Connemara Peeps: Hoof Wall Separation Syndrome aka "Soft Foot"

[BaroquePony]

I would love to see more transparency with all of our equine breeds :yes:.

I know of many good riders over the years that have spent a lot of money on a horse (almost all were warmbloods) on;y to discover further on down the road that they were dealing with career ending genetic disorders.

[Perfect_Pony]

@connemaranz;5858456

Hi All

It does appear that this problem goes back to one common ancestor.

There are potential multiple lines of descent all of which can be found in most ponies. At this stage we do not know which ponies have or have not ‘won the 50% get out of gaol free card’ from their ‘considered to be carrier parent’. By the ‘quote’ I mean that a carrier x free progeny has 50% of being free from being a carrier themselves.

I can look at pedigrees and say there are the lines BUT I cannot predict or know which ponies are going to be carriers (until they throw an affected where upon it becomes obvious).

Hope this helps.

Sheila

Hi Sheila,
It just points out how important it is to get the test created and available. I am now in the position of owning an amazing purebred Connemara mare who may or may not be a carrier, since I now know her grandmother is. It’s a very small chance, but the responsible thing for me now as a mare owner is to not breed her to a purebred until I know, and if I sell her to pass on the information.

I wonder if other stallion and mare owners are doing the same?

[Graymaresrule]

@Perfect Pony;5858838

Hi Sheila,
It just points out how important it is to get the test created and available. I am now in the position of owning an amazing purebred Connemara mare who may or may not be a carrier, since I now know her grandmother is. It’s a very small chance, but the responsible thing for me now as a mare owner is to not breed her to a purebred until I know, and if I sell her to pass on the information.

I wonder if other stallion and mare owners are doing the same?

So breed her to a smaller RID like
http://irishdraught.com/horses/profile.php?unid=5078

or his son

http://irishdraught.com/horses/profile.php?unid=4570

Beeza’s colt by WSP(Fergal) is amazing.

I’m having the footing installed in my arena this week (hopefully) and when it’s done I’ll post a video. Did I say he’s amazing?

[Janet]

So how do I find out which lines are affected?

[Perfect_Pony]

@carolprudm;5858910

So breed her to a smaller RID

That’s not the point I am trying to make though. The point is people who may want to breed exceptional Connemara ponies need this test.

Janet, that’s a whole 'nother can o worms I am not getting into…Unless people want to freak out and start being paranoid about certain lines and certain horses, it’s a really great idea for the Connemara breeders to support this research.

[mbm]

As already mentioned, the ancestral carrier is in most of the ponies. However, most of the ponies do not have this problem. Even if you were to breed carrier to carrier it is a 1 in 4 chance of being affected.

i agree we need the test. hopefully Davis will get the funds they need and work can go forward to identify those ponies that are carriers.

i can’t imagine the breed societies NOT all getting on board and requiring the test for a pony to be eligible for stud book inclusion. but of course we need the test first.

[goodpony]

[QUOTE=mbm;5858965]
As already mentioned, the ancestral carrier is in most of the ponies. [/QUOTE]

And that is IF the stud books are correct–there are ponies with huge chunks missing and others who are incorrectly recorded. I actually own a pony who was recorded with the wrong mother in the US stud book.

[WindyIsles]

[QUOTE=goodpony;5859032]
And that is IF the stud books are correct–there are ponies with huge chunks missing and others who are incorrectly recorded. I actually own a pony who was recorded with the wrong mother in the US stud book.[/QUOTE]

Not to mention reports of papers being “sold” in the past.

You used to be given extra points for having certain bloodlines when you brought your pony to Inspection so there was an incentive to have a pony “bred right.”

I know for a fact that there is a pony my grandpa owned who is sired by a stallion up North (bought his dam with him in utero) but somehow got recorded as being sired by the stallion we owned at the same (totally different stallion than his actual sire).

Pony is a gelding and I’ve tried to contact the owners/society to have his registration changed to reflect his actual bloodlines but with no success. (Pony is an older pony now).

[mbm]

so… we really need that test!!

i will say tho - that Connemaras are not unique in back breeding mistakes. If you think about it - without DNA testing there is no way of knowing if the stated parents are correct. it really is a game of trust

[MKW]

Any advice for someone potentially purchasing a young Connemara? I am in the currently looking for a weanling/yearling filly as a performance prospect but also future breeding. Is this a condition that is obvious from birth or does it develop over time? Is it reliable detected on a PPE? My childhood ponies had tremendous, hard feet and went their whole lives not needing to be shod, so it is really sad to hear about this condition in these wonderful ponies these days. Any advice greatly appreciated!

