Contact us:
Phone: 61+ 7 4157 9962
Mobile: 61+ 466 661 412
Phone: 61+ 7 4157 9962
Mobile: 61+ 466 661 412
You are invited to read the article and watch the videos about things we've learned about hoof trims and what works for us.
We're not vets. We're not farriers. We're trimmers who've investigated the anatomy of the hoof. We've learned so much from Linda J Harris (thehappyhoof on YouTube). We're sharing what we have learned and what has worked for us to help horses. We've discarded strategies that we had learned previously from other reputable hoof 'experts' because we found that they did not result in a sound, gravel-crunching barefoot hoof. If it didn't work, we discarded it. However the TACT works every time for us. Now we offer that information freely to you, just as it was offered freely to us by Linda J Harris.
Join the FaceBook Group and receive FREE support learning how to trim your horse.
The entire course is totally FREE.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/789155941265148/ TACT TEAM 2017
Weekly FREE webinars - In Australia, webinars are held from 9 a.m. - 12:30 pm on Thursdays
If you trim your horse, you do so at your own risk!
NOTE: WARNING
If a horse has Forward Foot Syndrome (long in the toe, very low angled hoof wall tubules with a very forward break over point), the sole might well be VERY thin! DO NOT apply the measurement/mapping of the TACT trim to such a hoof. Use the trim strategy appropriate to the FFS condition which are found on YouTube and thehappyhoof channel presented by Linda Harris.
If you are not familiar with how to discern between a sole that is thin and stretched and a sole that is thick and in need of exfoliating, please don't try to do the TACT trim strategy without professional guidance. Over-thinning an already thin sole will cause soreness or injury to the horse.
|
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJk5Da5aoq0 (Laminitis and founder) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oX1ouGDcVrQ Mark up help https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pa8FIuPjD-k (Whole foot mapping and trimming) The Anatomically Correct Trim = TACT Barefoot Trimming to the Anatomy of the Internal Hoof Videos TACT Whole Hoof Mapping and Trimming Course Session Part 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pa8FIuPjD-k ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- WARNING: Do NOT do the TACT on a horse with a run forward toe or FFS (Forward Foot Syndrome) Instead do the trim for FFS Forward Foot Syndrome - eg long in the toe (not a great video as horse kept trying to put his foot down, but theory is there). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bA80-jKZIgw In the following video, it is easier to see the instructions for bringing back the toe, (but the information on trimming heels has been updated in the more recent video above). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1SzzOwn4cQ When your horse no longer suffers from a run forward toe (Forward Foot Syndrome) then you might wish to proceed with the TACT trimming strategy below: https://www.youtube.com/user/thehappyhoof Part A (anatomy - watch this first please) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vH4AxZYctqo Part B https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjYlrXfTfqE (This mare has compact hooves. You must make sure that you horse has not got thin soles or you cannot do this trim that Linda does on this mare when she makes a sole ridge. A horse MUST have depth of sole but many flat footed horses, long in the toe, underrun heels will have THIN soles. Heel walls will be likely stretched forward toward the toe, thinning the internal sole. Do not try to make a sole ridge if you can't tell if your horse has sole!!! Other videos by Linda Harris https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_sC3I8b79U part 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOk5fPJYzCo part 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dY04hSYrYS8 Earlier Videos TACT and Pillar Trim https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPKPgK--X_8 Horse Limb Dissection http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Zopk63XtY&feature=plcp Part 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EqqPuqdC6T0&feature=plcp Part 2 Basic Maintenance Trim & Basic Corrective Trim http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMZW9G9w8MU&feature=plcp Corrective Trimming (1/3 - 2/3 method) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vuxWkfq8KH4&feature=c4-overview&list=UUfy_0feK7D4Zakm-XuwL97A Corrective Trimming (Mapping 3 ways) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1SzzOwn4cQ&list=PLA26FD513816501BF |
|
FREE HOOF TRIMMING EDUCATION
Horse Sense Australia
Anatomically Correct Trimming Education Services
Sunshine Coast, Qld Australia
&
Bundaberg, Qld Australia
Through our work with rescuing horses, we have seen the injuries that poor farriery and poor barefoot trimming techniques have inflicted on horses. All the good intentions of these hoof care professionals and amateurs did not prevent the very real injuries that we see on a daily basis. That is why Horse Sense Australia is promoting TACT freely to horse owners. TACT was developed and is still being developed by Linda Harris in Kansas, USA. Linda offers this excellent on-line how-to- trim-with-TACT course, free of charge.
You might want to learn how to apply the TACT trim to your own horse's hooves so that they have the very best opportunity to become fully functional and hoof pain free. With the use of electric power trimming tools, this aim is within the reach of the average horse owner, women included.
It must be stressed that a fully functional hoof does not often occur with one trim. Like a bad haircut, deformed hooves have to grow out and a new functional hoof must grow into the foot. This process takes time and maintenance. You can't cut a new functional hoof - it takes time to grow out distortions and time to grow a new hoof. We use Epona Shoes as part of our rehabilitation strategy to help sore-soled, thin-soled, laminitic horses to build sole quickly. See more on Epona shoes here: http://www.horsesenseaustralia.com/epona-shoes.html
You might want to learn how to apply the TACT trim to your own horse's hooves so that they have the very best opportunity to become fully functional and hoof pain free. With the use of electric power trimming tools, this aim is within the reach of the average horse owner, women included.
