Contracted Heels

[Laura Ashton]

I am looking for some clarification.

I have recently been riding an ex intermediate eventer at my local yard. I have been toying seriously with the idea of buying him.

I rode him recently and one of the grooms mentioned that the farrier had commented that his heels had contracted and was surprised that he wasn't lame. He has been shoed accordingly with wider shoes on the back.

Is this signs of Navicular.

I am really interested.

Any help appreciated.
:)

[Lgd]

More probably due to bad shoeing. Discuss it with the farrier who shod him and get the vet's opinion before you make a decision.

Navicular is a very iffy area. Any horse over 10 years is likely to have changes in the navicular area but very few will ever have problems. It is very difficult to diagnose correctly and I have seen at least two wrongly diagnosed - one had laminitis problems and the other had DJD in the fetlock of the other leg. There is a vet practice not too far from us who is very fond of diagnosing navicular (the above were two of them).

[Laura Ashton]

Thanks for the response.

This makes sense - I know that the yard - until recently had another farrier. There was a crop of problems - dumping toes, horses lame etc.

I have the feeling that the ex-farrier shod the horse previously - this would explain the potential problem.

Its good that the new farrier spotted this and hopefully his remedial action will help.

thanks for your help .... happy riding.:D

[copper76]

hi!Where are you in Berkshire?Just wondering as thats where I am and I have a farrier who has really helped my horse with not the best foot conformation!

[virtuallyhorses]

if your farrier is dealing with this make sure that you check how often he would like you to arrange visits. Contracted heels and underrun heels may require more frequent visits from the farrier to ensure that the problem is not being 'helped' by the heels getting too long, or the shoes being adjusted for new growth\balance.

[Wally]

In a nutshell, if the foot has contracted due to an underlying desease, there is little use trying to expand the foot again, if it is due to bad shoeing practice, these cases usually respond favourably really quickly.