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Grounded Equine Soul • Body • Hoof

Six months of mediolateral balancing and building up the caudal hoof! This mare was putting too much weight into the toe...
22/11/2024

Six months of mediolateral balancing and building up the caudal hoof!

This mare was putting too much weight into the toe of her front hooves due to her high/imbalanced heels. This was preventing proper shock dissipation through the frog, lateral cartilages, digital cushion, and solar corium. By lowering her heels and balancing her mediolaterally she started to use the back of her hoof properly and allow these biomechanical features of the hoof to function as they should. You can see this by the slight expansion in her heels, health improvement of the frogs, and improvement of the distortion in her heel bulbs. She has come so far and still has so many potential improvements to come! 👏🏻👏🏻

12/09/2024

🌾It's laminitis season....

Who is at risk?
Overweight horses with fat pads on shoulders, rump, withers
Horses with high insulin
Horses who have had laminitis in the past
Horses with past/present signs of subclinical laminitis
Horses who are overdue for vet check/new bloodwork to check their status whether on meds or not

Prevention first:
OFF the grass completely if you already have warning signs
Muzzle ON if your horse is overweight or suspicious for IR
Turn out overnight or morning only, OFF the grass by mid-morning
Keep a regular trim/shoeing cycle, now is not the time to skip or push appts back
Ask your farrier if they see anything concerning
Get bloodwork done with your vet to check insulin

Warning signs:
Sore after a routine maintenance trim
Bruising or stretching in the white line
Unusual bruising in the wall
Event lines, especially if wider at the heels
Sore over gravel/hard surfaces when sound before
Shorter strides
Flat or toe first landings
Reluctance to turn in a circle
Lethargic, dull, moving less in turnout
Increased digital pulse in one or more feet
Increased rate of hoof growth

If you see multiple warning signs:
Call your vet - it may be time for bloodwork and hoof radiographs
Call your farrier - it may be time to shorten your trim cycle temporarily and/or have your farrier consult with your vet

There are always signs before a full blown laminitis episode -- if you are concerned about your horse, continue reading up on insulin resistance, laminitis, founder, seasonal changes, and check in with your professionals.

Five months without shoes! Such exciting progress for this Rocky Mountain, Syon. He is very high/low in the front which ...
11/05/2024

Five months without shoes! Such exciting progress for this Rocky Mountain, Syon. He is very high/low in the front which we’ve made lots of progress on. The solar surface of his hind hooves were extremely small for his size and very imbalanced, that has since improved with consistent 5 week trims and 24 hour turnout. His overall hoof quality has improved tremendously as well, can’t wait to see his continued healthy hoof and body development!

15/04/2024

I had previously quoted Dr. Bowker from his seminars as saying that every hooved mammal on earth bore its weight primarily on the pads of its feet; why would the horse be any different? Definitely something to think about. We do modify their hooves due to captivity, but what are the consequences?

One of the first things I look at before I start trimming, especially a new client horse, is wear patterns. How is this ...
07/04/2024

One of the first things I look at before I start trimming, especially a new client horse, is wear patterns. How is this horse moving? How are they landing? Where are they breaking over? This all tells me what parts of their hoof they may be protecting or biomechanically what may be going on in the leg, shoulder, hips, etc. This particular horse is landing toe first and his break over is off center. The caudal hoof is atrophied and underdeveloped as a result of landing toe first. My goal with him is to bring his toe back, lower his heels incrementally, and encourage the use of the caudal hoof again. I will also round off the hoof and encourage a more centered breakover with a shorter trim cycle on my side. Being mindful of how a horse uses their body is very important when trimming. Something may not look “pretty” or follow specific guidelines but if you take it off it may have been something they needed. The best thing to do is slowly nudge them in the right direction and overtime they’ll show you what works best for each of their hooves individually.

This is why short trim cycles are so important!
01/04/2024

This is why short trim cycles are so important!

24/02/2024

True story, there have been many horses who have kept me up at night! 💚

05/02/2024

Sometimes you just gotta roll with some ugly!! 😀

Monty’s taking notes so he can take over when my hands get cold 🥶
20/01/2024

Monty’s taking notes so he can take over when my hands get cold 🥶

Sorry guys I don’t specialize in cloven hooves 🤷🏻‍♀️
27/12/2023

Sorry guys I don’t specialize in cloven hooves 🤷🏻‍♀️

One week without shoes!! The hoof never ceases to amaze me. Just by removing the metal shoe from the hoof, the structure...
17/12/2023

One week without shoes!! The hoof never ceases to amaze me. Just by removing the metal shoe from the hoof, the structures were able start working like they were designed to again. The frogs are already plumping up to help with shock absorption and the heels are returning to their proper angles. The coronet band has relaxed allowing the lateral cartilages to do their job again. His heels have even started to expand a little bit after being so contracted. It’s amazing how fast the horses’ hoof can adapt and how much better their structures can function when they’re not held in a rigid cast by a shoe. 🥳🎉

17/12/2023

Eriskay pony demonstrating how surefooted they are 🐴🐴 The Eriskay pony is one of the oldest and rarest breeds in the UK. It is the last remnant of the western isles pony and survived extinction due to isolation by sea of Eriskay. It was utilized by the islanders until better connections were made to Uist and the Mainland. During this period, machines became more available replacing the work of the ponies, threatening their existence. These ponies are critically rare and hardly found outside the British Isles 🐴⛰. There were around twenty left in the world during the 1970’s, and due to the hard work of the crofters and locals, they saved the breed and formed the mother society and studbook (). Eriskays have a very dense coat that is shorter than most of our other natives, most likely an adaption for living by the sea. They are prized for their lovely temperament and willingness to work, which makes them an ideal family pony and working partner.
Eriskay ponies are categorised as priority by 🐴🌄

©Ruth Chamberlain aka Ruth on the Hoof. Any usage (including art references) must have prior permission from the author/creator.

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17/12/2023

😂 Great plan!

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