It must be stressed that a fully functional hoof does not often occur with one trim. Like a bad haircut, deformed hooves have to grow out and a new functional hoof must grow into the foot. This process takes time and maintenance. You can't cut a new functional hoof - it takes time to grow out distortions and time to grow a new hoof. We use Epona Shoes as part of our rehabilitation strategy to help sore-soled, thin-soled, laminitic horses to build sole quickly. See more on Epona shoes here: http://www.horsesenseaustralia.com/epona-shoes.html
Linda J Harris - TACT instructions
WARNING
WATCH THE VIDEOS PRIOR TO TRIMMING YOUR HORSE.
IF YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND THE HORSE'S INTERNAL HOOF ANATOMY, DON'T DO THIS TRIM OR ANY OTHER TRIM ON YOUR HORSE! THESE INSTRUCTIONS ARE A GUIDE TO THOSE WHO HAVE ALREADY WATCHED LINDA J HARRIS' TRAINING VIDEOS. YOU ALONE ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY CONSEQUENCES OF TRIMMING YOUR OWN HORSE.
Step 1
Wash and scrub the feet. Use a scrubbing brush not a wire brush.
Step 2
Take a minimum of 5 profile shots of the foot.
Outside, Inside, Front, picked up sighting down at the heels and looking down flat at the sole. There are six pictures all together but you do not have to take the one with the horse standing of the heels all the time. You should on occasion through.
Step 3
Find the true apex of the frog.
Trim down the apex until you find where the frog and sole merge together. At this time you can also trim your whole frog. Make sure to trim the sides and the central sulcus and trim away any super hard petrified frog. This is so your frog will grow and renew itself.
Step 4
Take your sharpie and put a dot at the center of the apex of the frog on the sole directly in front of it, and put another mark in the center at the very base of the frog.
Step 5.
Take your protractor and line it up with those dots in the center of the frog and draw a line from the toe to the end of the frog down the center of the foot. MAKE SURE TO continue your line around and up over the hoof wall of the toe, to the outer wall. This is the line you will use later to map your dorsal wall, so you can center your mid line.
You will use this line to line the protractor up so that you get correct and balanced (what they call Square in building) lines across the toe, so that your toe is centered and not off to one side.
Step 6.
Measure 1 1/2" from the apex of the frog towards the toe and make a mark.
Step 7
Draw a line across the foot at the location of the apex of the frog from the lateral to the medial side.
Step 8
Measure back from the apex of the frog towards the heel 1 1/2". Make a mark and then draw another line across the foot from side to side.
You now have your center toe, the toe quarters or pillars, the quarters and the heel locations all marked. If during the trim you removed them, then replace them before you do your finish work on the wall (beveling).
STEP 9
Map the bars. Take the sharpie and put two good size dots on each side of the apex of the frog. Align the straight edge of the protractor to the dot at the apex and the inside of the heel and draw a line. This is where you will bring your bar over to.
Step 10
Map the heels 2 ways.
Draw a line from the end of the heel buttress wall down across the bulb and periople skin to the hairline where the hairs are growing out. This will be slightly under the actual end of the hairs. Measure from the hairline down to the end of the heel to see how long your heels are. You want to aim at 2 inches. If the heels are longer make a mark at 2" and bring the heels down to 2". If the heels are not 2" leave the heel and let it grow.
You should also measure the heel from the bottom of the collateral groove to see how long it is. Sometimes when the heel is trimmed out, you can have almost 2" of stretched periople skin and no real heal. This is why the first method will not work on some horses. You have to be able to tell if the skin you are seeing is periople skin covering a trimmed out heel, or if it's frog skin covering the actual heel buttress wall. One looks very much like the other and there are several things you have to be able to look at to determine how much heel you really have. You MUST be able to tell the difference between frog skin and periople bulb skin. And between a false heel and a true heel buttress.
The heel from the exit of the collateral groove should be about 3/4 to 1"...IF you are at the end of periople skin and not frog skin.
Step 11
Map the Dorsal wall and Toe Quarters (Pillars)
With the foot on the ground look and find the line you drew when you mapped the center of the foot in step 5. Follow the horn tubule up to the hairline with the marker. Now get back a bit and look to see if it looks centered to the leg. Sometimes, even with a protractor to try and get everything squared and centered we can draw the line off to the side of center. Get as centered as you can and draw a line down the center of the dorsal wall. Also the capsule can be crooked or tweeked this will affect how it looks. The main thing is you follow the horn tubule from the ground to the hairline.
Now measure from the center at the hairline over 2" and make a mark on both the lateral and the medial sides. Then follow the horn tubules down with the marker from the hairline to the ground on both sides.
Measure the center of the toe how long it is and make a note. Then measure each side and write this down. At this time you will not make any more marks until after you are done with your initial trim. Then these lines along with reading and looking at the growth rings will be used to determine if you need to adjust the length of the toe quarters.
The inner foot is shorter on the sides of the toe than in the center. Many times we let the sides of the toe wall get longer than the center. The dorsal wall and Pillar mapping is used to help us better fit the capsule to the foot and correct these over growths.
Ideally according to the form of the anatomy of the inner foot the sides of the toe should be up to 1/4" shorter than the center of the toe. After we trim we will check these measurements again to see where we came out and then if the sides of the toe are the same length or longer we then make the determination on how the toe pillars may need correction so they form fit the inner foot.
http://thehoofschool.tactteamtraining.com/post/hoof-mapping-instructions-8571266?pid=1296314181
Join the FaceBook Forum
The Happyhoof ACT Hoofcare Community
Join the FaceBook Group and get support in how to trim your horse.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/789155941265148/ TACT TEAM 2017
Weekly FREE webinars
In Australia, webinars are held from 9 a.m. - 12:30 pm on Thursdays
WARNING
WATCH THE VIDEOS PRIOR TO TRIMMING YOUR HORSE.
