Cracked feet right up to coronet

[melwelshy]

hi this is my first posting so bear with me. Yesterday i bought a 4yr old cobX. He was brought up from cornwall to yorskhire. I bought him as " 4yr old done nothing, recntly swung" and thats it, im betting he has been turned out on acres of land left to roam with the herd then rounded up and brought to sales. He has really never been touched in 4yr apart from being swung two weeks previously to sales. His feet are a real mess and im really unsure where to start,(obviously a farrier asap). He has one very large crack/split it could be either but cant pick his feet up to check yet, that starts at his toe and goes right up the cornet. ive been told he will have deformed feet because of this. The rest of his feet are splayed out but thats prob due to never having feet trimmed im guessing. I have also been told not to have his feet trimmed as he going for breaking next week and will need his hoove on to ensure he doesnt get foot sore when he begins all his hard work. Any advice please would be great especially about his crack does it cause longterm damage and will he have a prob with his fett forever now. PLEASE HELP

[Rick Burten]

Can you post some photos?

What does "being swung" mean?

His feet could, apparently, use at least a light shaping trim. Apparently he doesn't understand standing for the farrier, so to get this job accomplished, you will probably need to chemically restrain him. If you can't do that, then don't expect a farrier to get under this horse and try to trim him.

[melwelshy]

sorry being swung is term for learning the horse to be halter broke and lead around. i will try asap to get some photos. I have looked into getting him sadated as i wouldnt expect a farrier to work on a gorse that i wouldnt pick there feet up, If i wont why should they when its my horse.
What do you think to leaving a lot hoof on so that it can be worn done as he is backed and ridden, Will this make the crack worse.
Thankyou i think this site is amazing i have been reading Qs&As for the last few hours.

[tbloomer]

sorry being swung is term for learning the horse to be halter broke and lead around. i will try asap to get some photos. I have looked into getting him sadated as i wouldnt expect a farrier to work on a gorse that i wouldnt pick there feet up, If i wont why should they when its my horse.
What do you think to leaving a lot hoof on so that it can be worn done as he is backed and ridden, Will this make the crack worse.
Thankyou i think this site is amazing i have been reading Qs&As for the last few hours.
It is more likely that the hoof will break off above the level of the sole rather than wear down. Thus the horse will be lame from too much weight bearing on the sole. You might find it will cost you less to delay the training under saddle until your farrier has had a chance to rehabilitate the feet on this horse. Otherwise you might wind up paying for training time that will be wasted due to the horse being lame. NO FOOT NO HORSE. :mad:

[Gary Pfeiffer]

What T. said is correct, the horse will probably break off that extra foot instead of wearing it down.
When you have the farrier out, just ask him to leave a little extra foot on the horse. I'm not talking about an extra 1/2 inch, an 1/8 inch may do well here.

It is great to hear that you would not expect your farrier to get under this horse, if you cannot pick up his foot. Way too often owners feel, that is what we are paid for and that we have some magical way of getting these types of horses to pick up their feet. Pure brawn it is!

Gary

[melwelshy]

i too have seen some utterly ****** owners that cant get near the horse then say oh ill let the farrier do it, you get paid for your knowlodge and expertise not DANGER MONEY
Thanks for your help it really is appreciated. ;)

[Thomas_Ride&Drive]

What does "being swung" mean?

.

Being swung is NOT training a horse to be walked in a head collar. It actually means the horse has been tied solid to a pole and gone balistic until its eventually stood still because its realised that its not going anywhere and is likely to kill itself! Its often accompanied by the horse having one front leg tied right up.

Its not what I would call training and in my experience its only employed by those who have no idea how to train a horse and is akin to some of the rough breaking methods used by some "cowboys" with limited time and skill and on "ferral" horses.

Indeed in my experience a lot of the best horses (with spirit, character and determination) that have been "swung" develop an absolute terror of being tied and become more difficult and problematic.

If the poster wants to pm me and let me know where they are located in Yorkshire I can let him/her have contact details for good trainers and good farriers as the OP is fortunate as there is an abundance of both there.

[melwelshy]

i certainly dont use the term "swung" with that intent and i honestly did not know that is what it meant literally i thought being "swung" was just as i said being taught to learn to lead, i can assure you i dont use those meathods so if i am able to correct myself @the horse horse has only just been learnt how to walk in hand".
Thankyou for all the helpful advice i have recieved, i now have worked with the horse and managed to get him a trim and the farrier is sure he can come next week and get the front two hooves shod up. I explained to him that i had used this site as advice.
I am now gaining his trust and he has even let me introduce him to tack!!!
Brave boy!!!!!

