Contracted Heels? Help - Pics Included!

[SHOWCASE STABLES]

Hi,
My friends QH/TB gelding has something wierd going on with all four of his feet, particularly the heels. They look bulbous and swollen, like someone stuck a blob of silly putty on the backs of them! I think it looks like contracted heels, but their blacksmith got REALLY defensive when they asked him if it was.......funny, he said it WAS NOT contracted heels, but didn't offer what it could be!?!?! :confused:

Please check out the pics and tell me what you think.....any input would be appreciated!

Thanks!

[calshoer]

I think the horse has very weak feet, internally. It appoears to be seriously lacking structural cartilage in between the heels. That foot is typical of those kind,as viewed from the outside....very hollow betwen the heel bulbs and very thin distance from the inside of the hollow area to the frog ground surface. Inside they lack cartilage under and in the digitial cushion.. I bet a person could take those heels and move them independantly with their hands if there was not a shoe on it stabilizing it.
NOT the farriers fault. He has a right to get defensive if it is insinuated that this is in any way his fault. It is most likely from bad breeding, perpetuating bad feet.
However these poor quality feet can be helped some, by adding man made support from the bottom, in the form of supportive full pads, with or without added frog support as the situation dictates, or a nice bar shoe to hold the back of the frog up, perhaps with dental impression material or similar product, OR .....barefoot (IF the environment allows that in comfort, and the owner is willing to use hoof boots) so he can use his frog better.
Just Don't blame the farrier.
It is just a very poor footed horse. Patty

[Phil Armitage]

I agree with Patty. This is the way the horse is and not the farriers fault at all, what is any farrier suppose to say. It also looks as if these feet are excessively wet. What is the moisture from in the picture. What is the paddock like? Weak feat get even worse in wet and muddy paddocks, they become even weaker.

[SHOWCASE STABLES]

Thanks for the input! This horse is not kept in wet/muddy conditions, but it was raining out the day we took the pics.... :rolleyes: .
The stable offers a box stall, with free in/out privledges to a large paddock that is gravel/sand. There are other horse boarded there with and without shoes. Is the best thing to remove the shoes altogether? I have read up on contracted heels on various internet sites, and there are lots of articles about natural trimming, etc.

Their farrier was defensive at being asked IF the horse had contracted heels, and it was never insinuated that he had caused it. I don't think the owners are really looking to find out HOW it happened, but rather, how to fix/avoid it! This horse has only been shod by the current blacksmith for 1.5 yrs, and is 7 yrs old now, and this bulby heel thing is relatively new and has not been a past problem.
B.T.W, this horse does not seem lame in any way.....

Thanks again for any input!