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.