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  Discussion on Foot angle affected by grazing position?
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Posted on Sunday, May 13, 2001 - 8:37 pm:

I have a two year old Arabian that is still grazing like a foal with his legs spread apart. He always advances the right foot which is affecting the amount of wear on the toe of the left foot. I have him trimmed every 6 wks. I have seen other full grown horses do this. I am concerned about the angle of the left foot and if he may be slightly club footed. He does not appear to have any balance problems. The next time the vet is out I will ask him to examine his foot, but until then I am wondering if putting shoes on the front to stop the uneven wear would be a good idea. Any thoughts or ideas would be appreciated.

Posted on Monday, May 14, 2001 - 6:39 am:

Yes shoes will help prevent the uneven wear. Though I have read supporters of this theory for the cause of club-footedness I am not much of a believer. Have you seen the article we have on Club Foot? If not, it is at, Equine Diseases: Lameness: Foot and Sole Problems: Club Foot.
DrO

Posted on Monday, May 14, 2001 - 7:28 pm:

Thanks Dr. O. I shall read on.

Posted on Tuesday, May 15, 2001 - 2:30 pm:

Marnie - I just wanted to add that my TB does the same thing. His left front is always forward. In my mind, this explains the difference between his two front feet - the left, which is more weight bearing, is wider, and has a longer toe. The right, less weight bearing, with most of that weight on the toe, is more upright, and with a shorter toe. And he has shoes on. I'm sure it's possible that this is just the way his feet grow, but I really believe his grazing stance (in his stall too!) causes most of it.

Posted on Wednesday, May 16, 2001 - 8:30 am:

The problem with this idea Jordana is that if grazing stance was causal to club footedness due to increase wear at the toe, simply shoeing the foot would stop it. This has not been mine or anyone's experience that I know of. What evidence do you have it is not the other way around: the foot is more upright and therefore he grazes a certain way?


There is no doubt that increase weight bearing causes the width of a foot to expand whether shod or not so you may have a point there.
DrO

Posted on Thursday, May 31, 2001 - 9:43 am:

Dr O. A brief update. I had the farrier examine the hoof. His suggestion was to trim my gelding every three weeks. I think his movement has been affected by the different angles. His gait at the walk is very reachy, almost camel like. By frequently trimming, the angle should change gradually and I hope affect his gait. Does this sound reasonable or am I looking at a more serious problem? The vet is not due until next week. More then. Thanks.

Posted on Thursday, May 31, 2001 - 7:52 pm:

From what you say about the walk, it almost sounds as though the toes are too long. Maybe a rolled toe on the front would help.

Posted on Friday, Jun 1, 2001 - 6:39 am:

No I don't think a slightly clubby foot would affect the gait that remarkably. I like the camel walk description I think I know what you mean: the horse is loosely coupled with a lot of reach and a lot of back dorsoflexion. Personally I think this is a good thing and may suggest a lot of suppleness and athleticism, once he learns to get all the feet pointed in the same direction.
DrO

Posted on Friday, Jun 1, 2001 - 8:43 am:

Thanks for your comment. I didn't mention that at the trot this guy has incredible hang time and length of stride. I have hopes for this young man and want to be sure I do my part for his natural development.

Posted on Tuesday, Jun 5, 2001 - 3:34 pm:

Ive been working on this theory for years! I have 3 babies out of my mare now. She had one low heel/long toe, wide foot that has always required maintenence so I have kept close watch on her babies. 2 out of the 3 babies tended toward lower heels and longer toes on the outstreched foot. the third baby had an injury at the back of the pastern and also had one black and one white foot to I had to throw her out of the "study" . My farrier and I had many discussions on this and decided it might be due to more stretching of the back tendons on the outstretched foot allowing more flexion. This could also apply to club foot tendencies since I have heard that this could be caused by tight tendons.

Posted on Wednesday, May 22, 2002 - 4:09 pm:

One year later.... We have been very diligent with trimming and keeping his front feet shod. The feet are slowly moving toward having the same angles. You can see how having shoes is affecting the shape of the foot as well. His stride still seems to be uneven with one foot stepping shorter than the other especially toward shoeing time. At other gaits the unevenness is nearly absent. About the same time as I was addressing the grazing foot the vet informed me that he was a little back at the knee. I was mortified that I had not seen it myself. I bought him as a weanling. I guess you can get too close. The grazing stance was aggravating the condition. He was three in January and is a real late bloomer. His father was the same way, even more so than most Arabs. I was so disheartened to realize how this would affect his overall possibilities. I had 'all around' in mind including hunter over fences. He is extremely athletic. As a yearling he jumped a 3"6' single strand tape fence. He is only 14.3 as a 3 yr old. Oh, I had such plans for him after I saw that lovely bascule. He has a great mind and is worth the patience to find his niche. So for now we will just take our time. Thanks

Posted on Thursday, May 23, 2002 - 6:43 am:

Hello Marnie,
I cannot tell you how much I appreciate you keeping us current with your problem. You say they are moving to the same angle: what angle is this? Is it possible for you to upload a picture of those legs taken from the side of the horse? Be sure the light is behind you and get the whole leg from foot to shoulder.
DrO
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