone in Kent is a frequent destination for visiting farriers from around the world, where all found a warm welcome and stimulating--and often even challenging--conversation on the role of the farrier in the horse world. Mr. Stern was well-known judge of farrier competitions and visited the United States in the early 1980s. Also at that time, he was recognized by HM The Queen for his contributions to farriery with the award of the British Empire Medal.

Edgar and Joyce Stern

I was one of probably thousands of people who visited the Sterns and saw firsthand how their multi-farrier and mega-apprentice business operated with military precision. I remember the din in the forging ceasing instantly when Mrs. Stern appeared with the tea pot. We hear much about multi-farrier practices in the USA, but the Sterns had always been doing it, and without a business plan, a mission statement or management consultants, because that is what they had always done. Still, Edgar found time to be my personal tour guide and told stories late into the night.

Few people I have met in my career have taken the profession of farriery as seriously as Edgar, nor given as much to its development. This is a great loss and world farriery should stop, take its breath today, and consider who amongst us could even hope to fill the void that is left with his passing.