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Hoofcare & Information for Barefoot Soundness

Linda Cowles Hoof Care - Serving the greater SF Bay Area and Northern California

Woody

2/16/2009

Woody is a 5 year old QH who was purchased shod without a vet check. The sellers suggested leaving him shod with pads but there is controversy over exactly what they told the purchasers about why they recommended shoeing. His entire wall shows fanning growth rings (i.e., the rings are prominent and spread out towards the rear of the hoof) that indicate that he's experienced moderate and regular laminitis for some time.

His shoes came off in late November or early December; they fell off prematurely in pasture. In late January, he became lame on the LF. His walls were slightly long and chipped at the time.

The initial vet saw an abscess that vented naturally. The horse was still sore, and a second vet came out and dug out sole to further relieve the abscess. The horse was still very sore. A third vet can out and said that the problem probably wasn't just abscessing, it could be a fracture because of how the horse was standing and the fact that the horse was still experiencing extreme discomfort in spite of the vented abscesses. The second vet came back out, took the below x-rays and noted the fracture on the lat side of the ski-tip. A medical shoe with a removable plate was nailed in place.

Unfortunately these x-rays are not squared views, and wire was not added to highlight where the coronet, sole or wall starts. The x-ray machine was malfunctioning and getting any x-rays was tough.

The LF also shows some calcification on the front of P2, approximately where it seems to touch the coronet area (too hard to see for certain)

Left Front

Left Front Solar

Ski-tip fracture on the outside toe (on the right in the shot below)

Right Front