Posted by Kris on December 19, 2002 at 16:49:20:
My gelding is flat-footed (especially in his fore hooves), with incorrect hoof shape. The fore hooves are the shape that the hind are supposed to be, and vise versa. He was shod in front only before I purchased him, and I had his shoes removed in March as I didn't intend to use him in the near future. He coped with this well, only a little footsore for one or two days after each trim. Last trim (about 2 weeks ago) saw him quite sore, not wanting to walk on the hard dirt (we are in the middle of a drought in Australia). I had been slowly bringing him back into work at this point, but have been forced to rest him again for the past 2 weeks. I decided to get shoes put on in front again, which I did yesterday. The farrier was amazed at the amount of bruising there was in the hoof, showing me fresh clippings that looked as though they'd been lying around for a week - really black and damaged. He went ahead and put front shoes on and trimmed the hind feet. Last night when I fed him, he consistently changed his weight from hind to hind, and still looked really uncomfortable in front. Today he refuses to move at all.
How can I help him to be comfortable in the short-term, and what can I do about the concussion bruising that's occuring in the long-term? (The ground isn't getting any softer!)His hooves are dry due to environmental damage, but I'm still researching the best dressing to use. I'm tossing up the idea of boiled beef fat which will apparently give moisture whilst still letting moisture in externally, therefore allowing the hoof to continue to work naturally. I don't think I want to use something that repels water or seals the hoof. Any thoughts?
Thanks!