IF YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND THE HORSE'S INTERNAL HOOF ANATOMY, DON'T DO THIS TRIM OR ANY OTHER TRIM ON YOUR HORSE! THESE INSTRUCTIONS ARE A GUIDE TO THOSE WHO HAVE ALREADY WATCHED LINDA J HARRIS' TRAINING VIDEOS. YOU ALONE ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY CONSEQUENCES OF TRIMMING YOUR OWN HORSE.
Step 1
Wash and scrub the feet. Use a scrubbing brush not a wire brush.
Step 2
Take a minimum of 5 profile shots of the foot.
Outside, Inside, Front, picked up sighting down at the heels and looking down flat at the sole. There are six pictures all together but you do not have to take the one with the horse standing of the heels all the time. You should on occasion through.
Step 3
Find the true apex of the frog.
Trim down the apex until you find where the frog and sole merge together. At this time you can also trim your whole frog. Make sure to trim the sides and the central sulcus and trim away any super hard petrified frog. This is so your frog will grow and renew itself.
Step 4
Take your sharpie and put a dot at the center of the apex of the frog on the sole directly in front of it, and put another mark in the center at the very base of the frog.
Step 5.
Take your protractor and line it up with those dots in the center of the frog and draw a line from the toe to the end of the frog down the center of the foot. MAKE SURE TO continue your line around and up over the hoof wall of the toe, to the outer wall. This is the line you will use later to map your dorsal wall, so you can center your mid line.
You will use this line to line the protractor up so that you get correct and balanced (what they call Square in building) lines across the toe, so that your toe is centered and not off to one side.
Step 6.
Measure 1 1/2" from the apex of the frog towards the toe and make a mark.
Step 7
Draw a line across the foot at the location of the apex of the frog from the lateral to the medial side.
Step 8
Measure back from the apex of the frog towards the heel 1 1/2". Make a mark and then draw another line across the foot from side to side.
You now have your center toe, the toe quarters or pillars, the quarters and the heel locations all marked. If during the trim you removed them, then replace them before you do your finish work on the wall (beveling).
STEP 9
Map the bars. Take the sharpie and put two good size dots on each side of the apex of the frog. Align the straight edge of the protractor to the dot at the apex and the inside of the heel and draw a line. This is where you will bring your bar over to.
Step 10
Map the heels 2 ways.
Draw a line from the end of the heel buttress wall down across the bulb and periople skin to the hairline where the hairs are growing out. This will be slightly under the actual end of the hairs. Measure from the hairline down to the end of the heel to see how long your heels are. You want to aim at 2 inches. If the heels are longer make a mark at 2" and bring the heels down to 2". If the heels are not 2" leave the heel and let it grow.
You should also measure the heel from the bottom of the collateral groove to see how long it is. Sometimes when the heel is trimmed out, you can have almost 2" of stretched periople skin and no real heal. This is why the first method will not work on some horses. You have to be able to tell if the skin you are seeing is periople skin covering a trimmed out heel, or if it's frog skin covering the actual heel buttress wall. One looks very much like the other and there are several things you have to be able to look at to determine how much heel you really have. You MUST be able to tell the difference between frog skin and periople bulb skin. And between a false heel and a true heel buttress.
The heel from the exit of the collateral groove should be about 3/4 to 1"...IF you are at the end of periople skin and not frog skin.
Step 11
Map the Dorsal wall and Toe Quarters (Pillars)
With the foot on the ground look and find the line you drew when you mapped the center of the foot in step 5. Follow the horn tubule up to the hairline with the marker. Now get back a bit and look to see if it looks centered to the leg. Sometimes, even with a protractor to try and get everything squared and centered we can draw the line off to the side of center. Get as centered as you can and draw a line down the center of the dorsal wall. Also the capsule can be crooked or tweeked this will affect how it looks. The main thing is you follow the horn tubule from the ground to the hairline.
Now measure from the center at the hairline over 2" and make a mark on both the lateral and the medial sides. Then follow the horn tubules down with the marker from the hairline to the ground on both sides.
Measure the center of the toe how long it is and make a note. Then measure each side and write this down. At this time you will not make any more marks until after you are done with your initial trim. Then these lines along with reading and looking at the growth rings will be used to determine if you need to adjust the length of the toe quarters.
The inner foot is shorter on the sides of the toe than in the center. Many times we let the sides of the toe wall get longer than the center. The dorsal wall and Pillar mapping is used to help us better fit the capsule to the foot and correct these over growths.
Ideally according to the form of the anatomy of the inner foot the sides of the toe should be up to 1/4" shorter than the center of the toe. After we trim we will check these measurements again to see where we came out and then if the sides of the toe are the same length or longer we then make the determination on how the toe pillars may need correction so they form fit the inner foot.
http://thehoofschool.tactteamtraining.com/post/hoof-mapping-instructions-8571266?pid=1296314181
Join the FaceBook Forum
The Happyhoof ACT Hoofcare Community
Join the FaceBook Group and get support in how to trim your horse.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/789155941265148/ TACT TEAM 2017
Weekly FREE webinars
In Australia, webinars are held from 9 a.m. - 12:30 pm on Thursdays
|
Barefoot - Why?
