Horse & Hooves

19/01/2025

When you’ve not trimmed your own horses feet (well the Spaniards) since October & they look like this ❤️ winning ❤️

15/01/2025

Almost there… left hind hoof abscess, which the previous hoof care professional had tried to dig out, leading to a resect operation by the vet.

Hoof abscesses are best left alone to find their own exit point, which is either at the heel bulb (usuallly bar related) or at the coronet band. These exit points or holes then grow down & out.

This lovely boy was laminitic, which was the reason he abscessed, as separation at the toe allows all sorts of nasties to get in. Abscessing is often part of the healing process, as the body tries to get rid of necrotic tissue.

Super pleased with his progress & now the owner has addressed the diet & management, you can clearly see a much healthier hoof capsule above, free from event lines, which are inflammatory episodes & a clear indication that something isn’t right…

Hooves always tell a story to those who listen.

12/01/2025

11/01/2025

How it started versus how it’s going…

04/01/2025

Tash & tootsies kinda day ❤️

24/12/2024

Update: Second trim for this lovely youngster, who prior to my trimming had received no hoof care in his 2.5yrs.

His heels were incredibly high & underun, which had caused contraction at the back of the foot; atrophied frogs & a weak digital cushion to all four feet…

Positive changes are visible already & I’m super pleased with how his heel bulbs have started to relax, now that he is trimmed to the hard sole plane.

Giving him his natural foot by trimming to the HSP, as Mother Nature intended, allows the hoof capsule to function correctly & coupled with plenty of movement & the correct diet, the healing begins 😁

Now living his best life on a track system with 24/7 movement, ad-lib forage & friends.

18/12/2024

Just this, following the natural parameters of the hoof. Mother Nature’s blueprint ❤️

13/12/2024

The Hard Sole Plane, Mother Nature’s blueprint…

The Importance of Trimming to the Hard Sole Plane

At GTL, we’re passionate about giving horses the best hoof care possible, and a big part of that comes down to correct trimming.

One of the most common mistakes we see is not trimming down to the hard sole plane. When the sole and hoof wall are left above this plane, it creates layers of compacted sole, overgrown bars, and imbalances that can lead to pain, infection, and long-term damage.

The hard sole plane is nature’s guide. In a natural environment, horses walking over abrasive surfaces wear their hooves down to this level, creating the perfect balance and form for function. When we replicate this through correct trimming, we:

•Avoid guessing where to trim

•Prevent issues like hoof wall separation, overgrown bars, and splayed quarters

•Allow the hoof to grow strong, healthy, and self-cleaning

Trimming correctly restores balance, improves comfort, and promotes soundness. The hoof is an incredible structure when cared for properly, and following nature’s blueprint is always the best solution.

Let’s stop guessing and start trimming with purpose—down to the hard sole plane!

11/12/2024

07/12/2024

1st trim for this lovely highland mare today… before & after ☺️

05/12/2024

This ⬇️

A vet once looked me straight in the eye and said:

“Bethan, we’re getting laminitis wrong. It feels like all we’re doing is putting them down.”

(This wasn’t from a local practice but during my travels across the U.K.)

There are people who dismiss us as “laymen” because we don’t have letters after our names. Yet we are the ones successfully addressing P3 pe*******on, while the professionals are often resorting to euthanasia.

Despite all the research and expertise, the current science from professionals, experts, and scientists continues to struggle to find a solution to laminitis.

Meanwhile, there are pages with large followings that criticize and dismiss our methods, claiming we’re wrong. Yet the techniques they advocate—the ones they say are “right”—are the very ones failing horses.

This isn’t about egos or competition. It’s about saving horses from losing their lives needlessly.

02/12/2024

My client’s mare, who I’ve rehabbed alongside her amazing mum.

Acute laminitis coupled with incorrect hoof care had lead the professionals to advise PTS…

Luckily for Maisey mare, her mum reached out & so began her healing journey…

30/11/2024

Laminitis rehab: really pleased with how this little ladies feet are progressing. Her lovely owner reached out to me, as she was sore after every trim, despite having recovered from laminitis.

Her x-rays show slight remodelling of P3 (osteonecrosis), as a result of incorrect hoof care. Trimming to the hoof pastern axis (chasing pathology) to make a poorly foot ‘appear’ healthy, results in toes being trimmed excessively & heels allowed to run high & under-run. This forces the horse to walk on its sole, where its toe wall would have been & P3 appears rotated in the hoof capsule due to those very high heels. It also reduces the surface area the horse has to weight bare on.

Luckily for this sweet mare her owner questioned her hoof care & is now completely sound, despite those ‘funky feet’. Healing hooves from laminitis are not pretty, the separation throws out a wedge making the toes look too long to those, who do not understand the healing pathway.

If you look at the progress pic you can clearly see those heels coming down, putting P3 in a healthy position & this little mare is no longer sore after a trim.

Her diet & management changed, which stopped the laminitis, now the hooves need time to heal, with correct hoof care, trimming to Mother Nature’s blueprint.

27/11/2024

Can’t recommend this 3-day course enough. Knowledge is power & when we know better we can do better for all the equines in our care 😃

The Phoenix Way

25/11/2024

3 months separate these images. What you see in the top images is a poorly hoof, following a resection operation of the hoof wall by the vet. The original hoof care provider had tried to dig out the abcsess, which then allowed further infection to find its way into the hoof capsule…
What caused the abscess? Laminitis. This 3 year old gelding was chronically laminitic, which both the vet & hoof care provider had failed to recognise. His lovely owner has now addressed his diet & management & you can clearly see a healthy hoof capsule growing down. The constant reoccurring event lines in the first pic clearly show constant inflammatory episodes, which are clearly not visible in the second pic.
Abscesses are the hooves way of trying to heal by getting rid of necrotic tissue… we never advise ‘digging them out’ as this opens up the hoof capsule to more infection, they will always find their own way out through the coronet band or the heel bulbs. We do not chase pathology. Not ‘pretty feet’ yet, but we are getting there, super pleased with the progress so far.

23/11/2024

First trim Feb 2024 ‘v’ most recent trim Nov 2024. This mare is on a six week trim cycle & her lovely owner has implemented lots of positive changes to her diet & management, which isn’t always easy for many owners on traditional livery yards. Really pleased with the changes to these hooves by simply trimming to Mother Nature’s blueprint ❤️