Wizard’s hoof progress photos: April 1, 2014

These photos were taken on January 8, February 1, February 9, and April 1.
Left Front…

Right Front

Left Hind

Right Hind

Wizard Session 429 and Veterinary Update: Shuffle Your Feet

Wednesday, 12/12/12

I tacked up Wizard in his surcingle and long lines, and we did a little walking work in the indoor arena. It was a little too muddy to work outdoors. He was feeling pretty silly, since his grassy paddock is too damp for a lot of horseplay. He danced around during our trot work, and was less interested in bending and responding to the aids than he was last time we worked. After he was warmed up, I put him on the longe line for a few rotations at the trot in each direction. As soon as he started his trot to the left, I could tell that he was off in the same right front that has been giving him issues. It was still pretty subtle, but more lameness than I had seen in a while.

Was it the wedge in his shoe? Did he slip in his paddock? I made a call to the vet, and scheduled an appointment for Friday afternoon.

Veterinary Report: Friday, 12/14/12

The vet first went over Wizard’s legs, and then watched him trot at liberty in the indoor arena. Naturally, as always, Wizard was much less lame for the vet than he was on Wednesday. The lameness was pretty subtle- too subtle to try another series of diagnostic nerve blocks.

For a long time, I’ve wanted to have x-rays done of Wizard’s feet, and of his right knee. Here are the results…

Right front hoof

Left front hoof

With Wizard’s low heels, the vet was expecting to see a negative palmar angle, and instead found the opposite with the rotated coffin bones, indicating an old founder.

I asked about the cause, and the vet said it could range from old shoeing issues to a result of Lyme Disease, which has been known to founder a horse. I am glad to have an answer, and a team of vets and a farrier who is ready to work on making Wizard as comfortable as possible.

As far as the knee, the vet said that it actually looks pretty good for an almost-17-year-old Thoroughbred who raced on the track and also barrel raced. The creakiness, in this case, was not a sign of anything worse lurking beneath.

Right knee

So now, the plan is to take pictures and chronicle the changes in Wizard’s feet. We will do more x-rays in about 6 months to see what progress we made. The other good news in all this is that I might have finally found the cause of any/all of his under-saddle/soundness issues. Fingers crossed.

Wizard Session 307: I’ll Be Back Up On My Feet

Monday, 10/31/11

I did another longeing session with Wizard, this time incorporating a trot pole into the workout. We worked in the indoor arena, and did some spiraling, plus work with side reins. I saw him trip one or two times, and it looks like he grew a lot of toe. I put a call in to the farrier to come out a little early in the shoeing cycle since he grew a lot of toe.

The farrier shod Wizard on Saturday (11/5). Our typical shoeing cycle is 6 weeks, but in the summer I do 5 weeks when it looks like his feet are growing quickly. The farrier did a lot of work on bringing his toes back. There was a really interesting recent discussion about negative palmar angles on COTH, and I’m wondering if working on his toes might help the hind end issues.

This is what caught my attention…

Here are some “diagnoses” that are highly suspect of negative hind palmar angles:

Sore back
Sore stifles
Sore withers
Sore hocks

Other signs:
Mild hind lameness defying diagnosis
Stopping at jumps
Missing leads
Cross cantering
Heavy on forehand

These are some areas that can either be caused or exacerbated by negative palmar angles behind.

Even more signs:
“My horse needs regular hock injections”
“My horse gets regular chiropractic/acupuncture/massage therapy”
“My horse needs a saddle fitter”
“My horse needs regular Adequan/Legend/(Other) injections”

M.W. Myers, DVM

Wizard also get a set of shoes that are lighter in weight and appeared to be smaller. On Sunday, my friend came out and massaged him. He was REALLY touchy in the beginning, but in more specific places. Last time she worked on him, she said he was basically sore all over. He was really resistant in the beginning on Sunday, but once he got into “massage mode”, he was back to being his usual responsive self. I’m going to do a few more longeing sessions and see how he feels to get back in the saddle.

Wizard Session 73; JR Session 28: I’m a ‘Sole’ Man

Saturday, 4/11/09

OK, Wizard does not have a brand new pair of roller skates, but he does have a pair of brand new shoes. As a result of the shoes, the farrier said that Wizard’s sole is growing nicely now that he can grow more foot- hooray for soles! The farrier also mentioned that the outside of Wizard’s right hind hoof showed a little unusual wear, which ties in with the issues with his left hamstring. Overall, he really likes Wizard’s feet and was pleased with the changes.