To answer that question, please watch this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KD7G_LKlt0w#t=405 |
Fibreglass Casts (water proof)
Some horses become sore after corrective trim because their hooves have become weak and dysfunctional and their hoof wall or sole cannot do the job of protection and support that they were designed to do. Abnormal structures have to be removed in order to help the horse grow a stable and functional hoof. This should be done gradually where possible in order to permit the horse's muscles time to adjust to the new positions, however sometimes it is necessary to take a lot of hoof wall off at one time, as is necessary with founder/laminitis.
When white line separation occurs it causes the hoof wall and the laminae to separate and weaken the wall causing flares and cracks to develop. The white line then produces serum laminae - a resin like material - that as an emergency measure, glues the hoof together. The serum laminae or flare that was providing some form of emergency stability for the hoof must be removed and a new tight connection formed between the wall and the laminae from the coronet band down to the toe. The laminar wedge (separation) must be grown out. During this period of transition and repair, the serum laminae must be removed, but the weakened hoof wall might not be strong enough to support the internal hoof capsule. In such cases, we use fibreglass casts to help support the hoof through the period of adjustment. The casts also give support to the thin, stretched sole which can become so thin it is the thickness of paper and can be easily moved by pressing with a thumb. |
Anatomically Correct Trim = ACT
Barefoot Trimming to the Anatomy of the Internal Hoof
We often see dysfunctional hooves and this tells us that the internal hoof capsule is distorted (eg. long toes, flares, contracted heels, under-run heels, jammed up coronet bands, compression lines all confirm that the internal hoof is twisted or out of its proper position in the hoof capsule). These are signs of actual internal hoof injury. The inner hoof should fit the outer hoof capsule in the same way that a shoe fits onto a foot or as a glove onto a hand.
The laminae which hold the internal hoof structures in their proper places, become levered away from where they should remain. ie the coffin bone and the navicular bone receive pressure that should not be applied to it. The hoof wall, when allowed to grow too long at the toe, is capable of applying strong forces to the laminae. The laminae are velcro like leaves which hold the coffin bone securely to the inner hoof wall. The hoof rapidly produces serum laminae - a yellow substances that literally glues the hoof structures together, giving the hoof stability that the hoof wall usually provides.
The serum laminae should not be required in the healthy hoof. It should not be permanently in the hoof. Its presence reveals that the hoof has been injured, and that the hoof is in emergency mode. The serum laminae then hold the foot in its distorted position which prevents the horse from performing optimally or in some cases, from even moving around without pain.
A very common deformity noticed is an unusually long toe which through lack of movement and hoof care, drags the internal hoof structure out of place and causes intense leverage on the toe. At the back of the hoof, on both sides, are the lateral cartilages which attach to the coffin bone. As the toe is pulled forward, so too are the lateral cartilages which normally keep the heel structure in place - thus the heels can become under-run. Long toes gradually edge the tip of the coffin bone out of the toe stay and increases tension on the deep digital flexor tendon. Both these events gradually cause the horse more discomfort both in the tendon and in the hoof as the tendon attaches to the under side of the coffin bone (Pedal bone, P3). The tension from the tendon causes the posterior end of the coffin bone to rise and the dorsal end to sink lower. The discomfort caused by this stressed tendon increases proportionately with the leverage inflicted by the overgrown toe and the horse responds with a shortened, choppy stride. Eventually the pressure of this tendon on the coffin bone becomes unbearable and the horse 'suddenly' comes down with laminitis or founder and assumes the typical laminitic stance/lean where the front legs are pushed unnaturally in front of the horse in an attempt to keep the tendon more relaxed so it pulls less on the coffin bone which is angled toward the sole. While other factors contribute to laminitis (high sugar content of the diet, cresty neck, obesity) it is the presence of a long toe pounding on hard surfaces which contributes so much to putting the horse into mechanical laminitis.
The digital cushion lies under the frog corium and it is designed to absorb shock and protect the structures in the internal hoof capsule. The digital cushion collapses when it is pulled out of shape by the long toe and crushed by the abnormal forward movement of the heels. Heel wall can also jam up into the coronet band causing contracted heels. The rims (ie the top ends of the hoof wall near the coronet bands) are extremely sharp and these rims can actually cut into the flesh of the horse when they are jammed up high by the heels. Jammed up coronary bands are a common source of pain and many horses will shorten their stride to try to relieve this type of pain.
Another very common set of problems develop when the pillars are left too high. The hoof wall then jams into the coronary band, pinching it and causing pain on extension and at impact of the hoof onto the ground. The hoof wall tubules are supposed to grow parallel and at an angle between 52-68 degrees, but when the pillars are left too high, this causes the tubules to bend over and lie at a different angle to each other and this forms compression lines (incorrectly called fever lines). High pillars can cause the hoof wall tubules to bend to the point where they pull the heels down and under the hoof. This causes the periople to stretch and the heels can become contracted as the whole internal foot is squeezed almost out of the back of the hoof capsule. When we see this, we know that the horse is struggling to support its weight on weak hooves that are literally buckling under him/her. The horse cannot maintain normal balanced gaits over its abnormal centre of gravity. Riding such a horse has an added element of danger. Riding at speed or jumping such a horse becomes potentially extremely dangerous to both horse and rider.
When the hoof is trimmed according to the internal hoof anatomy, the serum laminae will gradually be removed, but its removal temporarily leaves the hoof less stable until the tip of the coffin bone moves back into the toe stay and the coronet band unjams and the heels move into their correct positions.
