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  Discussion on Quarter crack
Author Message
Member:
sbower

Posted on Wednesday, Apr 2, 2008 - 10:29 pm:

[IMG]https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v672/SBower/radars%20feet%202/IMG_5272.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v672/SBower/radars%20feet%202/IMG_5265.jpg[/IMG]

How do I treat this? It's on the inside of the left hind. I have a vet coming out to take a look. Farrier the next morning. I admit this is my daughters horse and I haven't cleaned his hooves in a while, my daugheter says she never saw it. Farrier shod him three weeks ago and said he didn't see a crack. My vet happened to be out about three weeks ago (after he was newly shod) and I asked her opinion on the feet. I said I think his toes are too long and heels too high, she said "not too bad". The farrier has been shoeing this horse since last fall. Also I'm seeing a groove on the opposite side of the same foot that isn't a crack but looks to be maybe an area of weakness (see picture below)?

There was no bleeding, its like a piece of the hoof a quarter inch deep has sheared off. It will wiggle but is attached at the coronary band. I'm concerned with infection. I will of course listen to the vet and farrier but I'd also like to know how you would treat this and whether the hoof will grow in normal? The horse currently is not lame and is a reiner with a reining shoe on.

The other side
[IMG]https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v672/SBower/radars%20feet%202/IMG_5271.jpg[/IMG]
Member:
parker66

Posted on Wednesday, Apr 2, 2008 - 10:46 pm:

Your farrier should put on a bar shoe for this type of problem. This is a really bad crack. I wouldn't have called the vet, though. This is a farrier issue and all your going to do is get a bigger cumulative bill and have the two disagree about the resolution. Trust me, they'll have two different opinions and at the end of the day, it's your farrier who will be doing the work to fix the problem. Also, just my two cents, but you may want to find a new farrier.
Member:
sbower

Posted on Wednesday, Apr 2, 2008 - 10:59 pm:

The vet was coming out anyway for spring shots tomorrow so no special trip. If I put a bar shoe on then my trainer is going to freak because the first show is in two weeks. No sliding shoe, no slides. Obviously, if that what needs to happen then the showing season will be canceled, the horse is the priority.... but my daughter has been working so hard this winter it will be a shame. I'm hoping that since the horse isn't lame that there's another solution.
Member:
juliem

Posted on Wednesday, Apr 2, 2008 - 11:45 pm:

Shelly, it would be helpful if you could take some pictures of the leg that includes the hoof, fetlock and canon bone as he's standing square from about ground level. From these pictures it's hard to say if the hoof pastern angle is correct. I would want both a farrier and a vet's opinion if this is serious as sometimes radiographs are called for. Additionally, I'd want them together to come up with a plan. If it's just a crack, it is something a good farrier can address. Key word there is "good."
Member:
sbower

Posted on Thursday, Apr 3, 2008 - 12:21 am:

Does this one help? Its the one on the left. I would be more than happy to take additional views tomorrow...

[IMG]https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v672/SBower/righthind.jpg[/IMG]
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Thursday, Apr 3, 2008 - 10:12 am:

Hello Shelly
I don't know if a bar shoe alone will do this unless quietly rested for a prolonged time. If returning the horse to use is as quickly as possible you may need to have the defect repaired with EQUILOX or other good wall repair material. This should be applied by someone with experience to insure it is done correctly.

To further help evaluate your horses crack we do need some better focus and better lit images of the defects. Also as recommended above conformation pictures would help evaluate the shoeing. Also posting the images into this discussion rather than as links will get more responses for more on this see Help & Information on Using This Site ยป Uploading Images and Files Into a Posting.
DrO
Member:
muffi

Posted on Thursday, Apr 3, 2008 - 1:26 pm:

I had a Large (almost 17 hand QH) with a quarter crack that actually bled. we had it filed at the top then stapled along the crack(by my VET), then the Farrier came and Pads inserted on both front feet and an eventually an Eggbarr shoe.
I am not a farrier - my advice is to ask around get the best farrier you can find and then follow his / her advice. also there is a product i used to help it internally to harden the hooves. (hoofrite) and externaly to keep them supple (many different products. all are good - again I would follow Dr O's advice on that in his posts, and .... more important a good Farrier.
It took a full year for it to grow down and out. He was fine too - Until - I took him jumping again - cracked all over again.
so be carefull with him even after it grows out.
We sold him cause I needed a jumper- sold him to a nice family guy you needed a LARGE trail horse- Last I checked they are both fat and happy!
Member:
sbower

Posted on Thursday, Apr 3, 2008 - 2:50 pm:

Heres a conformation picture. Only took my two hours to figure out how to post it! :-( I'll try to get some more pictures this afternoon. Thanks all
Member:
juliem

Posted on Thursday, Apr 3, 2008 - 3:25 pm:

Pam, it took some of us (me) much, much longer to figure posting images out! The angles do look ok to me, but for some reason those rears look like the heels are too high. I don't know if it's just my eye, or the photo. I would think that especially with sliders on you wouldn't want this much heel, but again, the angle looks ok so maybe I just have an "issue" with high heels because mine would get underrun if I left them this long. Really, the only way to know for sure if they are too long would be a radiograph. I think the fact that he has developed a quarter crack would speak to some aspect of his shoeing being "off". I'm certainly no expert so hopefully you'll get good advice when your vet sees him today.
Member:
sbower

Posted on Thursday, Apr 3, 2008 - 4:40 pm:

Vet canceled :-( :-( I have to wait until Monday... but the farriers coming tomorrow morning. I tried to get pictures today but the batteries were dead.
Member:
parker66

Posted on Thursday, Apr 3, 2008 - 9:08 pm:

I stand by my original post, I'd try to find another farrier. I'm not trying to be harsh, but that is how I feel and it's just my opinion.
New Member:
rexrocko

Posted on Friday, Apr 4, 2008 - 12:49 am:

Have you looked at photos of the wild mustang feet? These are very functional feet. They look so odd at first. It is just a way of educating yourself as to how a natural foot looks in comparison to the feet we put on our horses. I also think you need to find a better farrier. It is amazing how much pain or lack of feeling horses tolerate in their feet. You might want to look at The Naked Hoof web site for great articles on high heels. Educated yourself so you can see the differences between a good trim/shoeing and a poor one. I think that over time a farriers weaknesses show up in the horses feet and the changes are over such a long period of time that we do not see what is happening.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Friday, Apr 4, 2008 - 6:19 am:

Shelly the photo above does not seem to represent the shape of the feet in your earlier posts. We need current conformation shots to make heads or tails of the current foot balance.
DrO
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