Equine Podiatry Wiltshire

26/11/2025

Not the best day at the office…

A youngster caught me off guard today and delivered a kick that resulted in a broken wrist. I always step away when a trim becomes unsafe, but in this case it truly came out of nowhere — an unfortunate occupational hazard.

As a result, I will be out of action for approximately six weeks. This means most horses will miss one trim cycle. Thankfully, winter slows hoof growth, so for many this won’t pose a significant issue. However, for those who can’t wait, I will be contacting colleagues to see if anyone is available to provide interim trims while I recover.

In the New Year, I will need to reschedule all appointments, prioritising those who have been waiting the longest or whose horses are most in need.

If you have any concerns in the meantime, please feel free to send me a WhatsApp message.

Thank you all for your understanding and patience.

25/09/2025

Very much looking forward to attending this talk by Dr Christina Fritz, as a member of the Equine Podiatry Association, we do have to evidence 40hrs of study (CPD) a year.

The talk is open to the general public for anyone else who may be interested.

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-never-quite-right-horse-early-signs-of-metabolic-trouble-tickets-1722567609089?aff=oddtdtcreator&fbclid=IwdGRjcANCMpRleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHvuGIDSuL1aB3rj4E2DdDCGeyK_6IE2pQGiuaOTPSig2N0XHXZKCSjKTi6q9_aem_QIbdALLY80v31msYxZN-fw

Join us to learn about the early signs of metabolic issues in horses that just never seem quite right - don't miss out on this valuable info

23/09/2025

I’m delighted to introduce my wonderful client Melissa and her horse Theo, who are excelling in affiliated dressage.

At 20 years old, Theo is still competing at a level few horses his age reach—a real testament to his soundness and spirit. Melissa believes that keeping him barefoot has played a big part in his long-lasting comfort and performance, and together they are proud ambassadors for the benefits of barefoot management.

Wishing this inspiring partnership the very best of luck at the Championships next month!

🇬🇧🏅🐎👏

06/09/2025

Autumn is a tricky time of year for horses. With no change to diet or management, suddenly foot problems can occur, like sensitivity, white line disease and poor horn quality. It could be linked to PPID (aka Cushings). This short podcast is well worth a listen to...

https://open.spotify.com/episode/3MY001lXwjEykx72pm54vo?si=_rGQH4DdTX2TvjTJsTj82Q

The Humble Hoof · Episode

16/08/2025

Negative planter (hind) angles and how they can affect posture.

If the heels are low, the hair line steep and the dorsal wall 'bull nosed' you probably have the pedal bone sitting at a negative angle, this means the back of the pedal bone is sitting lower than the toe, it's tipping backwards, when it should be slightly elevated at the back, by about 3-5°.

Low planter angles pull on the ligaments & tendons down the back of the leg, pulling it onto 'extension'. It causes tension, you can feel it too if you push your heels down, and this tension transfers to the back, affecting the horse's whole way of going.

Hind legs become 'camped under' because being in 'extension' causes them to stand this way, looking like an elephant on a ball.

This is one reason why you might boot hind feet, to prevent excessive wearing down of the heels.

26/07/2025

Lots of horses letting go of their retained sole at the moment, it pops out in slabs often 2-3mm thick. That's quite a lot of sole depth lost at once.

During the prolonged dry spell, the sole is retained for extra protection against the very hard ground. Then, as soon as we have a little regular rainfall, the moisture gets in between the layers of sole causing it to drop out.

The ground has become a little softer and the retained sole isn't needed any more.

Your horse may be slightly more sensitive during this time, it's like us changing from sturdy boots to a pair of flip flops, they need some time to adjust.

I love how the hoof is capable of adapting to the environment.

Dog nose for scale.