Finding its way?

A Ramsey update.....

I think the last time I talked about Ramsey's foot, I mentioned the concerns I have about the way the foot is distorting laterally as you can see so clearly in this photo from 10/21/13...

I have been doing very tiny trims each week trying, not to "fix" the foot, but hoping to guide it and stabilize it until we can get more growth.  One of the really big problems that my feed analysis revealed was a bad phosphorus deficiency coupled with high calcium and manganese, both of which further inhibit absorption of phosphorus.  This is the main cause of angular limb deformities, early arthritis and hoof deformities in growing babies.  I really am going to get around to talking about this more, I am just finding it difficult to figure out just how much anyone wants to hear.  People's eyes tend to glaze over when I start talking nutrition. What, if anything, would you folks like to know about equine nutrition?

Anyway, there has been some improvement, 12/4/13....

There is a spot on his sole, below where the coffin bone was removed, that is going to slough off.  It is hard to know, but the recent abscess he had may have originated there or it migrated to the weak point.  Fortunately, I caught it quickly and it seems to be growing out.

I think it is interesting to note the color variations on the entire lateral (on left above and right below) wall.  All the white, irregular areas along the upper left side of the foot, mirror the irregular bone beneath.  There is certainly a lot going on in this one tiny foot.

I am pleased with the new growth that you can see here that has occurred since correcting the nutrition issues.  The white line, which is that very thin white line that runs around the outer edge of the foot, is much cleaner and tighter looking.  The curve in the frog has straightened some as well, which, I hope, means that we have managed to stop the twisting distortion of the hoof capsule.  It is hard to see here, but the new growth where the coffin bone is missing is coming in better as well.  Hopefully we can continue that way.

10/21/13                                                                         12/4/13

What I hope, is that I can help support the foot and the leg as they both continue to find where they need to be and gain strength now that the major mineral imbalances have been accounted for.  It is both a blessing and a curse that donkey feet seem to react to environmental pressures faster than horse feet do.  When things go wrong, they go very wrong very fast.  But, they also come right faster when given a chance.

***

As I am always posting pictures of bad feet I thought I'd add some of a GOOD foot.  Below is what a nice donkey foot should look like.  It does have a steeper angle than a horse foot and is a bit more upright, but it is still compact, tightly connected with a nice low heel.  The front of the foot is perfectly straight, with no deviations, indicating a well connected hoof wall.  If I ever had an x-ray taken of this foot, the front of the coffin bone would be parallel with the front of the hoof wall and there would be plenty of sole thickness.

The entire back third of the foot is thick, well developed frog, extending well past the back of the heel buttresses, as it should.  This is one of the biggest differences between donkey feet and horse feet.  That massive frog combined with the greater elasticity of the hoof are what make donkeys so amazingly sure footed on rough, rocky terrain.  The small, narrowness of the foot is also why they do not do so well in mud, snow and ice.

Living on soft ground like mine do, a donkey foot will never wear enough to keep up with growth and will not self trim.  The soles of donkeys on soft ground need to be trimmed back or the foot will just get taller and taller until it falls over.  This is why it is so much more common to see extreme hoof pathology on neglected donkeys then it is to see it in neglected horses.  X-rays of Ramsey's other foot showed that, even after trimming the sole back as much as I had thought was safe, he still had 15 mm of sole depth.

The foot is well balanced and I have no doubt that an x-ray would show the bottom of the coffin bone to be ground-parallel.

This foot toes out almost as much as his other foot, but remains balanced to his conformation and is a highly functional and sound foot.  If I were to try to "correct" his stance, I would cripple him.  Pretty-is-as-pretty-does and this is a very pretty foot.

Do I dare?

Hmmm, that does look like a nice warm spot....

Then again, maybe I ought to try the donkey instead....

Sunday Stills - Pets

I couldn't miss THIS Sunday Stills:)

To start off, how about a pet you've never met before?  This if Farm Buddy's painted turtle Moby, and yes, he (or she?) is named after THAT Moby.  Mostly because, she (or he? how does one tell?) comes up, jaws gaping, for his earthworm dinner. 

The rest of the crew will be a bit more familiar. 

Happy 5th anniversary to Sunday Stills.

  

I've enjoyed participating these last couple of years and have learned a lot from it. 

Here's to many more.