Sometimes when trimming, the horse will become sore due to this instability of the internal hoof capsule and the horse's hooves will need to be cast (supported with fibreglass bandages and / or Epona Shoes - temporarily to ensure stability of the hoof during the healing process. We have found that Epona Shoes with casts dispense with the need for other supportive boots such as Cavallo, Old Macs, EziBoots as they actively encourage sole growth and the normal hoof shape is grown into the new hoof.
The function of the hoof wall is to contain the internal hoof structures in the correct position so the internal structures can function as a unit together. With correct trimming, the hoof wall holds the horn tubules together so that the hoof is stable. It is not good practice to file too much hoof wall - either by trimming from the top of the hoof wall, or by aggressively beveling the toe as this reduces the ability of the hoof wall to contain the hoof. Flares are the result of reducing the strength of the hoof wall by such practices like 'trimming from the top.'
The bars are not a weight bearing structure. They are a continuation of the hoof wall and their purpose is to give support to the sole. When the bars become too long they can only give limited support by trapping dirt in the collateral grooves in an effort to contain the sole. Bars should not be permitted to overlay the sole or the seat of the corn as this becomes painful to the horse and causes contracted heels, cracks, flares and very importantly, a build up of excessive, false sole. This false sole prevents the sole from shedding or exfoliating. Retained excess sole causes the internal hoof structures to be moved out of their normal placement.
The quarters should NOT be scooped as this causes pressure to be placed on the pillars of the hoof . Because the toe wall is located in the middle of the pillars, the pressure from the pillars causes the weaker toe area to be pushed up and to become longer than it should be. This movement also pulls the tip of the coffin bone to tilt toward the sole. Many times, we find that the pillars are left too high (despite what Gene Ovnicek states) and unrecognised as excess sole builds up in the toe area. If this is permitted to occur, the hoof wall in the pillar areas cause the hairline to be pushed up visibly at the coronet band. This can be very painful for the horse and it is often the cause of shortened, choppy strides. In the extreme, the hoof wall can cut into the sensitive coronet band and the horse can bleed from the coronet band due to pushed up hoof wall jamming into the coronet band. It can also set the entire foot at a negative palmar angle and cause stress and wear on the navicular bone. In order to prevent these deformations and stresses in the hoof, we must be able to read the sole correctly and find the true depth of the sole.
The heels should not be taken down aggressively at the same time as the toe is brought back. The horse requires some landing surface during its transition toward growing a new hoof. This is important because the deep digital flexor tendon becomes very stressed and tightly stretched when the toe is long. Slightly higher heels can relieve to a certain extent, the stress on that tendon - as a temporary measure. This is why farriers use wedges with horseshoes to alleviate the stress on the tendon. Barefoot trimmers often use wedge pad inserts in hoof boots for the same reason. However it is vital to understand that the heels must be left high enough for a thick, healthy frog to develop. Many, many farriers and trimmers take down the heels until the horse is almost walking without heels. This type of trim crushes the sole corium and the frog corium causing bruising and pain. A horse needs to be able to have room for a healthy frog to develop and this cannot happen when the horse is deprived of its heels. The average sized horse (15hh) requires around a minimum of 1" (2.5cm) of heel from the base of the collateral grooves up to the periople skin of the hoof. The correct way to map the hoof will be published on this page soon (Feb 2016).
FFS - Forward Foot Syndrome/ Long toes can be very obvious and extend forward in front of the hoof, or due to excess sole building up on the sole, the long toe can be pulled down and it is then not so obvious that the toe is stretched forward and under. To ease the tension and pain from the tight tendon, when the long toe is pulled down more than forward, the hoof tends to grow a frog that seems to 'disappear' into the hoof, especially at the apex fo the frog. The heels on this kind of hoof then grow high instead of collapsing and becoming underrun which usually occurs in the obviously long toe. Both types of abnormal toe shape need to be addressed differently so that the pressure on the tip of the coffin bone is relieved.
The pillars should not be left higher than the rest of the outer edge of the sole. If they are, cracks can occur in the toe due to pressure being forced into that area. A pillar trim is often required which lowers the hoof wall and sole in that area if necessary with a gentle rocker until that area is marginally lower than the toe.
Just as we don't expect a person to walk on gravel when they first take off their shoes, we also can't expect a horse that has been shod for years to immediately become gravel crushing. We can't expect a dysfunctional, distorted hoof to be pain-free when the internal hoof capsule is being crushed. We can't expect to carve off the leverage from the toe and find the hoof is immediately stable. We need to take off the parts that are damaging the hoof and WAIT for the new hoof to grow while we support that new internal hoof capsule with casts and Epona Shoes http://www.horsesenseaustralia.com/epona-shoes.html .
Club hooves are thought to be either a genetic or an environmental condition. Trimming with regard to the internal anatomy might also address this hoof deformity. The same trimming guidelines apply - trimming according to the internal anatomy of each specific hoof - but the order that these steps are taken are different on the club hoof than they are performed on the less steep hoof.
Contracted heels often result from a horse wearing metal rim shoes or any shoe or cast that prevents the hoof from expanding under pressure when the hoof is weighted. To decontract heels, the hoof must be given opportunity to expand and overgrown sole and overlaid bars must be removed to be level with the sole (not dug out!) in order that the compressed bars can drop down from where they have been jammed up into the hoof capsule.
Down Under Run Heels are when the heels are dragged back, down and under the hoof, taking with them the lateral cartliages. The skin of the periople becomes tightly stretched over the heel bulbs. The heel bulbs and buttresses are dragged down, under and forward instead of being kept under the hoof to give maximum support to the heels. This results in under run heels, but it is not just the heels that are involved.
