 |
RE: [RC] to shoe or not... - Susan E. Garlinghouse, D.V.M.The one thing that's really making a big difference with some of my horses is an idea that Pete Ramey suggested, a loose pea gravel loafing area to toughen feet, particularly feet that are soft because of seasonal moisture. One of my clients hopped on the idea and I'm seeing great feet in just a few weeks. The pea gravel really massages and toughens the sole. However, I would be careful with pea gravel in horses with *really* soft soles. After the wet winter, I'm treating a lot more solar abscesses, and even a small rock seems to be sufficient to cause a bruise and subsequent abscess in *some* horses. I have one horse in my practice with very thin soles on pea gravel that was just miserable until we put him onto shavings. I don't have any objection to using pea gravel, just be vigilant in causing ouchiness until the feet do have a chance to toughen up. And, I probably wouldn't advise using it in laminitic horses until well past the acute stage. JMO. Susan Garlinghouse, DVM, MS =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
|