I recently added popper pads to my horses front hooves expecting that there would be snow. We haven’t had much snow but it has been very cold, so my horse is walking with these pads on frozen ground. She seems foot sore, and I am beginning to wonder if the popper pads are causing the issue.
Has anyone else had trouble with sore hooves when using popper pads?
Is this recent to the shoeing? Sounds a bit more like a high nail
Not recent enough to be a high nail. And she seems sore in her paddock, which is currently frozen, but not as lame as in the cases when it was nail related.
There was a winter not too long ago where my farrier ended up pulling the popper pads from most of the horses he shod. There just wasn’t much snow, but the ground was frozen and a lot of the horses became footsore. He’s using mostly rim pads now, except for horses that live at higher elevations further from Boston, where there’s still snowfall.
Could just be the hard frozen ground? Has she been out on a hard freeze without snow in recent memory?
A lot of horses just get sore on frozen ground. Can’t blame them. However, if the only new thing is the pads, anything is possible.
Quietann, this is what I am wondering about now, and after reading your story, maybe the answer is obvious–the popper sticks out a little past the rim of the shoe–if it were fluffy snow, the shoe would sink into the snow, the popper would pop out the snow, and all would be working as intended-but with the frozen ground, I am just wondering if the popper is actually causing a problem–maybe the popper pushing down on frozen ground is causing her foot to be sore.
And Fivestrideline, it really could just be that too–the ground in her paddock is frozen, lots of frozen “peaks” and unevenness from it first being wet and having hoofprints in the mud.
Rough winter already, honestly–maybe pea gravel in areas of the paddock will help with both the peaks and with giving her hoof something to sink into for the poppers.
So maybe that’s my question–I know that you shouldn’t put those metal studs in horse shoes when your horse isn’t walking on snow/ice all the time because of how those studs will stop your horses feet from moving properly–it actually hurts their ligaments and feet. Is it the same for popper pads? Wearing popper pads when there isn’t snow out is actually detrimental to their feet and ligaments?
Years ago my then farrier told me he didn’t use popper pads because he found they tended to cause bruising if there wasn’t enough snow. He put rim pads on my horse.
Thinking back, we used strictly rim pads. This might have been why.
Ditto for us!
We only use rim pads because they allow the hoof sole to be exposed for a more healthy sole. Nothing like what can build up under the bubble pad with our common mud in winter. It has been rim pads here for years!
Along with the rim pads, winter shoes should have ice studs for grip. This is what the Hunt horses wore who went out twice a week and had no issues on any of our various type of ground over winter. Kept the shiny side up, gave traction for galloping and jumping. Michigan here, never know what we will have in surface! Usually rim pads can be reset a couple times, never do fill with anything that prevents tubing from flexing. Horse DOES need to move actively to add motion for better flinging out any snow build up in the hoof. Barefoot horses tend to move carefully, which does not fling out snowy build up, causes “stilts” of ice in hooves. Then you need to get the hoof ice hammer out to remove that stuff!!
Ice studs are driven into drilled holes when put on shoes. They are minimally longer than drive-in road studs we use in summer, to accommodate the collar that wears down with use, to keep the tungsten carbide stud exposed for grip. They are not “sudden stopping” to make legs sore lIke old-fashioned, long, tall caulks on work horses. Ice studs do grip, not sliding distances before halting the legs. Just more of a micro-slip then stop, which is much easier on hoof and legs. You really can’t SEE the micro-slip, but horse legs appreciate it!! Horse has confidence in his traction, willingly goes forward.
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