tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8603946585821420123.post3813805602479358153..comments2023-05-27T11:53:06.487-04:00Comments on Memoirs of a Horse Girl: My Barefoot Horse: Hoof Stand ProgressValhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07335385366138424092noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8603946585821420123.post-52817093884211790372012-07-25T08:04:40.929-04:002012-07-25T08:04:40.929-04:00I am beginning to see the light!I am beginning to see the light!Valhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07335385366138424092noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8603946585821420123.post-51983803967372480462012-07-25T05:26:00.146-04:002012-07-25T05:26:00.146-04:00I'm glad you are finally reaping the benefits ...I'm glad you are finally reaping the benefits of the mighty hoof stand! I couldn't live without mine, honestly.Lisahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15121469297442797836noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8603946585821420123.post-23249307364911471482012-07-21T23:34:25.294-04:002012-07-21T23:34:25.294-04:00Oh my goodness, Sydney. No thanks.
I have diss...Oh my goodness, Sydney. No thanks. <br /><br />I have dissected many, many preserved specimens in college and with my biology students, but I just cannot bring myself to dissect a horse hoof. The person who got me started trimming my horse showed me a cadaver once and has dissected a couple herself, but that is close enough for me.<br /><br />Even a bio girl has limits! <br />I guess that one is mine.<br /><br />There could be many reasons why those horses were not sound or why they wore their feet in what appeared to be an odd manner. The state of the feet and the soundness of the wild horses was a correlation at best, not necessarily cause and effect, and it is worth noting that this occurred without human intervention. The trim (horse-made or man-made) is only part of the picture.Valhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07335385366138424092noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8603946585821420123.post-34601060577832335482012-07-21T19:02:48.550-04:002012-07-21T19:02:48.550-04:00Rolled by the wild. I am guessing when they were b...Rolled by the wild. I am guessing when they were brought in to be sorted and deemed adoptable or not the ones we were using were either long term lame or had some sort of problem. The ones that were rolled unevenly were noted with what the horses had. If you have a slaughter house someplace nearby (I know some people dont agree with this) they may give you a leg free to dissect. It's an extremely valuable learning tool, especially if you have a vet with you to explain the functions etc.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14523660446608394720noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8603946585821420123.post-39774209481208082692012-07-21T10:43:16.911-04:002012-07-21T10:43:16.911-04:00That is very interesting and neat that you had tha...That is very interesting and neat that you had that experience in college. Were these mustang cadaver feet "rolled" by a human or rolled by the movement of the wild horse?<br /><br />I was taught the same, although I am partially self-taught. ;)Valhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07335385366138424092noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8603946585821420123.post-16811646873260719182012-07-20T21:11:46.919-04:002012-07-20T21:11:46.919-04:00I forgot to mention in the previous comment when I...I forgot to mention in the previous comment when I studied some cadaver feet in school (not even farrier school, university, equine science) we took apart some mustang feet. The instructor noted that most of the ones that were rolled excessively to and even past the white line were lame before they were euthanized. Just a thought. No two horses have the same feet. I was always taught to trim how the horse was made and how it grew it's own foot :)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14523660446608394720noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8603946585821420123.post-28527608010616457142012-07-20T20:34:13.318-04:002012-07-20T20:34:13.318-04:00At least you are enthusiastic about manual labor! ...At least you are enthusiastic about manual labor! I hope his feets grow extra for you. ;)Valhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07335385366138424092noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8603946585821420123.post-4949070023189030782012-07-20T18:12:35.958-04:002012-07-20T18:12:35.958-04:00His hooves look great!! I want that hoof jack! I a...His hooves look great!! I want that hoof jack! I also want to trim Laz's hooves SOOOOOOO badly but I've been told to wait so we can have hoof to re-balance.<br />Talk about chomping at the bit!Kristen Eleni Shellenbargerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01458744919530540978noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8603946585821420123.post-79950256203479788682012-07-20T10:36:33.202-04:002012-07-20T10:36:33.202-04:00Glad to hear that the hoof stand is working out, a...Glad to hear that the hoof stand is working out, and it sounds like the farrier was a fantastic help! That's really awesome to find someone willing to give you tips.<br /><br />I am super-jealous of Harley's fantastic-looking feet, not to mention your mad trimming skillz!jenjhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01737679332792618499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8603946585821420123.post-77398547753644199142012-07-20T08:03:22.605-04:002012-07-20T08:03:22.605-04:00Hi Sydney,
