Hófring in the Heart - The Hoof Fairy

15/01/2025

First trim was two weeks ago and this little founder pony has gone from strength to strength ever since. So much so that we had to sedate him to do his feet today along with 2 people holding him while I trimmed because he has so much s***k about him now.

I can see from the photos that there is some balance issues with my trimming but given the circumstances of how we need to trim, I’m to be forgiven I think.

I managed to remove a lot more dead tissue today. And we will stay on fortnightly trims.

I was stoked that the family understood and supported my choice to leave his toes alone.

The reason I leave the toe is because the hoof requires the hoof wall to be touching the ground the whole way around in order to received feedback as to how to grow.
The time honoured tradition of chopping off toes on founder/laminitic ponies is problematic as the hoof immediately grows excessive heel to put the toe back on the ground to receive the feedback it needs which in turn continues the rotation. Leaving the toe also gives protection to the coffin bone that is in a compromised position.
As time goes but the hoof will grow at the correct angle and the excessive toe will remove itself.
You can see from the last photo how the hoof capsule is trying to grow more correctly. As the new hoof wall reaches the ground at the toe we can then begin removing the old toe.

It’s a relatively new method that I have been working with recently and finding phenomenal results. It flies in the face of the more common practice of chopping off the toe but the results speak for themselves. It doesn’t look pretty but it’s not about aesthetics when we’re rehabbing these cases.

I challenge all trimmers and farriers alike to challenge their own ingrained belief systems and consider trying new methods in an effort to help horses. It takes a brave person to challenge and change their belief systems.

I will continue to share his journey and reassess at every trim.

14/01/2025

In the past I’ve spent literally thousands on bits.

Now I ride in a simple $80 fulmer and have better contact and communication than I’ve ever had.

It’s the hand and the education to the hand that matters most.

Special bits or special hands.

Through my experience with my mare, Jen, I learned some valuable lessons.
For over two years, I invested a considerable amount of money in various types of bits in the hope of finding the perfect match for her. Despite my efforts, each new bit would only be effective for a limited time, typically around six weeks, before she would exhibit the same inconsistency in her mouth as she had with previous bits. This led me to realise that simply finding the “right” bit was not the ultimate solution to the challenges I faced; rather, it highlighted the need for a deeper understanding of her responses and comfort.

Along came Philippe Karl!

As my hands began to transform, I discovered the power of communicating through them. Jen's response to this change was remarkable—she evolved alongside me, and we began to like each other!
She no longer felt the need to shout and swear at me and I wasn't so frustrated. No longer were our rides limited to just a few nice moments; instead, we were on a path of steady improvement.

The real breakthrough came when we shifted our focus. It was important for Jen to grasp the language of my hands, just as I needed to decode the messages I was sending with them. This newfound understanding became the key to our progress, bringing a deeper connection between us and paving the way for consistent improvements.

Often, when we begin riding, we are instructed on how to hold the reins, encouraged to pull and resist, instructed to keep our hands down and together, and taught to rely heavily on our legs.
The term "contact" is frequently misunderstood. We hear that the horse should work into a contact, while the rider is seen as the keeper of that contact, often in pursuit of keeping the horse round and flexed at the poll. Breaking this down reveals that if our hands are low, they can only move backwards, typically held in a tight grip around the reins.
We need to consider that the human hand, the most intricate part of our body capable of remarkable feats from creation to communication, is directly connected to the most sensitive area of the horse, its mouth. To truly communicate with this sensitive part of the horse, we must shift our approach. Our hands should not remain low, held tightly, or driven by force. Instead, they need to learn to speak a language.

It makes sense to begin this education with the horse stood still and their person on the ground so everything can be broken down and isolated into their component parts.

The concept of flexions originated with François Baucher, with various interpretations. While flexions may not be unique to our school, they form a vital foundation for our practice.

As these flexions progress into ridden work, the horse begins to understand the reasons for different rein lengths, learning how to respond when the reins shorten or lengthen. The horse learns to mirror the rein length, raising their neck beautifully without leaning on the hands or going above them. When they feel the reins lengthen, they instinctively extend their neck, eagerly seeking contact with the hand.

We owe it to our horses to know what we are saying with our hands instead of looking for a more suitable bit which inevitably will mask many issues.
As I said I spent many 100’s of pounds searching for the correct bit, different shapes, different metal, lozenge bits, straight bar bits, even bitless!
When all along it was my hands that held the solution.
What's ironic is Jen ended up being ridden in a simple and inexpensive single joint fulmer!

I'm not saying we shouldn't do our best to find a bit our horses like but we also need to ask the question, do we know what we are doing/asking with our hands? And we need to give an honest answer before seeking the magic bit!

Jen is no longer with us but I thank her with all my heart for questioning me, teaching me and leading me to the school of légèreté

13/01/2025

Sharing this one again to refer to with recent discussions on the post I shared earlier.

13/01/2025

A good timeline of work for horses

Why so much, so young?

The horse industries, particularly racing, have operated the same way for centuries, pushing 2- and 3-year-olds hard. But that doesn’t mean other disciplines should follow the same path.

