New Shoes!
Right Front
So – we had the farrier out last week to help me get a grip on Hawkeye’s feet. Our farrier is a fabulous guy. I was fond of him BEFORE I owned horses – he shoes (shoe’d? shod??) for a friend. When Deb was looking for a new farrier for Griffin, I poked her till she gave in and called Martin. Now he has the unenviable task to work with me and my special needs pony. Someone should have warned him.
So we talked through a lot of the options, and while he and I don’t completely agree about the benefits/drawbacks to the barefoot debate, he knew enough about it to discuss it with me, and not dismiss me out of hand. What he came up with for me is a plan. I like plans. It gives you someplace to go. If “A” doesn’t work, we try “B” and then there is always “C”… so that you are moving forward, not failing in place.
First of all, Hawkeye’s toes were VERY long, so we are going to also move him to a 4 week trim cycle, hoping to keep ahead of the growth. We are also adding 2 degree wedges to attempt to raise his heels which rocks him forward just a touch to help relieve any pressure on his joint capsules while still supporting the back edge of his foot. This addresses a major concern I have about growing his heels out far enough that I then have to worry about them becoming underrun. Right now when we trim him, there is no need to trim at the heel so they are slowly growing out but the wedge makes it feel supportable. This just seems logical and fits nicely into what I know of Hawkeye’s joint problems. It is something that I could NOT do if I were to pull his shoes – so it seems like a good first step.
Deb rode him on Wednesday – and said he was more sound. I NEED to get the Adaquan thing figured out as well, cause I know that will be a huge help and will slow the inevitable joint degeneration.
Now, if it would just stop raining long enough to give him a bath!
