Can you switch him to all Ultium and then just add something like Vermont Blend? That will take the place of the Mega Cell and the hoof supplement and give him a copper/zinc boost that he probably needs. Not sure of the cost of the Ultium v Impact, but the VB is around the same daily cost as the MC and SH together, even a few cents cheaper a day.
TBH I’d go a lot lower NSC with a single feed, and then add more copper and zinc. I would come at this from all angles - lower NSC, higher nutrition
I agree… but wasn’t sure if OP was set on Purina… you know I love Triple Crown Senior
I think out of the 2 feeds, I would pick Ultium even though it’s higher NSC than I like.
my adopted young curly mare came to me about 2 yrs ago. I put down deep screenings into a muddy area and she stepped into that muck and freaked and reared and spun, and damaged her stifle. I trailered her to MIZZOU and she went through extensive manipulation/blocking/movement and finally xrays from hip to hoof. ALL they could find was thin soles! Now, two years later, after running loose in large acreage pastures, over rocky creekbeds daily, her hooves are like iron. I haven’t done radiographs since, but i feel, from watching her go that she is no longer tender-footed. All my horses are barefoot, all live off pasture Spring/Summer/Fall and in the winter they get freechoice of our own hay (mix of legume and grasses) and about 5-10 pounds of alfalfa hay daily. No one gets any additives, though they have a loose mineral mix always available plus red salt and white salt blocks.
i guess what i meant to say, in a nutshell, is that a more natural life is what keeps my herd on good hard feet. No shoes, no stalls, lots and lots of movement…and using their soles and frogs…pushing that blood up their legs through their frogs. I’m a barefoot nut.
I have gone down the nutrition rabbit hole the last couple of years and have learned to trim my own little herd in the quest for barefoot… first out of financial necessity then I realized we might actually be able to get there and while I might not be a barefoot nut, I’m definitely an advocate. There are so many benefits to it, especially when rehabbing the feet.
Ok I did my best. He’s big and was ready to be turned out and didn’t want to be photographed! ! He’s due to be shod next week
How long since his last reset?
He looks way over due here… I can see why he’s so thin soled… those really long toes and underrun heels almost always come with thin soles. There is a lot more going on here than just diet issues.
I am also going to guess you may have some distal descent going on. The condition of the lateral cartilages point to that possibility.
https://www.hoofrehab.com/DistalDescent.htm#:~:text=Distal%20Descent&text=In%20the%20healthiest%20of%20equine,motion%20of%20the%20coffin%20joint.
Check out these threads where we’ve recently discussed similar issues. Unfortunately this isn’t as simple as using Keratex to help harden soles or adding a hoof supplement.
Agreed. I would definitely get another farrier’s opinion on how to proceed.
He was done on November 27th.
He’s was shod November 27th, so not long over due on my part and I used a skilled farrier who’s doing the best he can with the situation. I want to make sure that’s clear. I’m very grateful to my farrier (he works with a team from the sport horse farm the horse came from and is kind enough to come to my farm to continue to help my horse’s feet).
So he’s on a 5 week schedule?? If so that tells me a lot about the farrier
I’m going to point you to a lot of dry boring information, but it’s important information (unless you find it as fascinating as I do ). I hate to say this but you need a different farrier, one that is going to address the distortions and start getting these feet back under the horse. Right now the toes and heels are running away resulting in a lame horse. If these are his feet at 5 weeks, the current farrier does not understand how to balance a foot…
Pete Ramey is a barefoot advocate who used to nail shoes… I’m not in anyway saying take this horse barefoot, but there is a lot of good information here. If this were MY horse, I would start him on a new diet and in about a month prepare to pull his shoes and have boots with pads ready for him for comfort because he’s going to need it. It is absolutely the best way IMO to start rehabbing these feet and allows for very frequent trims, like every 2-3 weeks.
https://www.hoofrehab.com/Coronet.html
please check out the threads I linked in the post above… you can’t stick with the status quo here…
How long has your farrier been doing his feet?
If shod on 11/27 he’s less than 4 weeks out. Is he normally on a shorter cycle?
I’m looking at a calendar and coming up with 4 weeks from 11/27 is 12/26. So horse would be less than 4 wks out currently. Maybe I’m missing something (always possible)
She said he was due next week, so that’s why I say 5 weeks.
I appreciate that you like and respect this farrier. How does the farrier describe these feet? Has the farrier explained what is happening and what is going to happen?
And how long has this farrier been working on this horse? I am far from a good expert, but those hooves look really not ok to me.
Edited for spelling
Those photos are worse than I expected when you described trouble with crumbly feet - the balance and angles are really off. Do you have recent X-rays of the feet? I’d say that an aggressive foot rehab program is in order, sorry to say that your current farrier doesn’t appear to be doing this guy any favors.
An article I found to be a helpful intro to long toe/low heel rehab is https://www.google.com/amp/s/practicalhorsemanmag.com/.amp/health-archive/underrun-heels-11569
An article I found to be a helpful intro to long toe/low heel rehab is https://www.google.com/amp/s/practicalhorsemanmag.com/.amp/health-archive/underrun-heels-11569
That is an excellent article written by Vance Glenn… I often forward it to others because it really explains what’s going on very well. While OP’s horses isn’t nearly this drastic, the information still applies.
Ooooh! I thought OP said horse is past due currently