JR’s feet looked great as well- I’m keeping him barefoot. A little reshaping and he was ready to roll.

I longed JR indoors due to the wet weather outside. The air was chilly and JR still feels a little goosey on his back so I longed him with a quarter sheet. I also used one side rein buckled to the girth and attached to his bit. I only longed for part of the session with it attached and left his head loose for the rest of the longeing. When he first felt the side rein, he crowhopped with every single stride around the circle for a full rotation. When he resigned himself to the side rein, he quickly learned that if he carried his head long and low, there was no pressure. When the side rein is attached to the girth between his legs, it does not force him to flex at the poll, which is good for a green horse like JR. I think that he needs to learn to work from the base of his neck before we worry about his poll.

I longed JR for about 25 minutes, just enough to get him to break a light sweat and get a little workout. The horses stayed indoors due to the rain so JR seemed pleased to be working. After the session was over, I walked him out and grazed him.

I put my Thermatex cooler on Wizard while he was resting in his stall in an attempt to keep his hamstring warm in the chilly air. I massaged him a little before he worked. He was not quite as receptive to it as he was last time. When I tacked him up, I removed the cooler and put the quarter sheet on him. I also attached the side rein, but did not use it until he was completely warmed up on the longe.

I started him longeing at the walk to the left, then asked him to walk to the right. Frequently, Wizard breaks into a trot when we change direction to the right and I now think it’s a reaction to the tension in his hamstring. Today, he was relaxed enough to walk, but he was chewing on the bit.

I then asked him to trot to the left and he travelled very nicely with a playful spring in his step- he increased the tempo quite a bit to the right but was responsive and obedient. I changed direction again and hooked the side rein to the bit. It took a few rotations for him to learn that a low, relaxed head is what I wanted. Then, we went right. He trotted quickly again but was obedient. He stopped twice on the circle and the second time was reluctant to go back to trotting and it took a little finessing to get him trotting clockwise again. After he did his work with the side rein, I took it back off and asked him to trot each way without it. It was rewarding to watch since he stretched his head and trotted freely.

My hope is that Wizard might have torn some adhesions when he was playing in the deep footing last week and perhaps this caused the soreness. I’m toying with the idea of administering a dose of bute before a ride to see if it makes Wizard feel better or if it has no effect.

I brought him back to the barn, untacked him, cooled him out, and grazed him for about 20 minutes. The sun came out at the very end of the day and hinted at the wonderful weather we’re expecting for Sunday :^)

Wizard Ride 45: I’m a Sensitive ‘Sole’

Wednesday, 2/4/09

I smiled a huge smile as I left work at 6pm today. Although the ground is covered in snow and the temperatures are in the teens, I saw a sign of spring: there was just a bit of glow on the horizon. It was not 100% pitch black dark out when I left work. Soon, the hint of a glow will be a rosy tint on the horizon. A few weeks later, it will be a sunset. Then, it will be broad daylight when I leave the office and I’ll be riding in daylight again on weekdays! Ahhhh, the life of an incurable optimist. I even cleaned my tack today :^)

When I arrived at the barn, I turned Wizard loose in the indoor arena to let him stretch his legs. Some days, he leaps and gambols. Some days, he wanders around and sniffs the jumps. Tonight, he played a bit but seemed content to hang around with me. He’s such a sweet guy- I really enjoy his personality.

I tacked Wizard up and tried the Roma Merino Sheepskin All Purpose Pad that I got for a big discount on Tack of the Day. I really like this pad. It seems durable and it sat beautifully on Wizard. It has a bit more padding on the withers, which is exactly what the chiropractor recommended. Check out how the saddle fits him. This is a Stubben Portos. Please note how Wizard is making friends with the scarecrow on the jump :^)

I hand walked Wizard for about 10 minutes to warm him up in the cold weather, then mounted up. With the new saddle pad, my girth was a bit loose. As I reached down to tighten it, a HUGE gust of wind blew past the arena door, sending a big swirl of snow into the barn, rattling the door, and startling me. Wizard, bless his heart, startled for a moment and relaxed when I spoke to him. Gold star for The Wizard!

