Posted by Gil on June 07, 2004 at 18:13:07:
In Reply to: Re: bruising on outer wall posted by Rick Burten on January 26, 2003 at 22:51:43:
: :My horse is showing 'pink bruising?' around all four hooves,now about a centimetre down from the coronet. The area is about half an inch (sorry!)deep,except at the heel, where it reaches halfway down,& is purple. It looks the same effect as when an injury to the coronet grows down, but I can't imagine how all four would be evenly damaged. The livery owner says her vet said it was to do with them going onto rich spring grazing, & nothing to worry about. If so, why does it show a 'damage' effect, as healthy horn (in my horse) is golden. He is not shod, & has not done any excessive exercise. I checked out that the time it occurred coincided with him going onto 24/7 summer grazing,from daytime only shorter grass, & also with an increase in work.(hacking for 45 mins,instead of just 30 mins flatwork) I wonder if it will affect the quality of horn when it gets to the bottom,as he may have to be shod this summer.
: : I have been reading til blue in the face trying to find out as much info. about bruising on the outer hoof wall. My friend has several horses all trimmed by the same farrier. I am very suspicious of the one inch diameter bruises found on most of her horses feet,not to mention all four of one horse. The feet show signs of having splayed angles on one side and not the other, concavity and convexity. ect. ect.
: > Can I be confident in assuming the farrier is doing a poor job of balancing these feet properly?
: Unless you are well versed in the nuances of trimming and balancing feet, you should, based on the information thus far provided, assume nothing. If your friend is concerned about her horse's feet, she should contact her farrier and discuss her concerns with him/her. If, after this conversation, she is dissatisfied or feels that her concerns have not been addressed, she should consider a consultation with a different farrier. After that, she can begin to make some informed decisions.
: >With the bruising inbetween the coronet band and bottom of the foot did this occur recently from the hard ground or has it been something that grew out over an amount of time and I am just now noticing?
: The bruising is most often the result of the horse hitting the hoof against something. Bruising from hard ground would show up in the sole. Also, the bruising could be due to injury or insult to the coronary band that is now growing down and has become noticeable.
: >Could it happen to a balanced foot in this area even if the foot is balanced?
: Yes.
: Rick