The Hoof

Jig gets regular hoof trimmings from the beloved farrier I got him from every 6-8 weeks. I say beloved because she always gives helpful advice when I ask and she is very knowledgeable about horses. Best of all, she actually cares and does her best to help someone like me with less knowledge and experience. She is a barefoot trimmer and he was barefoot when he got to her and barefoot for the past 9 months with me. She did some research and found out he used to be in shoes and hadn’t been ridden or shod for about 5 years. That explains a lot about his riding behavior!

So, with the previous trim the farrier noticed something funky about his right foot. She wasn’t sure what was causing it but it wasn’t growing right. She got some advice on it and trimmed it differently to see if that helped. He is usually very sore after a trim and that time was no different. Fast forward to his next trim and the farrier brought her horse shoe guy along to give him front shoes. She had gotten advice that it may make Jig more comfortable so we decided to go for it.

As he was being shod, the shoe guy said the funky foot looked like a mare he had that had foundered before. Then he and the farrier started talking about the things they have seen with this hoof and it looked like a previous case of founder, maybe a year ago. Jig had been at the farrier’s pasture at the time eating fresh spring grass. She thinks that might have caused it or maybe it was in his previous home. It seemed to have healed for the most part they thought and nothing too bad. They suggested I change his hay to teff or grass hay and cut down on the grain in the cause of him being metabolic and preventing founder again. They also felt he is overweight for his age. This was a surprise to me because he looks so good, but I err on the side of taking their advice so we will try the new diet and see how it goes.

While they were at my house they asked to see me lunge him after the shoes were put on. He did great to the right, but not to the left. He never wants to go to the left in general. They said it’s because of the funky foot being sore. So, no more sending him left for now and they said I could still ride him around a bit. Since he seems to really not want to be ridden, I think I will stop attempting for now and see if the changes help his hoof. He enjoys short hand walks around the pasture, so we will do that for exercise for now.

I felt confused and concerned, and to be honest, I didn’t really understand what happened to him as I have heard founder is a pretty terrible and debilitating problem for horses. I was worried about making changes when I thought he looks great. However, the sore foot showed there was a problem so I went forward with the changes.

Being a horse owner has been so full of ups and downs and so very many opinions. Some things experts will tell you absolutely to do another will tell you absolutely not. Who do you listen to? It can be so frustrating. All in all, I love this horse and want to do what’s best for him. Let’s hope the farrier and the shoe guy lead us in the right direction!