Goldy's first 4 weeks

Time for an update on Goldy, who arrived from the Netherlands 4 weeks ago today. 

Unlike Casey, he arrived in shoes and pads (he had been shod about 5 weeks perviously) and so, as you would expect, he is at a relatively earlier stage of his rehab than Casey, despite them both being here for similar amounts of time. 

Goldy's feet have a long way to go but I am already happier with the hairline today, which is more balanced, and the whole hoof looks less crushed.

This is his LF straight out of shoes, and with the pads removed. 

It is a credit to his vet and farrier that his frog was still relatively strong but of course it is a huge change for his feet to start to load more centrally and his feet are receiving a tremendous amount of stimulus compared with when he had the pads.  

This is a pretty funky looking foot at the moment, with overlaid bars and a frog which is not yet loading evenly, but that is to be expected at this stage and Goldy has actually coped very well during his first 4 weeks. 

Its good to see his heels and palmar hoof building (you can see that the loading point at his heel buttress has moved further back) and I would expect to see the overlaid bars disappearing over the next few weeks.

Similar changes to this foot and a good rate of growth - his nail holes are almost grown out.  Goldy is landing better now and is capable of gentle roadwork. That, plus time on the tracks, is a great way to encourage his hooves to develop and grow.

Here is his RF in shoes and pads, newly out of shoes and (below) today after 4 weeks. 

There are some encouraging signs but the improvement in his landing is the most important aspect, for me, as it confirms that he is now more willing to load his palmar hoof.

I've got 2 different clips which I am going to post on Instagram as they are just too big for this post!

Casey's 4 week update

 I am going to go back to posting updates on the blog as using Instagram is just too constrained! I will share posts on there as well but if you are interested in the nitty gritty then this will be the place to get it. 

As usual I have put Casey's original photos above and his 4 week update is below.  Casey had been out of shoes for several months so his feet will not show such dramatic changes as a horse who arrived in shoes. 

He was also already landing heel first on this foot so again I would expect subtle changes rather than huge shifts.

This foot is looking a bit more balanced and he is developing better sole depth but I'd like to see his feet more balanced still in another month. 

This is his worse foot - he was landing flat and on the lateral edge and you can see this is not yet a balanced hoof. Still, his landing has improved and he is working very cheerfully so I am looking forward to seeing how he progresses in another month. 

His video footage is here for comparison.

2025 - a quick update

 Well the blog site has been out of date for a while as I have been posting our regular content on Instagram @rockleyfarm, so please go there and follow us if you want to keep fully up to date. 

As a quick update, we took the winter off, so had no rehab horses from November 2024 until March 2025 but we are now back up and running. 

I've put initial footage up on Instagram and there will be comparison footage soon. 

Crumble's 8 week update

 A belated update for Crumble who has now been here for 8 weeks so there is more to see than last time! 

A clear angle of new growth at the top of the hoof capsule which is good to see and the signs of a more developed and beefy palmar hoof and digital cushion. 

She already had good frogs but they are working harder and there is better concavity in the foot which should continue to improve. 

A bulkier and harder working digital cushion is starting to build now that she is doing more mileage. 

A shorter toe and a good rate of growth which means she should be well on the way to half a new hoof capsule by the time she goes home. 

Overall, a harder working foot which is becoming stronger, and her footage will follow. 

12 week comparison photos: James

James is going home tomorrow so I am posting a set of comparison photos with his initial pictures as the upper of each pair. 

 

The band of new growth is clear to see and is even more obvious if you run a hand down the hoof capsule. It will result in a shorter toe once it's completely grown in. 

You can see the start of better concavity in the sole and his frog and heels have also developed. There should be more of this to come over the next few months. 

The central sulcus splits are healed and as long as he continues to land heel first should not cause him any problems. 

Again, the new growth will result in a shorter toe and more supportive palmar hoof as his hoof capsule grows in. 

A much healthier frog - you can see that his feet are asymmetric but are nevertheless balanced on landing; this is dictated by his conformation and is unlikely to change. 

I've posted James' footage previously so if you would like to see his progress have a look back at earlier blogs. 

Crumble's 3 week update

How is it October already? Anyway, time for an update on Crumble, who arrived 3 weeks ago, time keeps marching on and so do the feet on the rehab horses...!

After only 3 weeks there are no dramatic changes to see yet. There is a change in angle which you can see highlighted by the band of white hoof - this should be clearer in a few more weeks when the angle change will have grown in further. 

These are feet which are working a bit harder now than when she arrived so we are seeing her frog start to develop  - again this will be more evident when we compare again a bit further down the line. 

Sorry - not the best angle, I will try to get a better comparison next time...

As with the other foot, we will watch the angle of the white hoof, which gives a nice clear demarcation. The changes will be easier to see in a few more weeks. 

It has actually been really tricky to get photos as it is so dark compared to a few weeks ago - and this is at mid day as well - I don't know why but I never get used to how much we lose the light at this time of year.