Winter horse care

Article from 'Straight from the Horse's Mouth' - July 2008

This month we consider winter hoof care to keep your horse sound through the winter months. The following tips should assist in keeping your stead on four legs.

Picking out your horse's feet may sound pretty basic, but it's the single most important thing you can do to have a head start on healthy hooves and prevent many common hoof problems. Try to pick your horse's feet:

• Before each ride, remove any stones or small objects and check on the condition of his shoes. When checking shoes look for risen clinches. The ends of the nails your farrier trimmed and clinched (bent fl ush with the outer hoof wall) at his last shoeing may now be sticking out from the hoof. This is a sign the shoe is loosening, probably because it's been in place for several weeks; risen clenches can cause injury if one foot brushes the inside of the other leg.
• After you untack him, in case something is stuck in the feet during the ride.
• When you bring him in at night, check for objects in the feet, or for turnout injuries.
• Before turnout the next morning, check for heat and pulse, remove manure, and check for signs of thrush (more details on that below).

Each time you clean your horse's hooves, take an extra couple of minutes after you've pried out any packed debris to gently clear the crevice of the frog, and scrape any remaining bits of matter off the sole with the tip of the hoof pick. You want to be able to see the sole's entire surface, so fi nish the job with a stiff brush. Some hoof picks come with a brush attached, or you can buy a brush separately.

When picking out the hooves, look for signs of...

THRUSH:
The first clue to this bacterial condition (usually caused by prolonged standing in manure, mud, or other wet conditions) is a foul smell and dark ooze from the cleft of the frog. Later, the frog becomes cheesy in texture. Although thrush can eventually cause lameness and signifi cant hoof damage, the early stages are simple to treat.

PUNCTURES:
If a nail or other object pierces your horse's sole and then falls out, the entry wound will probably be invisible by the time you pick his feet and you'll be unaware of it until it causes an abscess. But in some cases the object remains in place, to be discovered only when you brush the last bits of dirt from the sole. Don't pull it out. Put your horse in his stall, protect the punctured foot, and help the foreign object stay put with wrapping and duct tape or with a slip-on medication boot, then call your veterinarian right away. An X-ray of the foot can show how far the object has penetrated, then your veterinarian can remove the object and advise a course of treatment.

CRACKS:
Some cracks are superficial; others can worsen involving sensitive hoof structures without appropriate shoeing. One cause of a crack is a hoof abscess - which breaks out through the coronet band at the top of the hoof, creating a weak spot in the hoof wall that must be attended to as it grows out. If you notice a crack in your horse's hoof, call your farrier and describe its location and size so he can decide whether it needs attention now or can wait until the next regular shoeing.

ABSCESSES:
If your horse's hoof pulse feels stronger than usual and/or the foot is warmer than normal to the touch, the cause could be an abscess inside the hoof from a badly placed shoe nail, a bruise, or an overlooked sole puncture. Routine checks can alert you to the problem and get your veterinarian or farrier involved before it becomes worse. If you fi nd increased heat and a stronger-than-usual digital pulse in both front feet, and if he's shifting uncomfortably from foot to foot, call your veterinarian immediately. These are signs of laminitis, an infl ammatory condition that can cause severe hoof damage and, if not treated promptly, can even be fatal.

Schedule regular farrier visits according to your horse's individual needs

Although 6-8 weeks is the average, there's really no standard interval for trimming and shoeing. If your farrier is correcting for a problem such as under-run heels, a club foot, or fl are in the hoof wall, your horse may benefi t from a shorter interval. If everything looks fi ne but you notice that he begins forging - striking the back of a front hoof with the toe of a back hoof (you'll hear a metallic sound), ask your farrier whether a shorter schedule might avoid the problem - possibly 4-5 weeks in the summer, slightly longer in the winter.

Try not to turnout in deep, muddy footing

Hours of standing in mud may encourage thrush. Mud is hard on shoes too - the suction of deep mud can drag off a shoe already loosened by alternating wet and dry conditions.

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