Foot transformation - from week 1 to week 12

Quite a transformation from Amy over the 12 weeks that she has been here....As always, her foot on the day she arrived is above, and the photo below is from when she went home,

I have a raft of footage and photos which I will work my way through, but I wanted to post these because they are a good illustration of how fast feet can change, given the right opportunity.

Apologies for the mud, as the staff were in the throes of brushing her off, but there are equally dramatic changes in this, her lamer foot. Her feet are still not a pair but they are much better than they were, a sign that they are loading more evenly than before. 

I'll post more comparison shots, and footage, which is even more interesting, over the next few days. 

Autumn update, horses going home and plans for the New Year...

Its been a super busy autumn here at Rockley, but today the current group of rehab horses are all going home. Its always sad to see them go and they are part of the family by the time they leave, but equally its exciting to see them going back to their old jobs and, hopefully, making further progress over the next few months as their feet continue to improve. 

We certainly couldn't have done without the help of Sam, who is now back here permanently. He has done a fantastic job of helping out with the horses (massively reducing the amount of time I have to spend sh*t shovelling and finding every horse's itchy spot, so that he has a hard time getting out of the yard without them all demanding attention!). 

Over and above this, he has taken on responsibility for the major job of keeping the fences, lawns and grounds in order and we've really benefitted from all his hard work since he came back in June. Thank you Sam!

Its been working really well, over the last few groups of the rehab horses, having them all arrive on the same weekend, as they very quickly form bonds with each other and become a tight-knit little unit, which is great to see and keeps them all settled and happy. 

This is something we will continue with in the New Year, so if your horse is on the waiting list, I have contacted you with a date - let me know if you no longer want your space!

I realise that I have been remiss in posting over the last few months; its been incredibly busy but I've missed blogging and I am going to definitely correct that over the next few weeks while we have a break until the next horses arrive. 

I'm also in the process of putting together dates for workshops, seminars and webinars for next year so if you are interested, keep an eye on the blog!

Apollo's 8 week update.

This is Apollo's 8 week update; the top photo is week 1 and the bottom is week 8. As you can see Apollo' foot looks more symmetrical. The back of the foot is further back and wider and as a result is giving him more support. 

The collateral grooves are deeper now, showing that his sole is becoming thicker; the ridges around the frog are usually a sign of a weaker sole which needs support and I would expect these to disappear as his foot becomes stronger. 

There  isn't much to see here as the feather makes it hard to compare digital cushion and heel depth; there is little obvious change from the week 1 photo apart from it being shorter.

In Apollo's week 8 photo his foot is more symmetrical which shows his medio-lateral balance has improved. His frog is also more robust and he has a shorter toe. 

Apart from Apollo's feather being long you can see that on his week 8 photo his heel is shorter and wider compared to week 1; his week 8 hooves are giving more support.

His footage is here - chart the increase in feather(!): https://vimeo.com/370695504

Frank's 8 week update

The top one is Franks first photo and the bottom is his week 8 update. As you can see the back of the  foot and frog have widened as well as the foot overall, telling us that his foot has gained strength.

Even though it's hard to tell looking from the back of the foot it's shallower but wider as well as level so he has formed a stronger heel and is able to load more weight on it.

Looking at Franks front right it looks like the back of the foot is wider and stronger. It's also looking as if it has better media-lateral balance, with the medial and lateral sides of the foot more symmetrical.

Looking at his left heel it has also increased in depth and widened meaning he's able to load on it better and more comfortably.

When we look at Frank's footage there are a couple of good change. Firstly he is more comfortable in front generally and moving more freely from the shoulder and secondly, when we look at him from the front he is much straighter: https://vimeo.com/370687598

Amy's 8 week update

This is Amy's 8 week comparison, showing the changes in her feet with the original photos at the top and the most recent ones below. Today her foot looks much more supportive (this was her lamest foot).

Her frog is much more defined now, the foot is more compact and has a shorter toe with less under-run heels.

Although its tricky to see as her feet are a little muddy, she has a stronger digital cushion and is collapsing less at the back of her foot than she was.

 

On this foot as well she is a lot more stable than before, her heels are more supportive and again have moved further back. 

This foot has not changed as dramatically as the other foot but she is still showing improvements with the toe shorter and the foot broader and stronger. 

As with the other foot there aren't dramatic changes but it's a more capable foot than before. 

When we look at her footage its a nice progression from a toe first landing to a better landing and comparing her footage from 3 weeks ago to day she is definitely moving more confidently and freely.

Amy's footage is here: https://vimeo.com/370677551

Frank's five week update

The most obvious point about Frank's photos is that they show very little outward change.

His stance is better but there is no dramatic change in angle and his frogs were good to being with and so don't show changes in width, particularly, 

However, as is often the case the photos don't really tell the story because his feet are much better and as a result he is moving much more freely. 

I'm including these for completeness but they don't really give much away. Skip to the video instead, if you prefer.

It's also worth remembering that feet which look fine in photos don't necessarily function well. On arrival Frank probably had the most "normal" looking hooves but was far less sound than Apollo, for instance.

Frank's footage is here; I am most pleased about the improvement in straightness: https://vimeo.com/367201512

Apollo week five update

Comparing Apollo's photos its good to see that his toe is shorter now and his heels less under-run. He is also a lot more feathery but that's just what happens in five weeks with a cob.

This is not a terribly clear comparison but you can see that he already had a good strong frog and a solid foot. His landing was already quite established when he arrived so we had plenty to work with. 

I would normally add his lateral shot here but the feather makes that a bit impractical as all you can see is hard, so I've left that off for this run of photos. 

This foot was his better foot to start with so there is not as much change as on his left foot, suggesting he was already more comfortable on this side. 

This is a slightly clearer sole shot and you can see that even on this foot his heels are less under-run and his frogs more robust than they were, all good signs.

Apollo's stomping footage is here: https://vimeo.com/366696664