How all these hoof deformities occurred needs to be understood if the process is to be reversed and a healthier hoof grown. The relationship of the whole internal hoof capsule to the outer hoof must be addressed. Sometimes reversal of the deformity is possible, but other times there can be remolding of the coffin bone, and damage done to joints that is irreversible, so it is best to prevent distortions and keep your horse's hooves trimmed according to the internal anatomy of the hoof.
Barefoot Trimming to the Anatomy of the Internal Hoof
We often see dysfunctional hooves and this tells us that the internal hoof capsule is distorted (eg. long toes, flares, contracted heels, under-run heels, jammed up coronet bands, compression lines all confirm that the internal hoof is twisted or out of its proper position in the hoof capsule). These are signs of actual internal hoof injury. The inner hoof should fit the outer hoof capsule in the same way that a shoe fits onto a foot or as a glove onto a hand.
The laminae which hold the internal hoof structures in their proper places, become levered away from where they should remain. ie the coffin bone and the navicular bone receive pressure that should not be applied to it. The hoof wall, when allowed to grow too long at the toe, is capable of applying strong forces to the laminae. The laminae are velcro like leaves which hold the coffin bone securely to the inner hoof wall. The hoof rapidly produces serum laminae - a yellow substances that literally glues the hoof structures together, giving the hoof stability that the hoof wall usually provides.
The serum laminae should not be required in the healthy hoof. It should not be permanently in the hoof. Its presence reveals that the hoof has been injured, and that the hoof is in emergency mode. The serum laminae then hold the foot in its distorted position which prevents the horse from performing optimally or in some cases, from even moving around without pain.
A very common deformity noticed is an unusually long toe which through lack of movement and hoof care, drags the internal hoof structure out of place and causes intense leverage on the toe. At the back of the hoof, on both sides, are the lateral cartilages which attach to the coffin bone. As the toe is pulled forward, so too are the lateral cartilages which normally keep the heel structure in place - thus the heels can become under-run. Long toes gradually edge the tip of the coffin bone out of the toe stay and increases tension on the deep digital flexor tendon. Both these events gradually cause the horse more discomfort both in the tendon and in the hoof as the tendon attaches to the under side of the coffin bone (Pedal bone, P3). The tension from the tendon causes the posterior end of the coffin bone to rise and the dorsal end to sink lower. The discomfort caused by this stressed tendon increases proportionately with the leverage inflicted by the overgrown toe and the horse responds with a shortened, choppy stride. Eventually the pressure of this tendon on the coffin bone becomes unbearable and the horse 'suddenly' comes down with laminitis or founder and assumes the typical laminitic stance/lean where the front legs are pushed unnaturally in front of the horse in an attempt to keep the tendon more relaxed so it pulls less on the coffin bone which is angled toward the sole. While other factors contribute to laminitis (high sugar content of the diet, cresty neck, obesity) it is the presence of a long toe pounding on hard surfaces which contributes so much to putting the horse into mechanical laminitis.
The digital cushion lies under the frog corium and it is designed to absorb shock and protect the structures in the internal hoof capsule. The digital cushion collapses when it is pulled out of shape by the long toe and crushed by the abnormal forward movement of the heels. Heel wall can also jam up into the coronet band causing contracted heels. The rims (ie the top ends of the hoof wall near the coronet bands) are extremely sharp and these rims can actually cut into the flesh of the horse when they are jammed up high by the heels. Jammed up coronary bands are a common source of pain and many horses will shorten their stride to try to relieve this type of pain.
Another very common set of problems develop when the pillars are left too high. The hoof wall then jams into the coronary band, pinching it and causing pain on extension and at impact of the hoof onto the ground. The hoof wall tubules are supposed to grow parallel and at an angle between 52-68 degrees, but when the pillars are left too high, this causes the tubules to bend over and lie at a different angle to each other and this forms compression lines (incorrectly called fever lines). High pillars can cause the hoof wall tubules to bend to the point where they pull the heels down and under the hoof. This causes the periople to stretch and the heels can become contracted as the whole internal foot is squeezed almost out of the back of the hoof capsule. When we see this, we know that the horse is struggling to support its weight on weak hooves that are literally buckling under him/her. The horse cannot maintain normal balanced gaits over its abnormal centre of gravity. Riding such a horse has an added element of danger. Riding at speed or jumping such a horse becomes potentially extremely dangerous to both horse and rider.
When the hoof is trimmed according to the internal hoof anatomy, the serum laminae will gradually be removed, but its removal temporarily leaves the hoof less stable until the tip of the coffin bone moves back into the toe stay and the coronet band unjams and the heels move into their correct positions.
Sometimes when trimming, the horse will become sore due to this instability of the internal hoof capsule and the horse's hooves will need to be cast (supported with fibreglass bandages and / or Epona Shoes - temporarily to ensure stability of the hoof during the healing process. We have found that Epona Shoes with casts dispense with the need for other supportive boots such as Cavallo, Old Macs, EziBoots as they actively encourage sole growth and the normal hoof shape is grown into the new hoof.
The function of the hoof wall is to contain the internal hoof structures in the correct position so the internal structures can function as a unit together. With correct trimming, the hoof wall holds the horn tubules together so that the hoof is stable. It is not good practice to file too much hoof wall - either by trimming from the top of the hoof wall, or by aggressively beveling the toe as this reduces the ability of the hoof wall to contain the hoof. Flares are the result of reducing the strength of the hoof wall by such practices like 'trimming from the top.'
