My Soapbox for Equestrian Writings
2,000-year old Roman horse shoes were unearthed during an archeological dig in London. The shoes attached to a horse’s hooves using leather straps, making them “hipposandals” rather than actual shoes. According to Wikipedia, the hipposandal was the predecessor of the type of nail on shoes we see today. The hipposandal, which appears in the Celtic-Roman […]
Read MoreFreedom has developed some thrush this summer after standing in his stall during the hot weather. I’ve started using Sugardine again and thought it was worth re-posting this. Sugardine is a simple, inexpensive and very effective treatment using products that you probably already have at hand. You can also use Sore No More “the Sauce” […]
Read MoreWe’ve had hot, humid and often wet weather the past few weeks. This means that our horses are standing inside more often than not, that when they are outside they are standing in mud, and the bottom line is it hasn’t been good for their hooves. Even when you clean the stalls twice a day, […]
Read MoreWhen Zelda first arrived, her feet were the size of dinner plates, for one thing. The problem was, their size was deceptively large because of flare. Let’s face it, draft crosses are prone to flare because they are often big, heavy horses. If the flare isn’t controlled during the trim/shoeing cycle it can get out […]
Read MoreWhen I was a kid it seemed like pulling horses’ shoes for the winter was pretty routine. Way back then winter was considered more of a rest period than it is today. Letting your horse spend some time barefoot (provided he can get through the transition period) usually improves overall health of the feet. It […]
Read MoreDuring the time when I was treating Freedom for his multiple abscesses he also developed scratches, which can also be called mud fever or dew poisoning. Scratches appear in the heels and back pastern area — which is probably why it is also called “greasy heel”. It is usually a bacterial infection, caused by Dermatophilus […]
Read MoreWe have now enjoyed four weeks of continuous happy feet. No soreness and no abscesses! Freedom’s last abscess was November 2nd – a frankenabscess that made him look like he had a broken leg. For the second time it blew out the heel bulb of his right front hoof making it impossible for him to […]
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