Yes. We live in a desert and at my barn there is no pasture…only dry lots. Even 30 minutes of soaking in a tub doesn’t help much. Might make the frog a little more amenable to trimming but the hoof is hard, hard. The last time I trimmed I did take advantage of a rare rain storm (May—September).
Dang, that’s a tough environment, @Kyrabee.
@Nezzy, I wouldn’t fret, this situation may be a blessing in disguise as your horse will likely do much better barefoot in a plethora of ways. I believe you said you pulled shoes and your horse was sound which a great sign. I wouldn’t necessarily drawn a hard and fast line with your farrier, I would just talk about your concerns and what you see, get their feedback on what they see and how it can be addressed. The benefits of going barefoot and the slight modifications you talk about with your farrier may be enough to turn the feet around.
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Shoes don’t cause contracted heels, but they definitely add to the development of them if applied on a bad trim, shod too tight, and things like that. Pulling the shoes as you have should allow the heels to spread just because you ought to get more natural use of the caudal foot without the shoe, but the trim needs to be fixed because you might otherwise trade contracted heels for prolapsed heels if the foot stays in long toe-underrun heel shape.
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We have the same issue here. My vet is a huge advocate for regular use of Forshner’s hoof packing to help with making the foot healthy and pliable. That stuff is kind of a pain to work with and I can’t imagine using it in winter. I’ve been using some Rebound hoof packing instead lately (smells nicer, easier to use), and my farrier didn’t complain as much about trimming my one horse with the super hard feet last time. And he could even use his knife on the frog for once! Usually he has to do what he can with nippers which is not the ideal tool but his foot is too hard for the knife.
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Thanks. I will have to try that. Winter isn’t much of a problem…our rainy/cold season (southern Idaho). Summer can just be beyond dry. I am also moving her to a barn that will have turnout on grass. She has been dry lotted most of her life so it may be very slow going on turnout time on the grass (with a robust muzzle).
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