Sorry for the delayed blog but I was determined not to post today until I had updated footage of Columbo.
As regular readers will know from previous posts on him, he has been a slightly problematic horse to rehab not because of his size (he is over 18hh) or his personality (he is an absolute poppet) but because his feet were terribly, terribly contracted.
This made the back of his foot so weak that he was determined not to land on it (as you can see from the still above taken from his initial footage) and over a long period of time (he has been lame for 2 years) that has created quite a severe RF unsoundness.
I've been posting more frequent comparison photos than normal for him simply because we needed to be absolutely sure that he was still improving, albeit slowly.
I've had a feeling for a week or so that Columbo was landing better and today was the moment of truth, when I filmed him and FOR THE FIRST TIME he is able to land heel first - even with his RF - on a hard surface - and look how much longer his stride is as a result.
This is a HUGE step forward for Columbo because its only now that he is taking the strain off his DDFT. It also means that despite his still weedy RF palmar hoof it can finally start doing its job on tougher surfaces which will in turn mean he strengthens it faster - phew!
Its been a long time coming and has taken a lot of time and effort but I'm so pleased for him.
For completeness here is a quick comparison of his RF over the time he has been here - day 1 above...
...and today, still needing to develop a lot more but his frog and digital cushion are slowly building up and his foot balance is also much better.
Sole shots show a foot which is still weak but a whole lot healthier than it was a few weeks ago. I forgot in my excitement to take caudal photos but I will post those later.
For now, the most important thing is to email Michelle and tell her the good news!
This is the full footage for the die-hard hoof nerds...
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