hoof problems

Question
Hi! I have a 12 year old quarterhorse, that I have had for a few months now and he has never liked to pick his feet up, of corse since I have had him his feet are done(trimmed) reg.He is getting better, and I do have him lifting his front feet for me, long enough to clean out, his back ones I'm working on.(he's a big horse), his feet when I got him were not in good shape at all.He doesn't like anyone by his back feet at all. I find that sometimes gravel bothers him(front feet), but I just had his feet done again about 2weeks ago and is front feet very senative to gravel this time, but I did notice that his toes were shorter.He does seem to be off on his left front still alittle even on soft ground. Should I get boots for his front feet? and is there anything I can give him to help his feet along?, and also lifting his feet?     Thanks very much,  Theresa

Answer
Hi Theresa;

Putting shoes on him would likely help with his sensitive feet on gravel.  If he has shoes on and he's still this sensitive then you need to inform your farrier that what he's doing is hurting your horse.  Shortening the toes can cause an increase in sensitivity, so regardless, be sure to tell your farrier what happened after this last trimming.

As for the trouble lifting his feet, I suspect that he either has an issue balancing on three feet, which is typical, or he has some physical issues that make it painful for him to pick up his feet.  

Make sure that you keep the foot directly underneath his body and not pulled away from his body.  This way it'll be easier for him to balance.  Also, don't lift his feet up high.  Keep them low to the ground and see if that doesn't help you.

Have a chiropractor and a massage therapist work on him to determine and eleviate any physical issues he has, which I'm sure he has.

The rest is just being patient and working at it slowly like you are now.  

There are suppliments on the market to improve foot quality (like Farrier's Formula) that you could look into, but if his feet are otherwise healthy, then this may be a simple matter of your farrier cutting off too much foot.

Best wishes!

Sincerely,

Lana Reinhardt