Just one bite...

Some days, the craving for a little bite of chocolate....

is just too much to resist....

even if you do regret it later.

Bad Hair Day

One step Forward, Two....

Been a while since I updated any of the feet posts.  Here is where Lakota was 6/7/13...

and where we were 10/27/13

The photo above is showing some really great progress.  The dramatically shorter toe, lower heel, tighter connection and straighter hair line are all great.  Unfortunately, about the time these were taken, Lakota managed to break through the fence separating him from a massive trove of windfall apples and he came up rather ouchy with warm feet and strong digital pulses.  All not-so-great things.

As a result, I think we lost a bit of ground, not a lot because we got on top of it very quickly, but the tiny sliver of concavity in his sole disappeared.  Here is where he was 12/21/13...

In spite of that, there is some positive news to share.  We have made some significant changes to all of the horse's diet in the form of a custom mixed mineral supplement that I have put together and we have seen dramatic improvements in just a few weeks.  I think you can see it in the top 3/4 of an inch.  There is some nice growth showing there that began almost to the day of the nutrition changes.

In my last update, I also mentioned using dental impression mold to stimulate frog growth and it sure does work.  If you look at the two photos below, you can see what I mean.  The photo on the left shows a very weak, thrushy, diseased frog that is painful to thumb pressure.  Amazingly, it is actually a significant improvement compared to what it was back in April.  These poor quality, painful frogs have been plaguing all of the horses and are at the heart of nearly all the hoof problems we are dealing with.  They are one of the main reasons I have been working on nutrition so obsessively.  The only way to have healthy frogs is to grow a healthy frog.  The only way to do that is through diet and proper stimulation.  Which is where the dental impression molding comes in.  I hope that you can see that the frog on the right is much improved.  It still has a looong way to go, but it is much stronger as is the entire back half of the foot.
 7/20/13                                                                               10/27/13

12/21/13  I think that if we can ever get that very deep crevice at the back of the foot to grow in, we will finally start seeing a much more functional foot.  Healthy movement is what grows a healthy foot.

The Hardest Lesson

Do you remember, a while ago, I mentioned that Ramsey had acquired a juvenile delinquent behavior of pawing at the feed room door hoping it would make breakfast appear faster?  I usually deal with these kinds of things by pointedly ignoring it and only offering up the feed dish when it stops.  It generally only takes a few days for even to worst case to start getting the idea.

Despite the fact that Ramsey is maybe the fastest learner I have ever worked with, he just wasn't getting this concept and it wasn't because he didn't understand.  He just didn't want to stop doing it and spoiled baby that he is, couldn't get past that.  He likes digging holes.  The digging does seem to be a donkey thing and the crater he was making in front of my door was reaching epic proportions.  His pawing was starting to turn into less a demand for faster service and more of an obsessive compulsive thing similar to weaving or stall walking.  He would do especially if he got frustrated by something.

For example, Emma quit feeding him months ago, but poor baby Ramsey would very much like to still be nursing and even now, he still tries on occasion.  Emma is having none of it.  It has been quite fascinating to watch because the poor kid just can't understand why his mommy won't feed him anymore and he keeps trying new and different approaches, hoping one will work.  He has run the gamut from sweet and wheedling to pitching temper tantrums to sneaky, stealth attacks.  Nothing works.  He even tried to kick Emma once.  That definitely didn't work!  When he just can't stand the frustration of not getting his way he runs around bucking, kicking and braying or...he digs holes.

I guess it could be worse, but this is not a habit I want to encourage or ignore.  This spoiled brat behavior is understandable given his history, but even little miracle babies have to have manners.  So, a couple of months ago, I introduced a new frustration into his life.  At breakfast time I tie them both and make them wait until I have everything ready.

And it's not like Ramsey hasn't had tying practice before....

He's just never had to stand tied and WAIT for breakfast before.  The one thing this very acepting, willing baby can't abide is being left out and he feels very left out when he is tied up, away from the action. He has now just about run the gamut here as well.  Including whining, wheedling, pawing, kicking and whatever else his clever little mind can dream up.

I have to admit though, that his latest strategy of warbling at me, does get me every time.  And Emma...wise soul that she is, has stood quietly watching all along and now she has figured out that the warbling cracks me up every time and is starting to join in.