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Discussion on Bad hoof trimming or other problem?
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New Member:
suzannem
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Posted on Sunday, Jan 20, 2008 - 2:13 am:
I've recently started working with the horse shown in the pictures. He does not appear to have any soundness issues, and passed vet soundness exam with no problems. However, his hind hoof angle/heel height are quite different between the two hind feet (his right hind has very low heel height compared to his right hind). Is this something that was caused by improper hoof care, or some other issue (suspensory DrOp?). Can it be corrected without shoeing the horse. I prefer to leave horses barefoot if not having issues with soreness, which he is not.   
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New Member:
suzannem
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Posted on Sunday, Jan 20, 2008 - 2:22 am:
A full photo of same horse
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Member:
sunny66
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Posted on Sunday, Jan 20, 2008 - 11:31 am:
Welcome Suzanne, can you take some pictures of the soles and heels of both hind feet? Dr. O is wonderful and we have great members on this board who I'm sure would be able to give some advice.
My two cents would be to shoe him with trailers to get that heel up. My horse had what appeared to be hanging suspensories, we used the trailers and it was "fixed" in two shoeings. Now he's barefoot and the farrier is careful to keep the breakover correct and he's doing great.
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Sunday, Jan 20, 2008 - 11:48 am:
Hello suzanne p,
Is this the horse's conformation or has this been caused by past poor trimming really would require examination and even with a thorough examination may require speculation as the horses anatomy changes in response to trimming. Following such an examination and if it is determined there are no apparent soft tissue injuries the best way to evaluate this would be to determine if hooves are in good AP balance and aligned with the pastern bones. If not then trim them so they are. Besides the articles on foot care and trimming in this area you should look at References » Equine Illustrations » Leg Anatomy and Conformation » Foot: Anterior - Posterior balance that provides examples of the effects of bad trimming.
DrO
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New Member:
suzannem
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Posted on Sunday, Jan 20, 2008 - 11:56 am:
I'm considering adopting this horse from an equine rescue. Would you advice that I have an equine vet examine this issue prior to adoption? If so, would a vet determine if the hooves are in good AP balance, or a farrier. Any suggestions on a path forward would be very much apprciated..
thank you,
Suzanne
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Monday, Jan 21, 2008 - 8:24 am:
I think your best first step is to learn about balance to help you attempt to make these judgements yourself. You will not become expert immediately but it will get you looking critically at this issue and a solid basis for discussion with your vet and farrier. As to whether to involve the vet/farrier in the decision on this, if there are issues that you do not understand by all means get another and better informed opinion. Both your farrier and veterinarian should be able to make judgements about this but who would be the best will depend on their level of experience.
DrO
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