21/08/2026
This information helped me a lot when I first started trying to realign the direction of the hoof capsule and improve it’s connection to P3 on horses with hoof distortion. Hooves are always growing and it can take several months for the new growth to make it to the bottom. So whenever you take on a new client horse it’s important to be aware the the hoof will be going through future changes when you take a different approach than the last guy. The hooves can go through a phase where they look worse before they look better, or than can actually be getting worse. It can be very hard to tell the difference and that can send you on an emotional roller coaster ride. This is when the client/practitioner relationship is often tested to the limits. It’s very easy to get into the blame game when emotions get high around a struggling horse. In most cases, the client and practitioner have the same goal…to make the horse more comfortable. That can just get clouded by empathy and deflection of blame.
Pete Ramey used to say (paraphrasing), “The top of the hoof is my foot. The bottom is the other guy’s foot.” Meaning that the angle change in the dorsal wall is where the responsibility is divided up. I thought this was simple brilliance when I first heard it. I’ve learned through experience that this is an oversimplified attempt at trying to explain hoof capsule rotation and who is to blame. The next guy can easily get blamed for what the last guy caused. It’s also easy to keep blaming the last guy, or the diet, or the environment, or just confuse everyone and blame metabolic dysfunction.
2 things that can really throw you for a loop are:
1. a coffin bone with a ski tip. That happens from erosion due to chronic toe loading. A well connected hoof capsule will reflect the shape of the pedal bone.
2. The CE relationship (coronary band/extensor process). Once the mechanical bond of the hoof capsule and coronary groove is compromised, it can make things more difficult to correct. It’s still possible though. I still think Pete Ramey’s over simplified explanation above is a brilliant place to start the conversation.
Speaking of over simplifications, these drawings are just a generalization. There are too many variations to fit into one example.
