Sat waiting for the vet

[newforest]

Can I point out that I never suggested people put shoes or boots on to mask a problem. I was replying to @Huggy where I suggested it to prevent further problems with what sounds like soft soles. Boots or shoes in this case could prevent further issues.

There is no one size fits all when dealing with something that's for sure.
Where we were before I had access to miles of clean country lanes. We never had any issues with her hooves.
Here the roads are awful in terms of lots of loose stones, flint and gravel. (not too mention pot holes and broken up bits of road)
We will likely be staying in boots to protect her from that since we don't know what the rest of the sole/hoof will grow like.

 

[Huggy]

Can I point out that I never suggested people put shoes or boots on to mask a problem. I was replying to @Huggy where I suggested it to prevent further problems with what sounds like soft soles. Boots or shoes in this case could prevent further issues.

There is no one size fits all when dealing with something that's for sure.
Where we were before I had access to miles of clean country lanes. We never had any issues with her hooves.
Here the roads are awful in terms of lots of loose stones, flint and gravel. (not too mention pot holes and broken up bits of road)
We will likely be staying in boots to protect her from that since we don't know what the rest of the sole/hoof will grow like.

Our back track has all sorts of gravel and stones thrown up since that stupid bloody lorry tried to drive down it. The wet weather is certainly causing us all the biggest pain in the neck (or hooves).

 

[Jessey]

No need to be defensive @newforest, it wasn’t an attack on you, I was simply saying that I’d take a different approach before the one you suggested because soft soles isn’t the only thing that can make a horse go footy and there is more than one way to deal with it.

The track from my yard to the forest is gravel, and the roads in the estate always have loose stones on top. The forestry also builds up the fire break tracks with gravel. So I do a lot of riding on stoney surfaces too.

 

[PePo]

My response wasn't a criticism of you @newforest or what you've done or anyone else's approach but simply (as you said yourself) there are different ways of dealing with an issue and I was simply sharing mine.

Having worked for equine vet's in the past, I'd now personally always rule out the more complicated or serious stuff first as I've seen too many examples where the simple stuff was treated first without an investigation and it needed far more treatment later on or resulted in an unhappy ending. I'm sure there are plenty of people that do treat the simple stuff first with no further issues but I sleep better taking my approach.

Different people take different approaches for different horses, nothing more nothing less.

Our local hacking is a mix of surfaced/stone bridleways and forestry with miles of gravel and stone tracks running through, so we don't have smooth tracks either. I spend a fair bit of time riding in the downs which has flint tracks. It does make life harder for sure, if they don't have rock crunching feet or the weather is particularly wet. I boot all around at the moment for most riding despite P having great feet & the absolute faff that hoof boots can be on different surfaces when wet

 

[Jane&Ziggy]

Sid was trimmed today and his feet were much softer than normal (though he still got a good usability score). His field companion has an abscess. Trevor says there is a plague of them right now.

 

[newforest]

My area known for them, I don't really know why.
The farrier did say if she lived on the moors she would always be getting them. But that could just be if you have say 50 horses in an area, you are always going to get one or two with an ailment.

I think some horses wake up looking fot things to injure themselves on.

It's actually a lovely sunny day out there and I plan to lead her out.
I can only cross my fingers that when the growth finally grows out, that the toe is as it should be and the sole has a good depth.
It's a possibility she might need shoes after all this.

 

[newforest]

I have just taken her out in the sunshine, I feel better now.

I will allow myself to feel defensive and sensitive. I am only human and I take responsibility for feeling stuff.
I feel better now as I said, I think the sun helps.

We all do what we think is the best for our horses don't we and it's jolly hard when there isn't really any guarantee at the end of the rehab road.

She's missing the water today

 

[newforest]

I am now at the stage of selling on the boots I don't need. (Keeping one spare as its green and selling that will likely be impossible!)
One pair went to charity. One single sold, two singles and a pair to go.

What is interesting is the old mac doesn't seem to be that popular, whereas the Trail is. I do prefer the Trail for its ease of fitting.
But I think she's a cavallo cob at the moment

 

[newforest]

Updated with photo.
This is the bad hoof and it's looking like a normal one now. The second abscess is growing down nicely that she got back in October I think.

Possibly the next trim will have her in a totally newly grown down hoof capsule, the weight bearing side already looks normal.

The sole depth is coming back, I am surprised based on how thin she was. I didn't expect it to do that.

I am allowed to bring back into work, if she's comfortable.
She's not, she's in season.
So, we are still in hand walking until she's not doing the lookie for nookie!
I certainly think I will have furrowed how to ride by the time I carry on.