Hi Meanie,

I made a new folder for Carrera's pictures in ECHistory8 Photos and moved her pics there. Here are the link to both of their current photo albums:

Shawnee:

https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/EquineCushings/photos/albums/505715176

Carrera:

https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/echistory8/photos/albums/201778896

Their trims are both generally headed in the right direction and much better than what we generally see. However, there are some issues that need to be addressed going forward. Both Shawnee and Carrera have long toes, underrun heels and thin soles. The frogs appear to be recessed quite far below the level of the heels/bars/sole plane - is this correct? Except for the removal of dead flaps and exfoliating tissue, the frogs need to be left at least level with the heels in order for them to be able to function as shock absorbers and circulatory pumps. Aggressively removing them is hindering the feet from being able to function effectively.

Shawnee's xrays confirm that he has long toes (horizontally), thin soles and a bony column that is sitting lower in the hoof capsule than it should be. Although it appears as if there is too much overall height to the hoof capsule, there really isn't. The vet has done mark-ups and measurements to point out the sinking, wedges and lack of sole depth in the front half of the feet. The RF has a slightly broken back hoof axis, most likely due to the sinking as the heel height is pretty good. The alignment of the bony column on the LF is good but the sole appears a bit thinner under the leading edge of the coffin bone.

LF Xray: The top purple line is the location of the coronary band, the lower purple line is the extensor process of the coffin bone. These two lines should be very close together, if not perfectly aligned. The distance between them shows the amount sinking of the bony column (or rising of the hoof capsule in relation to the coffin bone). The green lines are an idea of where the hoof capsule should be in relation to the coffin bone. It highlights that the sole in the front of the foot is thinner than it should be. The blue line is where the toe needs to be backed to. Simplest way to do this is to place the foot on the hoof stand and rasp perpendicular to the angle of the dorsal wall. The red line is the area on the bottom of the foot where NO length should be removed as this area is already too thin.

LF Sole: The red chevron marks the approximate location of the true tip of the frog. The rest is stretched forward, dead material that is rolling along with the pull from the longer toe. The red lines at 10 and 2 o'clock are the areas where no height should be removed. This is to protect the thin sole covering the leading edge of the coffin bone. The yellow is where to back the toe to.

RF Sole: The pink is where the heel buttresses should be, aligned with the widest part of the frog. The orange is where they are currently located. The lateral heel appears to be slightly more run forward than the medial and is likely a tad higher as well. This is causing the hoof capsule to twist slightly inward. The purple hashes are flared wall area that needs to be lowered and beveled in. Shaving the heels slightly at frequent intervals is the way to back them in this case as there is no extra sole depth to work with so any major removal is going to drop the coffin bone to ground parallel or even negative plane.

Carrera's hoof capsules show a change in the angle of growth just below the coronary band and the growth rings are wider at the heels than at the toes. This suggests possible rotation/sinking may have occurred. If the budget allows, xrays would be a good idea to assess exactly where the bony column is in relation to the hoof capsule. Her heels are underrun and the ground surface of the hoof appears to be smaller than at the coronary band.

LF Pictures: The green line follows the angle of the new growth and highlights the wedge that has formed. The yellow is where to back the toe to in order to align the breakover with the new wall location. I added the second mark-up with the "erased" portion of the toe to give you an idea of what the goal is. Don't rasp away the excess wedge material along the upper portion of the dorsal wall as this provides needed support and stability to the hoof capsule. It will grow out on it's own as long as the toe is backed and beveled far enough to keep the breakover correct.

LF Sole: The pink is where the heel buttresses should be, even with the widest part of the  frog. The orange is where they currently are. The lateral heel is run further forward than the medial and is likely to be a tad taller as well. They need to be gradually brought back into alignment with each other and with the widest part of the frog so that her base of support is again located squarely beneath her bony column where it belongs. Regularly rasping the heels to lower/back them should be the goal but never drop them below the level of live sole plane. Red are the areas to avoid dropping the wall height as the flat soles say they are thin so you want to protect the leading edge of the coffin bone and encourage the sole to thicken. Blue is where to back the toe to.

The RF has similar issues and fixes.

Lavinia, Dante, George Too and Peanut

Jan 05, RI

EC Support Team