Is there more to heat, pain and lameness than meets the eye? Is there a reason why a horse is not responding to therapies? Potentially, yes. A farrier often is the first line of defense in identifying inflammation of the distal limb, and understanding its influence is critical for proper management.
To truly help a horse with contracted heels, a farrier must understand that such heels are most often a symptom of an underlying problem, and correcting the heels does not necessarily lead to a sounder horse.
Genetics aren’t kind to cow horses and reiners. They have the heart and drive, but conformational issues and the rigors of the discipline don’t result in long careers.
At his core, Ralph Hampton is a farrier.
Not like Jack is in construction or Jill is an administrator. The Rosevine, Texas, shoer is a throwback to the days when a farrier fulfilled an important role in a small rural town.
“This is not something you do for a living,” he says. “This is something you do for life.”
Although farriers have been tending to horses’ hooves for thousands of years, there is no universal acceptance for the way they are trimmed. In some circles, the conversation can be rather acrimonious.
Count Your Blessings
After reading the May/June 2017 “Frankly Speaking” column (“Rather Than Just Talking About It …”) and the article “Treatment for Dealing with Penetrating Injuries,” I suggest that having full-time farriers at seven veterinarian schools is better than none.
Weighing The Difference Between Innovation And Fad
What’s the difference between a product that is innovative and one that’s merely a fad? It’s a question that farriers wrestle with regularly, says Steve Kraus, head farrier at Cornell University.
In this episode, Mark Ellis, a Wisconsin farrier who learned the ropes with Renchin, recalls Red’s relationships with area veterinarians, his legacy and the second career as American Farriers Journal’s technical editor.
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