Hoof problems - What would you do?

If you're fields are wet & muddy which is likely in tis weather, I wouldn't go for glue on shoes. I asked my farrier about them once and he said he'd be happy to put them on, as long as I'd be happy to spend a fortune on having my horse shod for about 5 mins until he pulled them all off in the mud:eek:

I'd definitely vote for barefoot with hoof boots, though I've never had bad feet to contend with, but anything has to be better than sticking holes in poor feet with nail on shoes.
 
Horse have different feet, obviously. My old mare, same as yours could do what she wanted, stand in bogs, water and be bone dry and didnt have a single problem... Ben cant
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My point was more that my mare couldn't do this before as her hooves weren't healthy enough. It's taken a long time and a lot of effort but she can now. You aren't necessarily stuck with him having poor hooves indefinitely.

Hoof boots are initially an expensive purchase but they're usually a one off cost and pay for themselves quite quickly when you compare their cost to the cost of having the horse shod a couple of times. If you do decide to go with boots I can highly recommend Lucy at www.thesaddleryshop.co.uk, she offers a boot hire service which has saved me a fair bit of money and she also has a wealth of advice on boot fit & suitability.
 
My Tb with poor feet stands in the same bogs as Bebe's horse but since the nail holes grew out and she's been properly trimmed I've had no issues with cracking and chipping either.
 
Looks like I should be getting them off, but against what my farrier thinks? If only you lot could see how bad he is a walking and the weakness of his feet... I need some first hand advice aswell i think.

But update on supplements etc, have gone a bouight a massive tub of farriers Formula, set me back a few pennies...

Silly question and I think i know the answer, but, can i leave back shoes on and take fronts off? Even if its for a few days or will this totally unbalance him?
 
Back shoes off and fronts on is a no-no according to many bodyworkers but my mare managed just fine like that for about a year and many other horses do also. It's worth a go.

The first time my mares shoes came off all round she was so lame I cried, although to be fair she was almost as lame in the shoes (and I cried then too). I buted her and kept her out on the soft ground as much as I possibly could.

The difference in her comfort levels when the farrier took her shoes off compared to when an EP took her shoes off and trimmed was worlds apart. She was crippled with the farrier, looked mildly bemused and a bit unsure of where her feet were with the EP. It's definitely worth getting someone who specialises in rehabbing difficult horses hooves to have a look, invariably they're able to provide more help and support through the difficult stages than a farrier.

EPs can be found here:
http://www.epauk.org/findep.php

UKNHCP trimmers here:
http://www.uknhcp.org/locateapractioner.html

Trimmers often cover a much wider area than you may think so it's worth contacting one even if they're not exactly local.
 
i've never heard of back shoes staying on and fronts coming off and woiuld have thought it would be unbalancing.
 
i've never heard of back shoes staying on and fronts coming off and woiuld have thought it would be unbalancing.
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I transposed it to front on and backs off in my head when I read it - oops.

In theory I don't suppose its any different to backs off, fronts on but I've never known anyone to do it in practice.
 
Bebe said:
I transposed it to front on and backs off in my head when I read it - oops.

In theory I don't suppose its any different to backs off, fronts on but I've never known anyone to do it in practice.
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i thought the reason fronts normally stay on without backs is because 60% of the horse's weight is generally carried by the fronts therefore their fronts get more punishment, maybe putting shoes on fronts lifts the front end a bit but i'm not sure.
 
I just thought maybe the transition would be easier for him. He is so sore infront anyway, taking the shoes off couldnt really make it any worse in my books, but who knows. He seems ok behind, but if they are taken off, I am sure he'll be sore. Thought two at a time would be easier on him than four. And becuase his fronts are the worse they would come off first.. looks like all four at once.

First few days, in or out? I have a stable kitted out with rubber matting, or a field quite a walk away down a stoney uneven track. Looking for some equi boots today to put on going down the track and off again for turnout..
 
providing the flooring is soft (i don't know how cushioned rubber is) i would maybe say keep in as the walk to the field could be painful. getting some equiboots so he can be out would be ideal though.
 
Honey has Tb feet (was hoping for Connemara Feet .. ah well). She has White Line Disease .. crumbley feet, etc ..

I was going to go for shoes .. but thankfully someone helped me and gave me the best advice. I put her straight onto a feed with Biotin supliment. And also she now wears Old Macs .. when we ride, and sometimes in the paddock ..

I hope that helps :)
 
i have both my broodmares on formula 4 feet as one mares hoofs was in a bad condition and the other one a bad crack going up to the top they have been on it for 6 weeks now and i can not belive how much the hoofs have grown im well happy with formula 4 feet now i have the pony that gets laminitis on it now its by equilife if you want to look it up.
 
Boot him up FIRST. Boot him up so that he can move about. Never restrict his movement. It's all about movement. If he's out in the pasture, and too sore to move, he'll stand still. So the worst case scenario in the field is that he's not moving - which is the best you could hope for if you left him in. EasyBoots are talked of as about the best hoof boots - with the gaiters.

As for going against your farrier's wishes .... you'll have to decide. As far as I can see - you have in front of you the evidence of how good his advice is. This is where it leads. Do you like it ? How's the search for a AANHCP / EP trimmer going ? Any leads yet ? If you find one, find out their fav. drink and candy and spoil them rotten. A good barefoot trimmer is worth his/her weight in gold - make sure you're their favourite customer. Mine is visiting today - I shall be baking all morning :D
 
Your farrier can only guide you.... it's your decision that makes the difference.... and he must go with it...
 
I totally sympathise with you and your poor hoss, bad feet are a heartbreaking nightmare. the weather is wrecking my boys feet and in theory i should be going barefoot but i just can't bring myself to put him through the pain i know he would be in if i tried, not yet anyway.

i dont really have anything to add, but i hope it works out for you both, best of luck :)
 
Since he's already sore even in shoes I'd be tempted to try him barefoot, but only with an experienced trimmer because you are likely to need lots of advice on treating infection and boots and pads, conditioning etc to improve the feet. Boots and pads can do a very good job of keeping them comfortable so it might not be too bad. Some horses even turn out to be less sore once the shoes are off so well worth a try.

I've seen cr*p TB feet turn into nice feet barefoot, its a great way to improve the feet even if you do want to go back to shoes longer term.

You can soak in borax even with shoes on so might be worth trying even if you don't want to go barefoot. What I've found with mine is that even without soaking at all (one unhandled horsie with minging feet and one tempremental baggage that didn't like getting wet persuaded me to try not soaking) well trimmed feet, no shoes, the right diet (its worth trying magnesium and reducing the amount of sugary stuff even with TBs) and hard ground gets rid of any hoof wall infection pretty quickly, but if you can't get everything right straight away then soaking with something to kill off as much infection as possible at least keeps it under control a bit. Soaking every day is excessive IMO, I wouldn't do more than a couple of times a week.
 
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