(Under construction!)

June 28, 2006

I'm trying to update my web site and realize that I need to re-address coronet flare, because what I do is to, essentially, use a marker to highlight the flare in the growth ring and then have the top of my bevel / mustang roll follow the growth rings. This results in a stretched bevel where the growth ring arches upwards, and that part of the wall wears / drops faster than the remainder of the wall.

See Belle's page for more examples until I get the time to document this better. Belle's feet are almost normal now.

This paper is the result of several online discussions on how different folks address flare. I'll eventually finish it with all of the background, but at this point in time its a pictorial overview of some of the horses I've trimmed.

It had been 14 weeks since I'd trimmed Baby, below, and while her feet looked pretty good, she had a bit of flare to correct.

Flare can show up in several places. In Baby's case, the wall flared out slightly at the base and her coronet band was also flared upwards; examples of both are captured in the picture below.

Another good example of flare and how it can distort growth rings is captured on Nick's web page: /case_studies/Nick/Nicky.htm

Dealing with Flare using a Bevel

Can you see the upward flare in the coronet band to the left? It spans the entire quarter, starting below my thumb and going back to just before the heel.

When I trim, I do a basic bevel on all four feet and then return to the first hoof to do the finishing work.

Why?

Because sometimes, in that short span of time, a wall will have relaxed. When that happens, the upward flare resolves itself as the flared wall slides or relaxes down.

The Re Modeled Hoof

I call this "remodeling" because a horses hoof is very pliable and adaptable. It's capable of changing its shape rapidly in response to pressure or the release of pressure.

In the picture to the left, I identify a section of wall with a good amount of upward flare that distorts the coronet band.

The picture below captures how I have exaggerated the bevel so that it's higher on the wall.

What will happen over the course of a few days is that the wall at the bottom of the exaggerated bevel will erode faster than the other wall and the upward flare will relax.

In the past I resolved this sort of flare by rasping the wall surface flat, but what occasionally happened is that the wall lots some of its strength and integrity, particularly with flat Thoroughbred and draft feet, and began to flare more at the base. It eventually resolved itself, but I get better results faster by using an exaggerated bevel.

Flare Relaxing During A Trim

The pictures below capture the wall actually relaxing in a short 5 minute period on a horse called Tango this weekend in Lake County.

The difference is slight but noticeable, particularly in the coronet area.

This horse was overdue for a trim so the wall distortion is very noticeable

Shiraz With Flared Rear Feet

November 17 2005

Shiraz is a wonderful arab who had "stifle and / or hock problems". Doing a bit of Root Cause Analysis was simple because the root of the problem was glaringly obvious.

The source of his problems was his weird hind feet that had arching coronet flares that were pushing up so hard that they pushed his heel forward resulting in an under run heel.

Shiraz - December 17 2005

The picture to the left is a "before" picture... Shiraz's feet looked awesome!

Karen Sullivan helped owner Kim Ross manage a bit of chipping, but aside from that, this is the result of a month out of shoes and LOTS of riding! Kim is a ride-a-holic, and Shiraz's feet are the result of a good trim and lots of playing.

This Before picture shows that the wall is still flaring a little bit, but its moved most of the flare to the base of the wall, where the wall protrudes slightly at its widest point.

In the picture below right, the camera has captured the removal of that flare with a bevel that approaches 90 degrees.

The bevel changes to 45 degrees as it clears the flared area and approaches the toe.