Q: Hi, I own an Arab gelding who is pigeon toed/toed-in. He is a successful endurance horse, however is at the moment suffering from bruised heels which are believed to be the result of his being toed-in.
Can you suggest any information that may be
useful in approaching the shoeing of this horse? Thank you!
A:
I would doubt that the bruised heels are a direct result of your horse being
pigeon toed. As long as the horse is trimmed properly--balanced and
leveled--so his feet are landing flat, toeing in isn't likely to cause sore
heels.
My first guess would be to look at his
angles. Sore heels are frequently caused by long toes and underslung heels.
Being very flat footed or landing markedly
heel first can also cause the heels to become sore.
Your farrier should not be trying to correct
an adult horse's pigeon toes. Balance and level is the rule here.
"Corrective" trimming and shoeing can put stresses all the way up
the horse's legs and also cause the foot to land unevenly, thus causing
pain in the heel area.
At least more vets now are aware that
bruised heels are the common cause of pain in that area and are not condemning
horses by diagnosing navicular disease in most of them as was the practice for
many years, when in reality most of these horses could have been brought
back to soundness with proper shoeing and rest.
Much is already written on the http://americanblacksmith.com/blacksmithstable/horseshoeing_questions-answers.htm
web site about heel pain. The information there would apply to your horse
regardless of his turned-in toes. Try doing a search for navicular or
heel pain or sore heels. As discussed in several places, a piece of
hoof rasp welded between the bars of the shoes to protect that area from below
might be worth consideration.
Endurance riding is, as you know, very
stressful on horses. Any deviation from straight legs adds stress to a horse
in any profession. This might be a time to consider a career change for your
horse, depending on the severity of his crookedness. At this point he can
almost certainly be made sound again and continue a comfortable and useful
life. If his legs are very crooked his usefulness will be short lived in a
high stress profession, whereas he may go on for many years as a recreational
trail horse.
On the other hand, if his crookedness is
minor he may continue as a competitive endurance horse as long as any other
horse could be expected to. It is just good to think about these things from
time to time, especially when problems begin to arise.
Good luck! Please keep me posted on your
horse's progress.
Sincerely,
Mary Bayard
Fitzpatrick
American Blacksmith
Murphys, California