The bars are not a weight bearing structure. They are a continuation of the hoof wall and their purpose is to give support to the sole. When the bars become too long they can only give limited support by trapping dirt in the collateral grooves in an effort to contain the sole. Bars should not be permitted to overlay the sole or the seat of the corn as this becomes painful to the horse and causes contracted heels, cracks, flares and very importantly, a build up of excessive, false sole. This false sole prevents the sole from shedding or exfoliating. Retained excess sole causes the internal hoof structures to be moved out of their normal placement.
The quarters should NOT be scooped as this causes pressure to be placed on the pillars of the hoof . Because the toe wall is located in the middle of the pillars, the pressure from the pillars causes the weaker toe area to be pushed up and to become longer than it should be. This movement also pulls the tip of the coffin bone to tilt toward the sole. Many times, we find that the pillars are left too high (despite what Gene Ovnicek states) and unrecognised as excess sole builds up in the toe area. If this is permitted to occur, the hoof wall in the pillar areas cause the hairline to be pushed up visibly at the coronet band. This can be very painful for the horse and it is often the cause of shortened, choppy strides. In the extreme, the hoof wall can cut into the sensitive coronet band and the horse can bleed from the coronet band due to pushed up hoof wall jamming into the coronet band. It can also set the entire foot at a negative palmar angle and cause stress and wear on the navicular bone. In order to prevent these deformations and stresses in the hoof, we must be able to read the sole correctly and find the true depth of the sole.
The heels should not be taken down aggressively at the same time as the toe is brought back. The horse requires some landing surface during its transition toward growing a new hoof. This is important because the deep digital flexor tendon becomes very stressed and tightly stretched when the toe is long. Slightly higher heels can relieve to a certain extent, the stress on that tendon - as a temporary measure. This is why farriers use wedges with horseshoes to alleviate the stress on the tendon. Barefoot trimmers often use wedge pad inserts in hoof boots for the same reason. However it is vital to understand that the heels must be left high enough for a thick, healthy frog to develop. Many, many farriers and trimmers take down the heels until the horse is almost walking without heels. This type of trim crushes the sole corium and the frog corium causing bruising and pain. A horse needs to be able to have room for a healthy frog to develop and this cannot happen when the horse is deprived of its heels. The average sized horse (15hh) requires around a minimum of 1" (2.5cm) of heel from the base of the collateral grooves up to the periople skin of the hoof. The correct way to map the hoof will be published on this page soon (Feb 2016).
FFS - Forward Foot Syndrome/ Long toes can be very obvious and extend forward in front of the hoof, or due to excess sole building up on the sole, the long toe can be pulled down and it is then not so obvious that the toe is stretched forward and under. To ease the tension and pain from the tight tendon, when the long toe is pulled down more than forward, the hoof tends to grow a frog that seems to 'disappear' into the hoof, especially at the apex fo the frog. The heels on this kind of hoof then grow high instead of collapsing and becoming underrun which usually occurs in the obviously long toe. Both types of abnormal toe shape need to be addressed differently so that the pressure on the tip of the coffin bone is relieved.
The pillars should not be left higher than the rest of the outer edge of the sole. If they are, cracks can occur in the toe due to pressure being forced into that area. A pillar trim is often required which lowers the hoof wall and sole in that area if necessary with a gentle rocker until that area is marginally lower than the toe.
Just as we don't expect a person to walk on gravel when they first take off their shoes, we also can't expect a horse that has been shod for years to immediately become gravel crushing. We can't expect a dysfunctional, distorted hoof to be pain-free when the internal hoof capsule is being crushed. We can't expect to carve off the leverage from the toe and find the hoof is immediately stable. We need to take off the parts that are damaging the hoof and WAIT for the new hoof to grow while we support that new internal hoof capsule with casts and Epona Shoes http://www.horsesenseaustralia.com/epona-shoes.html .
Club hooves are thought to be either a genetic or an environmental condition. Trimming with regard to the internal anatomy might also address this hoof deformity. The same trimming guidelines apply - trimming according to the internal anatomy of each specific hoof - but the order that these steps are taken are different on the club hoof than they are performed on the less steep hoof.
Contracted heels often result from a horse wearing metal rim shoes or any shoe or cast that prevents the hoof from expanding under pressure when the hoof is weighted. To decontract heels, the hoof must be given opportunity to expand and overgrown sole and overlaid bars must be removed to be level with the sole (not dug out!) in order that the compressed bars can drop down from where they have been jammed up into the hoof capsule.
Down Under Run Heels are when the heels are dragged back, down and under the hoof, taking with them the lateral cartliages. The skin of the periople becomes tightly stretched over the heel bulbs. The heel bulbs and buttresses are dragged down, under and forward instead of being kept under the hoof to give maximum support to the heels. This results in under run heels, but it is not just the heels that are involved.
How all these hoof deformities occurred needs to be understood if the process is to be reversed and a healthier hoof grown. The relationship of the whole internal hoof capsule to the outer hoof must be addressed. Sometimes reversal of the deformity is possible, but other times there can be remolding of the coffin bone, and damage done to joints that is irreversible, so it is best to prevent distortions and keep your horse's hooves trimmed according to the internal anatomy of the hoof.
Barefoot - Why?
To answer that question, please watch this video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KD7G_LKlt0w#t=405
any horses suffer severe internal hoof damage, well before the owners are aware of their horse's suffering.
