New horses - our 2026 season is officially underway!

 Our most recent arrivals came this weekend and as usual I will post their initial photos here and their slow motion footage on Instagram @rockleyfarm. 

Anna is an Irish sports horse who has suffered from intermittent RF lameness with navicular changes diagnosed on MRI. 

Her owner had already identified that she was landing toe first, and had done so for a long time before coming here. 

She had been shod up until last year and has been out of shoes for a few months now. Her feet have improved but are still weak, with under-developed frog and caudal hoof.

I'll post updates in a few weeks when I hope her landing will have begun to improve. 

Our second horse is Jack, who arrived on Sunday and who has also had ongoing long term front limb lameness. Again, on MRI he was showing navicular bone changes and collateral ligament damage. 

Like Anna, Jack's shoes had been taken off before he arrived, which gives us a helpful starting point. 

He is actually landing better than Anna and as you can see has a better developed frog. 

My suspicion is that some of his issues relate to media-lateral imbalance so I will post some additional footage over the next few days. 

Simon - week 8 comparison

 Time for an update on Simon, who has now been here for 8 weeks. As usual, the original photos are the upper ones and the current photos are the lower ones. 

I really like how much better his frog is on this foot, not only that it is better developed but also allowing his foot to load more centrally. 

You can see that there is new growth coming in at the top of the hoof capsules his hoof is becoming bulkier at the back. 

You can see that he developed a mild grass allergy, which is why this heel is covered in sudocrem, but other than that the digital cushion and frog are better developed and becoming stronger, which is good to see. 

I really like how much better this foot is looking. The points to note are the straighter bars and better frog, evidence of a foot which is loading better, as well as the fact that his heels are further back.

Confirmation from the side view that the back of the foot is getting stronger and functioning better. 

This is whey you need photos from all 3 angles - from here it doesn't look that different, but overall he is doing well and I am pleased with his progress!

New boys, L and Simon

 Our new boys have been here for 4 weeks so time to take a look at their feet and see what has been changing. 

I will post their footage on Instagram, and their photos on here. First up, L's feet:

Original pictures are at the top, as usual, with the more recent photos below. There are no dramatic changes here but a shift towards a stronger caudal hoof. This is his problem side, and he is still on/off lame on this foot in walk so we are being careful with his work. 

Stripes are helpful on hooves, because they highlight the changing angles. I am fairly sure that the angle is already changing and it will be clearer in another few weeks.

Sorry, this is not a helpful angle change but I think his frog is improving which is the first sign of an improving hoof. 

Simon is next up, and again I will contrast one foot to keep the number of photos manageable. 

Funky foot, but his landing has definitely improved and I am happy that his frog is therefore getting better stimulus. 

As with L, the stripe helps to orient the angle of change - this is a foot which is loading more caudally than it used to. 

Again, sorry about the angle differentiation, and the changes are not particularly dramatic at the moment but I am happy with how he is landing so far and I am looking forward to seeing how he compares in another 4 weeks. 

Updates from the weekend - George and Daunte

Photos from the weekend, as George and Daunte have both been here for 8 weeks so it is time for an update...

As usual, the original photos are at the top and the most recent ones below. I'm quite pleased with the rebalancing of his feet, particularly that the back of his foot is stronger and loading better. 

Although George's toe looks longer in the more recent photo this will resolve without the need for trimming as his new hoof capsule grows in. 

I like the fact that his digital cushion is improving, although as he had a decent frog the changes are not as dramatic as in some horses.

Sorry that the angles are not a perfect comparison - this is Daunte's right foot; and for him the weak digital cartilage was the biggest problem so its great to see that improving.

A very different looking foot - there are big changes to come as you can see from the angle of growth and his toe will shorten over the next few months.

I like the fact that the heels are coming back - although his landing has a way to go he is confident on the roads and landing well so we will build this up over the next 4 weeks. 

Milli'e 12 week update

 Millie went home this weekend, really pleased with how well she has done and I hope we will have updates from her owners to post in the future.

I've led with the photos of the back of her foot because this best demonstrates the changes she has made. Where a horse arrives with feet that look ok from the front and side it can be harder to see changes. 

In fact in most of the horses who come here it is the back of the foot that changes the most, since they tend to have injuries in the caudal hoof.

For Millie there is a big improvement in the strength and depth of her digital cushion and frog - the top photo shows how much higher her heels, and weaker her frog, compared to now.

You can see her foot his shorter and loading more centrally but its harder to spot angle changes.

By comparison, there is a big difference when you look from this angle. Her landing is also more confident both in front and behind (I've added her current footage below).

Improved, but the differences are easier to see when you focus on the caudal hoof or sole.

Heels are now much further back and lower, and the frog is more functional. 

This is her original footage, with the new footage below.