Thanks for the support Bruce - I am a worrier when it comes to feet. Scraped off the flap this morning with my finger-nail as it was flakier than I thought so now teeny flap gone but I think we may shed a small amount of sole in that area. We normally only flake at the heels so this is a first. Started to panic when I thought it could be P3 trying to poke through - I do panick sometimes and I would probably have a very lame pone if that was the case !! Do you think it could be false sole that built up to protect P3 at some time and now isnt required?
False sole is an odd term and I'm not sure that I fully understand why it came into use. I guess one of the experienced trimmers might have more to say on this.
We used to get the chalky sole thing quite often on all three - but now it doesn't happen - maybe that was all part of transition and the sole is better quality and more connected now - maybe it's down to having the diet right or a combination of all changes!
I see occasional build up of un-exfoliated sole on the lami and the hoof looks a bit "filled in" - but not on the other two. I'd been laying off a bit from the heels of mine thinking I couldn't take heel down becuase I didn't want to go into that "sole" but at the same time worrying about not getting the frog in any meaningful contact with the ground....when my trimmer (who checks what I am doing every 3 months!) looked at it, she asked me whether I thought it was "useful" sole - given the obvious depth at the collateral groove - and whether I thought that keeping it was maybe contributing to pulling the hoof forward - looking at it this way made me realise it was not useful and off it came with no apparent ill effect - but the frogs are in better contact with the ground now. The sole underneath did look better connected/tighter/tougher than the horn on the surface. It will be interesting to see if the quality of the frog now improves - they are wimpier than I'd really like them to be. He has grown a good thick toe callus as well.
It's a whole fascinating subject the sole and I can't wait for the trimming intensive stage of the training. So much to learn!
I don't know if this helps, but when I transitioned a horse who had been poking his pedal bones down into his soles because of incorrect shoeing he formed a cap slightly larger than the size of a 10p piece, perfectly circular, just in front of the point of the frog in each front foot. After about 8 weeks, as I recall, this cap fractured all around the rim and just fell off in one piece, no chalking up or anything. It was terribly frightening at the time, not knowing if the next thing I was going to see was the point of his pedal bone sticking through his sole
My news is boring . Jazz is rock-stomping and his feet have concaved right up now the grass is gone and he has come off omeprazole. I've also put him on Yea-Sacc in an attempt to stave off both laminitis and further ulcers. I have cured several hairline cracks at the quarters, legacy from poor/non-existant trimming from 0-4 years while at stud, by daily spray with Tesco Value bleach.
Zippy is unfalteringly rock-stomping and has the beautiful deep concavity he's always had. His heels are not popping up as much as they were and he looks much more heel-first in his landing to me.
George has gone to a new home but continues to be barefoot, hopefully trimmed by Paul Jackson when the new people get around to phoning him!
Jazz will hunt again on Saturday if they go, but it looks doubtful with this weather.
We have freezing everything up here - bit of rain in the day and deep freeze at night. Many small roads coated in a dangerous layer of ice. Police closed off two of the country roads today (including the one to our yard) because there had been so many accidents within the 7-9AM timeframe they were impassable!
All going well again down here. Has been very very cold and have upped hay in field aswell as still strip grazing when frost allows. The little flap has gone that I reported last week on lgl pony's OSF and she is happy as larry !! (Who was Larry!!)
Wormed both with Equest this morning and all OK so far ie, no worms or footiness. Played chase with them around the field this afternoon which probably isnt good horsemanship and consisted of me running around a dis-used chicken shed with pones following farting and bucking like nutters !! It requires a bit of timing or a wooly mammoth pony can come careering into you !! As I said not very BHS but good fun !
Making good progress on my lammy paddock for next year as it is now half mud and skid marks
Honest - I have given up soaking hay - it has been so wet and cold, I just roll out the hay from the bale on the ground that I am going to feed in the evening and let nature do it for me. It's always thoroughly wetted, and my sanity stays a little more intact.
Another month of ponies being great. yay. both rock stomping and both in work.
Boy has been superstar all rounder, showjumping with my little sister, hacking with me and being riding horse for ponying Tyler.
Tyler has been ponied from Boy, been walked through floods with little sister on board and today i rode him off the lunge for the first time.
Both looking really good, foot and body-wise so feeding staying as it has been, Copra, Luciebix and Fibrebeet with minerals mixed in.
And my leg is finally starting to work again so fingers crossed i may get Boy out hunting next month!
We had sunshine and dry weather today! Got all 3 out for a hack with the kids, all a little excited to be out after a few weeks of doing not much.
Had to help one of the liveries this afternoon - horse shod yesterday, today both front shoes twisted badly on the insides. Pulled them off for her and tidied up the ragged ends, was a hard job though cos the horse was just not happy to stand on one leg whilst the first shoe was pulled.
Boy, I sure don't miss that part of horse ownership! How nice it is not to have shoes that come off the day before you really wanted to go out on the yard Xmas ride out!
So yard event tomorrow - whole yard rides out, including the kids on ponies, then followed by hot mulled wine, mince pies, fruitcake (seldom in short supply really) and other nice goodies! Hope we get nice weather.
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