Re: Corrective/Pathological Shoeing

["Maggie Mieske" <mmieske@netonecom.net>]

Frank, 
I think a lot of people on ridecamp don't really understand what a trailer
is.  I think that they think when a farrier leaves some of the shoe
straight out behind the heel for support that it is a trailer.  We do NOT
advocate trailers for endurance (or any distance discipline).  I personally
feel they put more stress on the hocks.  Any drastic changes can cause
lameness especially when a horse is used to a certain way of going. 
Changes should always be made gradually....I think sometimes people think
the farrier is just trying to make more money from them if he says he has
to come more often for resets or it will take awhile to "correct" a
problem.  We have a case of several dressage horses that we are working on
where the previous farrier had a perception problem...the feet were
unbalanced (each horse in the same way).  He would take more off the inside
and leave the outside long.  It was a mess.  When Nelson first started
working on them and was able to balance the feet for the first time, they
were sore for several days, every one of them.   Looks bad for a farrier
but fortunately the people understood that the horses had to learn to use
the muscles that they hadn't been using for a long time.  They got those
muscles strengthened and within a few days, the horses were moving better
than ever and everybody is happy.  You wouldn't think a minor change in
just balancing the horse's feet would result in any lameness or soreness. 
But you are right about the possibility of really screwing up a horse
trying to correct its way of going....it may not be correctable.  Thanks
for cautioning ridecampers about the use of trailers, too.  I do think many
don't understand a trailer.  I am going to see if I can find some pictures
of trailers online that I can refer them to.
Maggie

----------
> From: DVeritas@aol.com
> To: ridecamp@endurance.net
> Subject: RC:  Corrective/Pathological Shoeing
> Date: Monday, September 27, 1999 10:32 AM
> 
> I would respectfully caution riders, who ride the miles required in 
> endurance, against considering "trailers" on rear feet, particularly on 
> horses who are "old enough to do endurance".
>     Corrective shoeing to "correct (help, aid, etc.) hoof growth,
underslung 
> heels, etc., is, for the most part, okay.
>     But when "corrective" shoeing is employed in the rear to
"straighten-out" 
> cowhocked horses, then years of limb-alignment and biomechanisms that the

> horse has employed (and has learned to manage) are impacted in such a way

> that serious descript and non-descript lameness can occur.
>     Motion control in humans is one thing, but for the four-legged
variety, 
> should be approached by only the most experienced and knowledgeable
farrier, 
> or farrier with vet-assist.
>     I have seen "trailers" succeed in the show ring, but seldom on horses
who 
> do a lot of miles (read, "fiftys, hundreds and multi-days).
> 
> Frank.
> 
>  
> 
> 
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Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net.    
Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/RideCamp   
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=