23/05/2025
on the 24th of March I could’ve lost my 5 year old thoroughbred due to bad hoof care from professionals,
we put our trust in these people and pay them to provide a service that they are meant to be qualified and trained to do.
I started to notice in February 2024 that cruise was starting to get some flare on his front hoofs and when I questioned my trimmer about it he would just say “it maybe down to old injury or all the abscesses that he was having.”
But I had also done a lot of reading about horses hoofs when my other horse was diagnosed with navicular disease so therefore I wasn’t completely convinced that this was the reason.
But who am I to question a professional and who’s only had horses for 3 years….
so I started paying attention to what he was doing when he was coming and taking photos before and after trims, the last few times he just rasping a tiny little bit off.
I messaged him on the 8/2/25 with concerns about cruises back left with a crack and also sent photos.
He messaged back on the 9/2/25 saying….
“I’ll have a look when home tomorrow for you and give you a call if needed to discuss”
I just gave him a thumbs up at this point because I knew that I wouldn’t hear back straight away and I was already trying to look for a new hoof trimmer.
He finally messaged on the 27th of February
“Hi just checking I’m passing on Sunday about 1230ish if you need a slot yet but if ok for now I’m passing in a couple of weeks if better”
In a couple of weeks????
It was already going to be nearly 8 weeks they had to wait between trims…..
He came on Sunday 2/3/25
He didn’t nip anything away he just rasping,
I chatted to him about the crack on the back left as I was worried he said
“it’s just superficial and pretty much the same with all the other cracks and flares on his front hoofs.
I also brought up about Charlie because although Charlie has problems with inside his hoof, he’s always had good strong hoofs on the outside but even he was starting to get splits.
I messaged again On the 23rd as the crack that I have been concerned about got a lot bigger.
I think this was the first time he messaged back straight away and then also phoned so I knew the photos I sent him He was concerned about..
The Vet came the next day. 24/3/25
He lifted up his hoof and he looked at me and said “I’ve seen horses get put to sleep for a lot less.”
He’d already assumed the bones inside his foot had moved ( I did think there was a possibility of this because his hoof was basically in two half’s)
The vet explained if the bones haven’t moved It was going to take at least a year of casts,plates and screw brackets and shoes to hold it together and it would be very expensive.
but I still pushed for x-rays.
We agreed to do the x-rays he went to turn on his machine and the battery was flat so he said he would come back the next day, but I couldn’t leave cruise another day in pain if the bones had moved.
I phoned Steven he was in bed from Night Shift to come up to the field with a generator because I knew that I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I didn’t take
x-rays and if I made the wrong decision.
Luckily the bones hadn’t moved,
So then I was left with some decisions to make if I was going to put casts, screw on brackets, plates and shoes on.????
I message my trimmer told him what the vet said and I sent him photos and the x-rays.
He phoned later that night to say that he didn’t think shoes would be a good idea because he didn’t think his foot would be strong enough to hold a shoe and if it came loose and he stood on it and pulled it he could rip the hoof even more.
( I did think the same.)
he messaged me the next morning with a couple of medic boots that he would recommend and I haven’t heard from him since, not even a message to ask how he’s doing or even that they are overdue a trim… 🤷♀️
But because my horses was already barefoot and I seen the damage shoes can cause I felt like this wasn’t going to be the right decision for my Horse.
So back to Google and YouTube I go to try and find another way to help my boy.
I also sent a message to a page that I have been follow on Facebook for help.
A post popped up that night on Facebook about bad hoof care from Farriers and trimmers that can cause lots of hoof problems from cracks to rotation of P3.
I had already messaged the page and someone picked up my message quickly even though they was an Australia doing a hoof workshop at the time,
We got chatting and told me to stay away from the shoes and screw brackets and plates, whatever else I was advised and she sent down one of their hoof trimmers from Aberdeen she came down on the 2/4/25 and done their first trim
and when I put Cruise back in the field you could see he felt a lot more comfortable and was running around.
She came back down on the 16/5/25 for their second trim just before she came back down they had chipped quite a lot of their hoofs just with the ground being so hard so the progress doesn’t look that great just now but I can see a different in both of them.
I have put them on a track changing their diet and I can see a difference it’s still early days but I’m already seeing a difference so🤞🏼 we are heading in the right direction.