[SlowShoe]

Its not what I would call training and in my experience its only employed by those who have no idea how to train a horse and is akin to some of the rough breaking methods used by some "cowboys" with limited time and skill and on "ferral" horses.

I know tell me about it.. Would it kill them to take the time and properly tie a tire tube between the horse and the pole. Some people. =]

Edit: hey this is post 666!

[Thomas_Ride&Drive]

Edit: hey this is post 666!

The devil in disguise :eek:

[goeslikestink]

being swung - has been correctly protriad by thomas 1
naughty dealers do this in order to make the horse ready for sale to earn the money -- not only do they tied the horse up asdescribed but one such dealer that inkow is rough and has such a bad repretation that ilph and rspca are on to him as hes been in hand h and on tv --- does this with a whats know in the dealing world as mexican twitch but to some in usa as they do use it a lot as have seen it on many photos is whereby the run the leadrope with a chain on over the top fornt teeth under top lip -- thought the head colllar over the poll
tie the horse to a pole with remaning lead rope as describe so horse pulls on it self thus being horse holds it self down -- and cannot move -- therefore the horse learn pretty quickly not to pull - by doing this the auto matic adddrenline within a horses body comes out in sweat in its neck ( menaing when a horse is held by a lip twitch the horse goes a bit sleepy within its own i body fluids i cant think what the words called ) as the sweat becomes more so after about 10- 20 mins depending on how the horse is in mind -- say like a wild horse that isnt broken in yet--like as in he brought it dtriaght of the lorry and untouched -- then he will continue till the horse is so sleepy
then he get undoes the rope -- from pole and gets on the horse as the horse has no objections the next thing he does is to canter it on a concrete floor - surface -- ahorse wil not normally flip on a concrete as they arnt dump-- and cntinously trot or cnater the horse up and down that lenght of concrete--- till it gives up--- thats what naughty dealers do for a quick break in with an unhandled horse there fore chipping said feet to bits

op--- your horse has been sat on and done tihngs with you wouldnt beleive
the only reason i know what goes on becuase i ahve been brought up in the dealing world but with good dealers but becuase i ahve it means you know the bad ones to--
there are still a few about in uk -- the one in kent like i say is being watched
and the ilph and rspca are building up a case gaianst him which last time i heard he is due in ccourt--
i hope he gets done like a kipper-- as hes a very nasty person
isay agian your has been broken in roughly has been on if hes be swung and you brougth him in a market-- and has had the worse kind of treatment possibale -- you need now time and patience and dont rush him he needs to gain trust with human hand -- his chips in feet are becuase hes been hammered on a conctrete pathway

[goeslikestink]

i was trying to put it i to more detail so the farriers on here
could know the extend of what i call hammering on a concrete pathway
as to why your horse has chips and splits un to his coronet band
its due to trama of the pounding of the feet on concrete yard way or pathway
and that a young horse whos not used to being broken in that way as its so rough - it would chip and split and then the farriers can advise perhaps with more thought - and insight --

[caballus]

I would have to surmise that the cracks and chips are most likely the result of imbalances and the walls being left too long. I have horses that live 24/7 on cobblestone-like terrain and they don't chip or split or crack (unless I allow the hooves to get too long). Hoofwalls are not "designed" to be 100% weight-bearing all by themselves and much like your fingernails would split, crack and chip if you were to leverage and weight them, the hooves are not too much different.

--Gwen

[mochaccino82]

I've encountered two horses now with the same problem that you are describing in your horses hoof. I read thru the threads and it seemed as though you got more criticism for the use of the word "swung" than you did an answer to your question. If you should happen to get some type of help, please let me know. I've posted a thread concerning the same condition. I would tend to disagree that the crack all the way to the coronet is a result of the cobble stone or concrete, both instances I have seen were born with it. This would indicate to me that there is some type of vitamin deficiency. One option that I have learned of and it is a huge commitment because it will take quite some time, but you could try adding some type of biotin supplement to your horses diet/feeding regimine. Do not exceed the recommended dosage, as the excess boitin will pass thru the urine becoming a waste of valuable supplement. Another option I've heard of, is Zinc Methionine supplement. Biotin is an easier alternative however a commitment as I mentioned becuase an average horses hoof will grow about 7mm to 10mm per month. The horse naturally produces biotin all on it's own, but it may be worth a try for about 6 months or so...maybe you will see some results. I've not studied the Zinc Methionine, but you may want to check that option as well. I think that just as with humans, different things work for different people...same applies for horses, just need to experiment a bit. Thanks for your time ~ Sarah ;)

[Thomas_Ride&Drive]

This is an old posting and the OP hasn't posted at all for nearly a year.