Posted by HorseLver on October 17, 2003 at 11:31:55:
Hi!!
I recently had my horse trimmed by a new farrier. I have some concerns because in the past, (this is a 2 1/2 year old filly, who has been trimmed since she was a month old), I have had 5 reputable people trim her-in her short lifetime and no one has told me what this new farrier has metioned.
He told me that my horse's front right foot was "deformed" and "neglected", neither terms went well with me, since I am obessed with keeping her healthy.
He said that she isn't wearing her feet down evenly and that he was going to fix it and I would have to get her done every 5 weeks to insure that it would fix the problem.
He told me that her coffin bone is all messed up because of this and will cause her to have dead hoof tissue, she will be lame, etc. etc.
Sounds pretty serious. He was also letting me know that it was OBVIOUS my horse hadn't been trimmed in 3-4 months, and that was so bad!
Hey, Im not riding the horse, and in all honesty, her feet didnt look bad at all! And in my area, farriers are few and very far between, getting an appointment sometimes takes a while.
So that's besides the point.
My filly hasnt filled out yet, and has a very narrow chest, she also has a toe that flares out, that right front. She's never sore or tender, she has been the last couple days, but not limping, just sore.
I'd rather not use this farrier again , but I would like to find someone who knows more about this. What should I do, is it as serious as he said it is, why did none of my other farriers ( two of which are natural balance farriers) tell me about it? Will it correct itself when she fills out in the chest? Is it really bad to trim a horse every 3 months? And I was told it was very important to keep up on a horse's trimming until it was 2 years old, he told me until they are three.
I appreciate all info, please email it to me, thanks.