Jack's 12 week update

 Jack will be off home this weekend so it is time for his update. As ever, the original photos are at the top and the most recent are below.

I am happy with how much his caudal hoof has developed, though I appreciate this is not the best of photos. If you compare his hairline though there is clearly more bulk now than when he arrived. 

A much better frog and border and more supportive heel. He still has fairly flat soles and it is likely to be another 3-6 months before he has grown in enough hoof capsule for full sole depth to have developed. 

Not such a dramatic change on this foot but it is more balanced (media-laterally, ie left to right on this photo) and there is better sole depth slowly coming in. Depth of collateral grooves is usuaully a reasonably good indicator of sole depth and will take several months to fully establish.

These photos show why its important to assess from different angles, as a simple side shot does not always give much away! His toe is a bit shorter and will be shorter again once the whole hoof capsule has grown in but as he is also hairier it is not an easy comparison to make. 

Anna's 12 week update

 Anna will be going home shortly so its time for her 12 week update.

Nice changes over the last 3 months - the upper photo is her initial shot from March. She was landing poorly and that has improved but she has been slow to properly engage her caudal hoof and that will continue to strengthen over the next few months. 

Much more development in the back of the hoof but, as I mentioned, she has only just started landing well so she has a way to go. 

Her frogs are less contracted and her heels less under-run but I would expect to see further improvements in her hooves over the next 4-6 months. 

This is always an interesting angle for comparison shots, and you can see her frog and heels improving and changing. She has taken longer than many of our rehab horses to get to a heel first landing and even now it is only just established so it will be important for her to carry on with ongoing rehab work once she is back home.  

This was her lamer foot and again there are clear improvements, which are encouraging. 

Anna's 8 week update

 After Jack's post yesterday it is time for Anna's update today. As usual, the original photo is at the top and the most recent are below.

It is so interesting once you get to 8 weeks because the changes are much clearer and easier to identify. Its even better when you get to 6 months (I posted some 6 month comparison photos on Instagram yesterday for those who are interested).

Anna has taken a while to develop the back of her foot despite having been out of shoes for a number of months before she came to me. 

Despite the slow progress her frog and digital cushion are improving and are noticeably more robust than before. Her landing is bearing this out, as she was toe first on video when she first arrived and is now just about heel first. It is not as overt as I would like or as it will be in 6 months time but we are heading in the right direction. 

This is a good illustration of why it is important to let a toe shorten in time rather than simply trim a foot in order to shorten a toe. It has taken more than 8 weeks for the back of Anna's foot to become strong enough to enable her foot to land; if you simply trimmed the toe back you would shift weight on to the back of her foot before it had strengthened which would likely make her less comfortable. 

If you compare her feet to Jack then her caudal hoof is weaker than his and it is clear from her landing as well. She is very competent on all surfaces though and likely has better sole depth.

The caudal angle is interesting because the frog development is clear to see along with a better digital cushion. We need more of the same over the next 4 weeks in order for her landing to be fully established. 

Jack's 8 week update

 Time for more updates, it is 8 weeks since Jack arrives which has gone incredibly quickly. He had come out of shoes only a couple of weeks before he arrived and has made good progress since coming to us. 

There is a lot of hoof growth still to come for him; the original photos are at the top and the most recent ones below.

I am pleased that his frog is developing and his toe is shortening. The back of his foot is also considerably more developed.

You can see that his heels were under-run relatively in the top photo (compare the hairline angle and you can see what I mean) but on a horse with a lot of feather you can only see that properly from this angle.

As he is quite a hairy horse the side angle does not show us what is happening as clearly as the other photos but its still useful to check his stance. 

As with the left, much better from the solar angle which is good to see. 

Again a better hairline and more developed frog.  His footage will follow and I will post that on Instagram.  

Anna's 4 week update

 These are Anna's photos, another 4 week update. She does not have as good a landing yet as Jack but her feet are not bad at all - she has been out of shoes much longer than he has which always helps. 

Anna is still struggling to land and engage the back of her foot properly although as you can see from the lower photo she is loading it more than she used to. 

Despite the less than perfect landing her digital cushion and frog are improving, so I am optimistic that her landing will get there. 

A better frog and more functional heel, so with a bit more development she should be able to land more comfortably.

You can see from this angle how much more engagement her frogs have now. We are heading in the right direction, just not quite there yet.