31/07/2026
What's been going on, aka "if it helps - your horse isn't the only one".
Where to start! Visuals first.
There has been a lot of chipping going on. Increase in growth during summer and the dry weather making the hoof horn drier and more brittle has led to this. In most cases this trims out easily. Sometimes the chips are higher up than the trim line, and in some cases this has put the horse on their soles.
Lots of frog and sole shedding. The dry weather has retained both, and with it going back to wet now, it's all ready to pop out. This generally doesn't have much influence on comfort levels, but in some cases so much coming off in one go makes them a bit cautious on their feet for a few days - suddenly feeling the ground again and feet softening up while the ground is still quite hard plays a role there.
Now for the trickier bit.
Laminitis has been far more present this year than last. Grass has been continuously challenging, despite no huge spikes like we usually get in spring for a few weeks, and then things tend to calm down again. This year the all-clear just never came.
And now there are horses who just can't take it anymore. It seems to also be hitting the horses that have never caused worry before, or that are well managed.
And we can't get round the fact it's probably been the grass all along.
So what shall we do now?
- Give them time off grass
- Offer some comfort with boots and pads
- Support their liver and lymphatic system
- Keep blood testing for metabolic issues on your radar. Just because they weren't metabolic last year, doesn't mean they still aren't this year.
PS: The picture on this post - if you see an image of a pie and think of a frog, you'll get it 😄 This cobblestone was just shouting for my rasp. Looking at chipped hooves and smoothing them out has been my life for the last few weeks 🫢