Don't worry I know what it is. ...Hi Sydney, <br /><br />Don't worry I know what it is. I just like writing "wonkiness". ;)<br /><br />Based on how it is localized at the toe, the wonky, waviness of the line, and the flare that was popping up at the quarters, I tend to lean toward mechanical disruption over a metabolic event. This minor separation only happens when his hooves grow very quickly and escape my attempts to prevent overgrowth (almost always during the summer). Wouldn't a metabolic event indiscriminately create a separation line around most of the hoof? <br /><br />I can see an event line on his hooves farther up (which could be due to the illness he had this winter, vaccinations, or the stress of allergies), but when these lines have grown out in the past, I have not seen any kind of separation beneath them. There is no way to know for sure, but I just thought that I would ask the question since you see far more hooves than I do.<br /><br />As for the white line, I was taught to trim this way by my friend who is a trimmer and by reading (Barefoot for Soundness was one of my early favorites by Marjorie Smith, http://www.barefoothorse.com/) articles by professionals whom I believe to be reliable. Your comment is interesting, for one, because it is so specific to technique and, secondly, because I once tried backing off from the white line and I did not like the results. I purchased a trimming DVD from a well known professional and followed the instructions to only rasp as much as the horse was rolling himself at the toe. I tried it for a couple trims and separation popped up all around the quarters. My horse was still sound, but I could not see the changes as an improvement in what I was doing before so I just abandoned the new (for me) technique. Maybe I will try just rasping to the water line for a few cycles and see what happens. I am always looking for ways to improve my trim. <br /><br />Thanks for the thought-provoking comment!Valhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07335385366138424092noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8603946585821420123.post-89401508039486212972012-07-20T07:34:43.395-04:002012-07-20T07:34:43.395-04:00Yeah! Must be a teacher-term. ;)Yeah! Must be a teacher-term. ;)Valhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07335385366138424092noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8603946585821420123.post-36417420935968794362012-07-20T07:34:12.255-04:002012-07-20T07:34:12.255-04:00Makes trimming even more work, doesn't it? Th...Makes trimming even more work, doesn't it? Thank goodness a water spray bottle helps somewhat.<br /><br />Harley also seems less comfortable with the farrier holds I was taught, even the pretty benign one where I put my near leg to the inside of his front hoof and just rest it against my leg.<br /><br />It is actually raining now!Valhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07335385366138424092noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8603946585821420123.post-10258396878740497142012-07-19T22:22:24.721-04:002012-07-19T22:22:24.721-04:00The "wonkiness" is just a bit of separat...The "wonkiness" is just a bit of separation where dirt and bacteria moved in. It makes sense that it is in all four feet. It could have been a change in diet, shots, stress (trailering horse show, colic etc) or any other million reasons why horses hooves can change. It likely happened happened months ago and has just now grown down. Don't let someone tell you it's white line disease. White line is a lot more severe than this and will continue to be recurring, often laming the horse and causing extremely poor hoof wall quality.<br />Also a question: Why do you rasp to the white line? I keep seeing some barefoot people doing this and it isn't at all what I have ever, ever seen in a wild mustang, which most barefoot people want to base their practice off of.The sole and white line should not be the main weight bearing structure, even in a barefoot horse. Some horses can handle this but it also can create bruising and unnecessary pressure. I've had a lot more luck rasping to the water line/un-pigmented layer of hoof wall.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14523660446608394720noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8603946585821420123.post-26344459887517308942012-07-19T15:28:33.873-04:002012-07-19T15:28:33.873-04:00Yah for kind farriers! And my students all know e...Yah for kind farriers! And my students all know exactly what wonky means! :0)Bakersfield Dressagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05571487914424695283noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8603946585821420123.post-21974009761041633022012-07-19T14:13:53.723-04:002012-07-19T14:13:53.723-04:00Oh man, Harley's feet look almost as dry as my...Oh man, Harley's feet look almost as dry as my horses'. We've had only a half inch of rain in the past month and we've got desert hooves up here! Hard as rocks.<br /><br />I tried the farrier hold when I first started trimming but gave it up almost immediately. My horses started fighting as soon as their leg went between mine, they hated that feeling of confinement.smazourekhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03029180368325070266noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8603946585821420123.post-57834064709989330612012-07-19T13:59:21.477-04:002012-07-19T13:59:21.477-04:00Why yes it is!
:)Why yes it is!<br />:)Valhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07335385366138424092noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8603946585821420123.post-2504814059287371982012-07-19T11:41:55.548-04:002012-07-19T11:41:55.548-04:00Well, that trim sounds a lot easier than the past ...Well, that trim sounds a lot easier than the past ones. Mr. Farrier was very nice to show you a few little tricks of the trade. Everyone to his own profession I guess. <br /><br />By the way is wonkiness a technical term? ;)Grey Horse Mattershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05837575441967937196noreply@blogger.com