[Perfect_Pony]

@MKW;5864124

Any advice for someone potentially purchasing a young Connemara? I am in the currently looking for a weanling/yearling filly as a performance prospect but also future breeding. Is this a condition that is obvious from birth or does it develop over time? Is it reliable detected on a PPE? My childhood ponies had tremendous, hard feet and went their whole lives not needing to be shod, so it is really sad to hear about this condition in these wonderful ponies these days. Any advice greatly appreciated!

IIRC it shows before they are a year old. If you are worried I would buy a yearling. This foal looked completely normal as a foal.

It IS rare, I don’t think it’s anything to freak out about. A test is just needed to prevent it 100%, because one foal having it is too many.

[mbm]

the folks that have seen the condition several times say you can see it in the foal hoof if the foal is an expressed version and not just a carrier. a carrier will not express it, just pass the gene along, and if you breed to a pony that is also a carrier then you have a 1 in 4 chance of breeding an affected pony.

i suggest contacting the research group for more info - the email is in my first post.

if you also go to the FB page i linked too there are pics of the foal in CA - and if you look closely you can see her foal feet looked raged etc.

however, she is a very bad case, and there are ranges of degree of severity of the problem when it expresses.

i might suggest, when you find a filly you like, to contact the research group (or someone they suggest) and have them look at pics of the feet. that might help.

there is already a good degree of “non scientific” knowledge out there - breeders who figured out who their carriers were etc.

eta: the condition many or may not be detected on a PPE depending on several factors:

to what degree does pony have it?
is it being managed by the current owners?
is pony being kept trimmed short?
is pony being kept in sand/bedding etc that prevents feet from falling apart?

vets in general wont pick up on it because it isnt out there in the knowledge base…

so, i really suggest contacting the research group and working with them to answer your questions… several of the folks working on it are very knowledgeable re: working with actual affected ponies, and can help you.

[connemaranz]

If you want to help be part of the solution read this

http://connemara-pony.blogspot.com/
Sheila

[connemaranz]

HWSS is genetic - UC Davis have gone public with their work

Links on this page:
http://connemara-pony.blogspot.co.nz/p/breaking-news-hwss-is-official.html

Also http://horsetalk.co.nz/2012/08/03/genetic-cause-confirmed-hoof-syndrome-connemaras/#.UBuDh7Qtgxk

Spread the word.

Davis need more samples - this means both affected and unaffected ponies.

Reports are coming in from farriers that they are dealing with Highlands and Welsh D that display a similar condition.

[connemaranz]

HWSD is a genetic hoof condition found in Connemara ponies. It is a homozygous recessive condition; this means the mutated gene has to be inherited from both parents for the disease to be present. There is now a genetic test to determine whether ponies are ‘carriers’ of the mutated gene. By avoiding the mating of two carriers, foals will not be born with the condition.

For information on HWSD http://connemara-pony.blogspot.com

On how to test your ponies http://connemara-pony.blogspot.com/p...d-testing.html

For a list of test results http://connemara-pony.blogspot.com/p...ed-ponies.html

If you have a Connemara pony (or a partbred Connemara) which shows with hoof wall issues that do not respond to dietary supplements or hoof treatments for White Line Disease/fungal conditions, then HWSD may just be the problem. By testing such ponies you will get a definitve answer.

It would be a really positive step if breeders were to have their breeding stock tested before the start of the up-coming breeding season.

This condition has been around for many years, but unacknowledged by people ‘in authority’ who wanted to keep it ‘secret squirrel’, as they felt that it would reflect badly upon the breed. All breeds have genetic issues of one kind or another. At least there is now the test for HWSD the results of which can stop the production of affected ponies while permitting the continued use of carrier ponies for breeding.
It is very important that carrier ponies are given the opportunity to breed on thereby preventing the further loss of genetic diversity. It is because of this loss of genetic diversity that the problem has arisen in the first place.

[DawnJL]

How wonderful that a test now exists! Now breeders can easily avoid producing affected foals while still breeding forward from the best individuals to preserve genetic diversity and not lose good lineages due to “suspicion”. (I breed Arabians and am incredibly grateful to have tests that allow me to avoid ever having the heartbreak of a SCID, CA, or LFS foal.)

[pcwertb]

There is a facebook page called HWSS (Hoof Wall Separation Syndrome), even though it’s now been renamed HWSD (disease) but breeders are posting their results publicly on this page. Breeders from the US, UK, Europe…

Responsible breeders are getting the word out.