Lamenesses

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Farrier Q&A: May/June 2016

What are your criteria for selecting a pad to put on a horse? What type of pad and why?
A: The first question I ask is “Why?” Why affix a pad to the horse’s hoof? Is it necessary? What is my objective? Is it beneficial to the horse during the shoeing cycle? Will it aid in protection and relief? Is it needed for environmental reasons, such as rocky terrain? Or is there a therapeutic need for it — sole protection, pathology, ligament/tendon issues?
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Why Equine Bones Break and Tendons Rupture

Understanding anatomy and physics can help prevent severe injuries
The life of one of the most promising racehorses of our time was cut short in 2006 after a long struggle to recover from a shattered fetlock. Barbaro’s injury at the Preakness Stakes and the New Bolton Center's heroic attempts to save him drew a lot of attention to the question of why so many young performance horses suffer from broken bones and ruptured tendons. Are these kinds of injuries inevitable? Should we give up trying to solve this problem?
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Getting to the Bottom of Toe Cracks

Understanding what causes the problem is critical to correcting it

Toe cracks come in different forms, but none of them look good. Some cracks are small, others are long up the wall. Some are deep and others are superficial. All of us have heard, “Can you fix that crack?” Some can be corrected, but others will die with the horse. The biggest thing we must learn is what causes the crack in the first place. It’s just as important to know where it comes from as to where it’s going.


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Understanding And Managing Quarter Cracks

California farriers offer their advice to achieve positive outcomes

Tim Shannon has some succinct advice for farriers who deal with quarter cracks. “I’d suggest whoever wants to get into it to find somebody who knows a lot about [handling quarter cracks] to walk you through it,” advises the San Moreno, Calif., farrier. “There is a lot to crack repair.”


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