Farrier came out today. The weather has been so dry all of the bits of foot crud (thrush) that the mares had were gone. Their feet looked great.
Isis and Prize were very well mannered with the farrier. Isis rubbed his head with her lip, which the farrier thought was sweet. It’s okay when she does that until you hear the distinct sound of her mouth opening. She won’t bite but some times she’ll take something in her mouth and hold it. Didn’t want the farrier’s shirt, hair, or ear ending up in her mouth…
Once Isis was done, the new mare at the barn was trimmed. She had underrun heels on her front right. Very interesting discussion with the farrier when he explained what underrun heels mean and what to do about them. (See figure 5 at Barefoot Hoofcare blog.) Underrun heels can be caused by a conformation fault, trimming, or other things. To correct it (as much as possible), the farrier gradually trims back the underrun section and brings the toe length back to match the other front foot (or, more correctly, how the foot should be shaped according to the horse’s bone structure and use). The correction takes place over several trims and may or may not require shoes.
As the new mare was being finished, I went out to get Kasane. The Diva, a lovely dark bay Morgan mare, was added to the diet herd (Kasane and Katie). Diva is much more dominant and not very happy that she has a grazing muzzle on. She wanted that muzzle off and I was the nearest human. Therefore, I should take it off. Now. This minute. Except I wasn’t out there for her. Diva tried to shoo Kasane away from the gate and was surprised when I shooed the Diva away by twirling the end of the lead rope. Kasane was up from trotting around and came into the barn prancing.
She was good for the farrier, except she fidgeted constantly. She had to have the lead rope in her mouth to chew on it. Last time the farrier was out, she didn’t chew on things. Whenever she’s chewed on things, that’s meant she has a tooth coming in. She stops chewing as soon as the tooth resolves itself. (Kinda like a two year old child chewing on anything and everything when they are teething.) Sure enough, her lower left front tooth looks like it is starting to work its way out.
When Kasane first arrived almost two years ago, the inside walls of both of her front feet were pretty upright. Instead of being a round or oval shape, the bottom of her foot looked slightly flat on the inside. Upright hoof walls can put more pressure on the mare’s legs and may require corrective work on her feet. Luckily, her feet have been maturing and spreading into a more normal shape.
We rode a lot last week and she didn’t have any trouble. The farrier said her feet look perfect. Happy dance!