It is our opinion that Internal injuries are necessarily inflicted by the fitting of metal rim shoes. When horses are shod with metal rim shoes, the signals from the proprioceptive nerve endings located in the frog, which tell the brain where the limbs are positioned, are not fully generated. Frogs must contact the ground for the proprioceptive nerve endings to receive stimulation. ie. the horse can't feel the ground, so it has to guess the level of terrain it is moving over and how far to move its muscles and tendons. So it would seem that riding a metal rim shod horse is inherently more unsafe than riding a horse barefoot for this reason alone.
Recent thoughts suggest that failure of the horse to visibly react to hoof dysfunction can be due to the fact that metal rim shoes are considered able to crush the major arteries in the hoof capsule and thus reduce the blood supply to the hoof which then causes a numbing of the nerves in the internal hoof capsule.
From studying wild horses' hooves - in their naturally dry, arid environment, we can see that horses have naturally dome-shaped hooves. At the slower, less extended paces, a horse's hoof will usually land almost flat footed on the ground - not toe first and only slightly heel first so that the dome shaped hooves can support its great weight.
A dome is the strongest structure known and can carry enormous weight, however if the dome is not sitting level on the ground, then the weight is not carried evenly throughout the whole structure and the dome's strength is much reduced. For this reason the wall horn must be in the shape of the dome.
Metal rim horse shoes do not function as a dome. Horseshoes place unnatural pressure on the hoof wall by making the wall the main structure to bear the horse's weight. This is called peripheral loading of the hoof. In fact, the outer sole of the hoof is designed to bear a great deal of the horse's weight as also are the rear of the frog and the heel buttresses. Loading of the hoof wall strains the laminar bond and this is a leading cause of laminitis and mechanical founder.
Horse Sense Australia recognises that the dome-shaped hoof is the optimal and natural state of the equine hoof. Our use of the ACT strategy strives to restore functional hooves on horses.
From the results we are achieving using the technique that Linda Harris has made famous,initially called the ACT, and now improved to the TACT, we are proving that we can in fact assist the horse - even the laminitic, foundered horse - to grow a functional foot if we trim - according to the internal anatomy of the hoof. Of course laminitic and foundered horses require other life-style changes and most times require intervention of a vet, however we are speaking here of just the type of trimming strategy that is anatomically correct.
The new mapping strategy that Linda has made famous is still available cost-free to anyone who wants to learn the strategy. To continue learning about the Anatomically Correct Trim and the updated TACT, visit the Happy Hoof on Youtube or search youtube and google for Linda Harris, "The Happy Hoof," and the Anatomically Corrective Trim Technique. Also view her youtube video series called, "The Anatomy of the Hoof."
To transition to barefoot, we use shock absorbent Epona Shoes (which can be nailed, cast or glued or a combination of all three methods).
It is our opinion that Internal injuries are necessarily inflicted by the fitting of metal rim shoes. When horses are shod with metal rim shoes, the signals from the proprioceptive nerve endings located in the frog, which tell the brain where the limbs are positioned, are not fully generated. Frogs must contact the ground for the proprioceptive nerve endings to receive stimulation. ie. the horse can't feel the ground, so it has to guess the level of terrain it is moving over and how far to move its muscles and tendons. So it would seem that riding a metal rim shod horse is inherently more unsafe than riding a horse barefoot for this reason alone.
Recent thoughts suggest that failure of the horse to visibly react to hoof dysfunction can be due to the fact that metal rim shoes are considered able to crush the major arteries in the hoof capsule and thus reduce the blood supply to the hoof which then causes a numbing of the nerves in the internal hoof capsule.
From studying wild horses' hooves - in their naturally dry, arid environment, we can see that horses have naturally dome-shaped hooves. At the slower, less extended paces, a horse's hoof will usually land almost flat footed on the ground - not toe first and only slightly heel first so that the dome shaped hooves can support its great weight.
A dome is the strongest structure known and can carry enormous weight, however if the dome is not sitting level on the ground, then the weight is not carried evenly throughout the whole structure and the dome's strength is much reduced. For this reason the wall horn must be in the shape of the dome.
Metal rim horse shoes do not function as a dome. Horseshoes place unnatural pressure on the hoof wall by making the wall the main structure to bear the horse's weight. This is called peripheral loading of the hoof. In fact, the outer sole of the hoof is designed to bear a great deal of the horse's weight as also are the rear of the frog and the heel buttresses. Loading of the hoof wall strains the laminar bond and this is a leading cause of laminitis and mechanical founder.
Horse Sense Australia recognises that the dome-shaped hoof is the optimal and natural state of the equine hoof. Our use of the ACT strategy strives to restore functional hooves on horses.
From the results we are achieving using the technique that Linda Harris has made famous,initially called the ACT, and now improved to the TACT, we are proving that we can in fact assist the horse - even the laminitic, foundered horse - to grow a functional foot if we trim - according to the internal anatomy of the hoof. Of course laminitic and foundered horses require other life-style changes and most times require intervention of a vet, however we are speaking here of just the type of trimming strategy that is anatomically correct.
The new mapping strategy that Linda has made famous is still available cost-free to anyone who wants to learn the strategy. To continue learning about the Anatomically Correct Trim and the updated TACT, visit the Happy Hoof on Youtube or search youtube and google for Linda Harris, "The Happy Hoof," and the Anatomically Corrective Trim Technique. Also view her youtube video series called, "The Anatomy of the Hoof."
To transition to barefoot, we use shock absorbent Epona Shoes (which can be nailed, cast or glued or a combination of all three methods).
Negative palmar angle - not reading the sole correctly, leaving too much sole in the toe and pillars, allows the sole in the toe to build up and set the hoof at a negative palmar angle ie the toe is higher than the heel.