I take a conservative stance when it comes to a horse's age.

A yearling is still a baby—let them run and play in a field.

A 2-year-old is also a baby—still best left running in a field.

At 3, a horse is still a baby, though now big enough for some handling. Forget about "futurities" or "young horse programs." If you can’t resist doing something, put a saddle on, maybe work on long-lining, and get on occasionally to make sure they don’t buck you off. But then—send them back to the field.

If all you’re doing with a 3-year-old is the basics—shots, feet, teeth, leading, just like a yearling or 2-year-old—I don’t think you’re falling behind.

At 4, they are a young adolescent. Like most adolescents, they need a job, but not a demanding one. No speed, no tight spins, no pounding work. Focus on slow, steady physical development—lots of walking, building muscle, and gaining body mass. You're still in a foundational stage.

By 5, they’re either still a baby or starting to mature, depending on the horse. Train carefully, and above all, avoid injury and stress. Don’t rush them into some performance-driven "young horse" program unless they’re an early maturing type—and even then, be cautious. Definitely avoid this at 4.

By 6, they’re ready to start becoming a "normal" horse.

I know my timeline is unconventional. Many horses are worn out or injured by age 6, 7, or 8—some even younger. They're mentally exhausted and physically broken by trainers and riders who pushed them too hard, too soon.

But if you can be patient, allowing them to grow and strengthen, those same horses can still be in their prime into their late teens or even early 20s and retire at 30.

What’s the rush? Seriously.

Written by Tamarack Hill Farm

Farmleigh Storm Connemara Pony, a late maturing breed. Aged 6 year,

13/01/2025

Facial nerves and whiskers

As a follow up to my earlier video, here’s a diagram of the facial nerves in the horse.

And then on my own horse I have marked where his whiskers are with green dots and the line of the nerve in red.

Check the placement, especially the one parallel to the eye. A horse’s complete blind spot and yet nature has placed these vitally important antennae in place to protect the horse’s eye so he doesn’t accidentally run in to something and blind himself.

With this information paired with the earlier video, I cannot fathom how anyone could still argue for the right to trim whiskers.

12/01/2025

I’ve seen the debate raging about with South Africa now banning the trimming of facial whiskers.

The amount of people saying it’s ridiculous and that horses are just fine without their whiskers boggles my mind.

This is a video I took at the last dissection I attended with Becks Nairn. I have resection back the skin to expose the facial nerve and I’m pulling on the whiskers.

The whiskers are wired directly into the facial nerves. They provide sensory feedback for their surrounding to protect their face in their blind spots. Horses can’t see the end of their own nose due to the placement of their eyes. So they NEED whiskers so they can safely explore the world without injuring themselves.

Ignorance is bliss but when you know better, you must do better.

12/01/2025

I got to finish off my day hanging out with this spectacular young man.

Maverick is just 10 days old and the grandson of the well known dressage stallion, Totilas.

Maverick is absolutely delicious. Congratulations to his breeders. He’s gorgeous.

12/01/2025

If you’re not waking up at the crack of dawn, travelling an hour and helping a 20-something, semi-feral, arthritic, neglected pony with a fear of rasps; then what are you even doing with your life.

11/01/2025

I use breath work every single time interact with a horse. My horse. Your horse. Clients horses.

You might not know it. You might not see it.

OR you might hear me blow out like a horse 🤣🤣🤣

Breath work WORKS.

10/01/2025

This one simple task would halve your hoof and farrier problems.

PICK YOUR HORSES HOOVES OUT DAILY

How does this halve hoof and farrier problems?

1. Your horse becomes accustomed to having their hooves handled which makes life easier for your farrier. After all, if you can’t handle your horse’s hooves, why should your farrier? I can walk up to any of my horses in the paddock, pick up their feet and pick them out. Can you?

2. Prevents thrush, bruising from impacting and abscessing as well as removing stones and debris that can cause holes and white line separation. Less disease, less cracks, less problems.

3. Allows the owner to get use to seeing what their horse’s feet look like and how they grow so they can identify growth, changes and distortions.

So take 5 minutes out of your day and pick out your horse’s feet. Your horse and your farrier will thank you for it.

09/01/2025

Now also booking for 30th January for Ormondville, Takapau and Tikokino areas.

Some spaces still available so get in touch.

09/01/2025

Dannevirke/Norsewood area

I have booked out Tuesday 28th of January for you.

I have space to fit a few more in so if you need your horse’s feet trimmed, message me ASAP.

07/01/2025

Assessing a horse before purchase has now been added as a free public collection on my Patreon for anyone to view.

You’ll need to join as a free member to view it.

Get more from The Hoof Fairy on Patreon

07/01/2025

ATTENTION!!

Yesterday out of the blue I was contacted by a large volume of people from the Hawkes Bay area desperately needing their horses trimmed.
Their trimmer has become unwell and has not been able to trim them for some time.

So a few notes:

1) Yes, I will take on these clients.
2) Gimme a hot minute to get my head around this 😅😅

I’m currently in the process of dealing with some of my own crap that involves me moving house and will not be able to get over there until the week of the 27th of January.

