David Nichol's Hind Quarter Lameness shoeing protocol- some questions

[Dances with Hooves]

I am looking to understand further David Nichols’ extreme breakover procedure for hind end lameness. This is the one where a NB front shoe is placed on the hind foot in cir***stances where one might have previously used a NB hind shoe, impression material and a flat or wedge NB pad. Or in the case of negative plane P-3 hind feet where one would do an inital period of 48 hours barefoot on a hard surface then a set of the MP plate with no IM prior to 2-3 settings of the NB pad and IM.

David’s procedure was described to me to be partcularly welcome in very moist environments where shoes with pads just don’t stay on well. Here in my area I have had horses in pads and IM for years if they just cannot transiton to barefoot comfortably with no shoe loss and no thrush. So it appears that New England is less wet than England and pads can be used successully here.

I am shoeing a large warmblood shod at a NB clinic nichols style with the NB front on the hinds who after the inital shoeing and 3 resets is still uncomfortable behind with normal manipulation by the farrier. He is a classic negative plane P-3 horse with a bullnosed dorsal wall and a prolapsed frog. What are the benefits to him of keeping him in the NB front on the hind feet? Should I consider taking him thru the neg plane P-3 protocol or would it be better to continue with the front shoes.

Thanks

George

[Ronald Aalders]

Hi George,


On a negative PA foot, prolapsed frog and all, what the foot needs so desperately is bringing back breakover. Next to it's other advantages that's what the NB protocol offers.

However when feet are in really bad shape like the ones you describe, you probably need a much more aggresive approach in getting up the PA, and thus relieving not only the internal structures of that foot but ease strain on pasterns, hocks, stifles, sacro illiac joint and vertebrae too!

I suggest you get the horse on banana shoes, a lot has been said about these shoes, if you need more information, I'm happy to help out either here or privately.

Here's a view pics on a similar horse, and a two X rays I borrowed from The Horse.com.



Ronald Aalders

[calshoer]

George, if using front shoes on hind feet in horse with negative p3 angle is not enough to realign the coffin joint and relieve hock and back pain, I also use some type of gentle frog support to realign the coffin joint by supporting and moving the distal end of p2 forward in the joint via the digital cushion. In fact I usually do it the other way around...I try the normal hind foot NB protocol and hind shoe with frog support first. Often that is enough to fix the misalignment but if that proves to be not quite enough help then I may switch to a front shoe . I originally got the idea of getting more agressive with hind foot breakover point from a terrific vet in Califirnia I used to work with. Patty

[Ronald Aalders]

Hi Patty,

Personally I never needed any additional frog support whe working with feet like these. The frog already comes down a lot and the wedge pad you need on a banana, will provide ample support to the frog in prolapsed frog cases like these.

In my opinion in severe cases like these the NB protocol just does not offer enough reduction of the forces delaying breakover.


Ronald Aalders

[calshoer]

On a badly prolapsed frog, I usually do use just a plain wedge pad or a bar wedge pad without the added ground frog piece, to sort of "sling" the frog more gently up into the foot.
It would probably be no more frog support than the wedge pad you are using with the banana shoe. I am sure. Usually if they are that prolapsed anyway, (sometimes from being in wedge shoes with no frog support) they do not tolerate a lot of frog support in the beginning because they are so sore in the area of the impar ligament. After they have things realigned for one shoeing, then I may go on with more support to keep them aligned without needing the wedge. Dr Barbara Page's study revealed that just bringing the breakover point back and supporting the frog with no wedge can realign the coffin joint by an average of five degrees improvement .
Patty