01/23/2023
From the outside most would agree this is an overgrown foot due for a trim. Long toe, low heel, some deformation at the coronary band and pastern, dishing of the dorsal wall. A flat, unhappy foot.
What you can’t see from the outside are the changes on the inside. The pedal osteitis, the total lack of sole depth, any rotation/sinking, damage to the tip of P3, and other boney changes. Then there’s the soft-tissue structures being affected- impar ligaments, flexor tendons, collateral ligaments, and more. In fact, a post of mine from 2018 is going around again where I highlight those structures.
This is why radiographs (x-rays) of the hooves are imperative for correcting the feet. As well as guiding corrective trimming and shoeing changes, they can provide an indication of prognosis, patient history, and more. Hoof rads are always money well spent, as long as the images are also correctly obtained and labeled. But I digress…
Here’s what else the photo cannot show. Pain. We need to always treat the patient, not just the picture.
This beautiful horse was in significant pain. And that pain doesn’t stop at the feet.
Lack of foot care, genetics, footing, trimming/shoeing, nutrition, saddlefit, moisture, all impact the feet. And the feet impact the whole.
Behavior changes were a red flag that something was wrong and thankfully this kiddo is owned by someone who listens. They scoped for stomach ulcers (clear!), radiographed the feet, had a vet check, ensured 24-7 feed and proper nutrition. But still the patient was unhappy when touched in certain places, charged in the pasture, and had other untoward behaviors.
This is where I come in.
It’s essential we look at the whole picture. This horse was very sore, but an absolute gem to work with. He’s not mean or an as***le, he just hurts!! In Chinese medicine, the feet are connected to element Wood 🌲 and organ Liver. Liver is imbalanced by pain, medications, stress, pretty much anything 😣. Large intestine is governed by Metal 🪓 . Earth 🌎 is governed by spleen/stomach. Fire 🔥 is connected to mind-state and heart, and Water 💧 is connected to Kidneys.
When in harmony, these elements/organs support and nurture each other. When imbalanced, disease may occur.
For example. Through genetics (racing TB) this horse wasn’t bred with the best feet. Multiple starts, poor trimming/shoeing, medications, etc. send him on the road of foot pain. New owners take him on, great care but already bad feet, goes to a different location, receives less than ideal care, comes back angry and sore. Wet weather, damp, mud ensue. Liver Qi Stagnation results.
Liver gets upset and Wood over controls Earth, resulting in GI upset (ulcers). While the FORE gut was mainly negative on scoping (most likely a result of great husbandry- pasture, fresh grass, 24-7 feed, proper supplements), HINDgut is a different story and one we can’t forget. There is tremendous ongoing research into the equine microbiome, hindgut health, and treatment/prevention. This patient is strongly reactive at hindgut “alarm” points. These points in this patient are also tied to neurolymphatic NL points for the adrenal glands (stress), and hips/psoas/hindquarters, which are very balled up due to the patient compensating for sore front feet and rocking onto the hind end. Slipping in mud hasn’t helped either. Wood over-controls Earth, and also depletes or dulls Metal. My feet hurt so my guts have become sore, my body aches because I’m off-loading foot pain, my circulation is blocked places and my low back is blocked up and I’m now cranky AF when you touch me in those places.
Skilled myofascial work, bodywork, targeted NL stimulation, and chiropractic are instituted to rebalance the body, promote parasympathetic nervous system (digestion, relaxation, endorphin) firing, promote proper circulation, and release tension/restriction/compensatory patterns. Acupuncture can also release the trigger points, relieve inflammation, and promote circulation and while a single treatment is beneficial, more than one session would likely be needed. Thus, Chinese herbal therapy- Body Sore (treat pain and myofascial stagnation), Liver Happy (soothe liver qi), and Hot Hoof (address hoof inflammation) are all suitable choices for ongoing medicinal treatment.
Additional therapies such as Back on Track products to promote circulation, PEMF for circulation and bone healing, cold laser, and shockwave also have their places in healing this and similar cases.
But here’s the deal. While all of those treatments will have important healing effects, if the foundational issues are not corrected, all these issues will recur. Beware the therapist that claims they’ll “fix” your horse in two adjustments, or one acupuncture session, or five e-stim sessions without the whole picture. Yes, there’s absolutely benefit, but the ROOT cause must be addressed. Get the X-rays. Evaluate the feet. Or the back. Or whatever is hurting. And understand, too, that there may be limits, ceilings, to returning any patient to full pain-free living. We do the best we can to bring comfort and quality of life. Correct movement allows for healing, subsequently a strong core, healthy muscles and circulation and nervous system firing. But sometimes we’re also battling genetics and history that limit our ultimate results. That’s not a bad thing, it just means we always strive to do the best we can do with what we’ve got!
I hope this case sheds light on the incredible importance of looking at the whole picture. Like removing layers from an onion, we seek to find the root cause of the outer issues so we can address them with the most appropriate tools in the toolbox. And while improving the feet will 💯 help the patient, it’s not enough on its own. Those other issues (gut, back, hips, organ imbalances) still need to be addressed to bring health and balance.
This patient is a superb being with tremendous potential to heal. He also has baseline changes that may always hinder his total potential. It all depends on what the goals are and if they’re reasonable for the patient. Then we do all we can to rebalance the body and open the channels so it can do what it does best! These cases are my teachers, they stretch my knowledge and keep me fresh on my understanding of patterns and integration, allow me to apply all my best tools and search for anything new, then stand back and learn.
Thank you to my awesome clients for sharing their horses with me and doing all they can to have happy and healthy horses.
Special appreciation to Delanee and Hayley.