I understand that most of these horses are now overdue, some significantly so. If you want or need to find an alternative to me, you’re welcome…good luck though as most other farriers are booked up as they manage their backlog from the holiday period.

I am only one person. I will do my absolute best to get to as many of you as I can as soon as possible. Once I’m on top of it all we can make a regular rotation as I plan to make weekly trips over.

If you’re happy to use my services, here is a list of my current services and costs.

If you want to message me and let me know the following information.
Your name:
How many horses:
When they were last trimmed:
Where you are located:

With this information I should be able to prioritise those most in need and section off groups based on areas.

Thank you for your patience and understanding as I work my way through this.

Carin ~ The Hoof Fairy

06/01/2025

Why would I charge the same price to trim a mini as I do for a full sized horse?
Aren’t they easier because they’re smaller?

Quite the contrary!!

When you’re almost 6ft tall, trimming a mini is harder on my body.

I cannot use my hoof stand for them.

I cannot put their feet between my legs.

I have to physically hold the foot and hope the mini complies. And believe me, if they don’t, it’s not easier to hold on to them or fight with them just because they’re smaller.

The canvas is smaller yet I am still expected to present the same quality of detailed work.

Not only are they smaller but they’re more problematic. More prone to laminitis. More prone to deformities.

So yes, I charge the same price for a mini as I do for a full sized horse. Because it takes the same, if not more, skill and effort to trim.

04/01/2025

TRIMMING AND SHOEING TO THE CONFORMATION

I had someone ask me again today about trimming or shoeing horses that have less than ideal conformation in their limbs, IE; a horse that toes in or toes out.

Many farriers and vets believe that you can trim or shoe a horse to be straight. My experience suggests otherwise.

The attached photos are from a Hoof Mapping I did a few years ago. The horse, despite being shod all round was lame in the paddock and would consistently wear through the medial (inside) toe of his shoes. Vets and farriers could not work out why he was lame and had no answers for the owner.

I theorised that the horse was naturally toed out but that the farrier had been trying to shoe him straight causing a twist in the skeletal column making the horse lame due to the loading on joints, tendons and ligaments.

In these photos we have the Left Front foot from front on (Dorsal Palmar x-ray) and you can see a significant angle to the coronet band. In the x-ray we can see extreme angles to the skeletal column in the opposite direction of the coronet band. I have also marked with the yellow arrow the angle of the coronet band against the x-ray.

In this video, I explain to the owner my theory:
https://youtu.be/yXqSPGVaRMo?si=zbulGnlCszRJM7ef

The 14-page report I wrote was given to the farrier who, to his credit, followed my suggestions. The horse was immediately sound after the corrections and a week later participated in a 2-day trek, completely sound.

You MUST trim or shoe a horse to their conformation. Not to a method. Not to make it look pretty. TO THEIR CONFORMATION.

If you're interested in my hoof mapping services, the service includes:
~ A detailed questionnaire to give me a thorough understanding of your horse and their unique situation.
~ Instructions on how to take the necessary photos and videos that I need.
~ You will receive within 7 days, a full report with mark ups and supporting written and video information to help not only your horses hooves but their entire body.
~Reports can range from 6-15 pages long as I put many hours into them and provide very detailed information specific to you and your horse.
~Cost $180

You can DM me here or send me an email to [email protected]

03/01/2025

I received this video update this morning of our little man with the extreme laminitis/founder/abscessing in all 4 feet.

On Wednesday he couldn’t even walk and just stood rocked back on his feet, buckling at the knees. He had to be physically held up by his team so that I could trim his heels down to bring him some relief.

This is massive progress and I am over the moon to see him now moving so freely. He’s even managed to slip a bandage off of a hind foot this morning too.

His owners report that he appears much happier and is showing his natural s***k with some spicy behaviour making bandage changes more exciting than ever. As difficult as this makes it for his owners, it is an excellent sign.

We’re all rooting for you little buddy. We got you!

01/01/2025

I’m going to preface this with letting you know that the current owners did not do this to him. They rescued him in this condition. So anyone who says anything crappy about the new owners will be put on blast.

This little welsh pony has HOY titles under his belt but apparently that wasn’t enough for the previous owner to care enough to provide him the the appropriate care and management he needed to avoid this.

I’ve only ever seen one case worse than this.

I’ll be honest; I don’t know if he can come back from this. But his new owners are giving it their all. I’ve never seen a family come together and literally hold a horse up with their bare hands (3 strong, beautiful women) so that we could get his heels trimmed down and his feet bandaged. It was quite a moving process to be apart of. The fight and dedication that the people in his life now have for him is something to behold.

This is just a muddled collection of the few photos I got because this whole situation was not a “let’s ask him to stand and let me take photos” sort of deal.

He did walk off better than what he started so that’s progress. When I got there he couldn’t walk. He was just standing in one spot rocking backwards and buckling at the knees, even with Bute on board.

His feet are now packed with my Blue Goo product and wrapped with nappies, hoof pads and bandages which will be changed every 2 days. And I will go back in a fortnight to trim again.

Send some good juju vibes for this little man. He deserves it.