Time for some good news. Ramsey broke a record this year - for the first time in his life he made it all the way through November and December without getting an abscess. It might seem like a small thing, but it is a bit of a triumph. His foot is doing well.
He still needs very careful trimming to keep everything in balance, but that is not new, nor will it ever change.
Since his fetlock turns inward and the hoof turns outward, I always leave the medial (on the right) wall unbeveled to give him added support and keep the hoof from turning under. The lateral wall (on the left) gets trimmed very short to keep stress off of it, as that is where the coffin bone is missing and the wall has poor connection. I keep the toe short to make break over as easy as possible. The result might look like I've only trimmed half the foot, but this keeps him sound and keeps the hoof from becoming distorted.
You can see how, all along the left side of the foot, the hoof wall just doesn't connect well. It never will since he is missing a third of his coffin bone. The back of the foot looks a bit ugly right now as he is shedding the frog, but that is normal for this time of year and it will grow back.
It may not be the prettiest foot ever, but we made it through the Fall mud season without an abscess for the first time ever. I hope I am jinxing us, but this was a record I was very pleased to break. I hope we can continue the pattern for a very long time.
That is awesome! Siera has developed a frog issue and we are working on it with our farrier.
ReplyDeleteI love coming here and reading how everyone is doing.
Yaaay for Ramsey's good news!
ReplyDeleteFantastic! Time to celebrate! This is what I call success--and, who knows, a good omen?!? My fingers are crossed for sure. Congratulations, Kris and Ramsey!
ReplyDeleteyay for no abscesses! I was thrilled the first year that Irish did that. I'm celebrating that he hasn't lost a shoe in 6 months either!
ReplyDeleteYou have an amazing intuative 'feel' that is wonderful. The foot looks good and much better than a lot of Supposedly well care for hooves on show horses!
ReplyDeleteYou have certainly taken Ramsey's foot to a good place. Looks terrific because you are so tuned in and on it!
ReplyDeletePretty good-looking foot, for a donkey!
ReplyDeleteAwesome news -- so glad Ramsey broke the streak! Congrats to you on mastering the art of keeping that foot healthy, not an easy feat for sure. Nice to hear good news from you! Take care!
ReplyDeleteThis is huge! Awesome news! You should be very proud, you have done an amazing job.
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