We walked around the arena for about 10 minutes, stretching and working on accepting a little bit of contact. I headed to the far end of the ring where the footing was best. We rode on a large circle and I asked for a trot- we trotted about 5 or 6 circles with one or two walk breaks. He still does not feel right on the footing but he is responding wonderfully to my commands. I really want to get him more comfortable so we can progress further. If it is indeed tender soles, I need to find out why and talk to my farrier about whether of not it can be resolved.

Tomorrow is Wizard’s 13th birthday :^)

Wizard Ride 42: I’m Made out of Turpentine…

“I’m sticking with you…
‘Cos I’m made out of glue…” (or turpentine)

Thursday 1/29/09

I have a public service announcement for horse people everywhere…

What Not to Do with Venice Turpentine
By Sarah Andrew

Horsemen have long used Venice Turpentine to toughen the soles of horses’ feet.

Turpentine Don’ts:

1) Do not apply Venice Turpentine to a horse’s hooves without wearing gloves. Venice Turpentine is the stickiest substance known to mankind and it sticks to everything. How do I know this? Because I forgot my gloves and applied it to Wizard’s soles without wearing gloves.
2) Do not expect Venice Turpentine to be workable in any way whatsoever in cold weather. I could not even open the jar without soaking it in H-O-T water first.
3) Once the jar is open, do not spill it. And if you spill it, wipe it up while wearing gloves (see Rule #1).
4) Do not apply Venice Turpentine while your horse is out of his stall. Apply Venice Turpentine when your horse is in his stall so the shavings can coat the bottom of his foot. Contrary to what you read online, the paper of a feed bag does not stick to your horse’s foot once Venice Turpentine has been applied to the sole.
5) Do not expect the brush included in the jar to do a very good job applying the product. A toothbrush or hoof brush will work better.

Turpentine Dos:

1) If you get Venice Turpentine all over your hands, apply Corona Ointment to keep your hands smooth instead of sticky.
2) Tie up your horse’s tail so the tail does not get sticky.
3) Have a plastic freezer bag ready for the Venice Turpentine jar when you are finished.
4) Do apply Venice Turpentine as the last task in your grooming ritual.

After all that, does it work? I have no clue. I put it on Wizard’s feet after I rode. Let’s hope it’s worth the aggravation.

ANYWAY, back to my ride…

I turned Wizard out in the arena to let him stretch his legs. He was quite appreciative of the playtime, especially since he’s been getting less turnout time with all the funky weather this week.

After Wizard played for about 10 or 15 minutes, I tacked him up and longed him in saddle, bridle, and quarter sheet. Wizard handled the freedom of the longer longe line very nicely. I’ve begun introducing a tiny bit of canter work on the longe, mostly to help Wizard with balance and for a little variety. His canter is sort of floaty but VERY fast- I think it will be OK with some more work but right now, I cannot imagine riding him at a canter!

After 7-10 minutes of longeing, I hopped on and rode Wizard for about 10 minutes. We did just a little bit of trotting. Because he had not been ridden in a week and because he did not have enough turnout this week, he seemed quite excited just from the longeing and turnout in the arena. He was sweating more than usual so I took it easy. We did just a bit of trotting and mostly walked because I did not want him to get too sweaty in this chilly weather.

I untacked and gave him a good grooming. He’s already shedding! The quarter sheet, cooler, saddle pad, girth, everything is covered in hair. I rode Wizard in a Lettia Coolmax girth. I did not notice any difference from how he is with my Professional’s Choice girth or my leather girth.

I fed Wizard his Dengie, gave him warm water, and went home to get the Venice Turpentine off my hands :^P

Wizard Ride 32: A Pedicure and a Happy Mouth

Saturday 1/3/09

Wizard had his feet trimmed by my local farrier. He saw good improvement in the feet and was pleased with how they held up. Wizard has thin soles so I expect that he might be too tenderfooted to do a lot of riding over hard surfaces. Right now, he seems just fine barefoot and I plan to keep him barefoot as much as possible.

After his pedicure, I turned him out in the big outdoor arena and did a fun free longeing/liberty session. The weather was sunny and the ground was not frozen. The arena was dragged so the footing was quite nice. Wizard ran around like a youngster and after he got his ya-yas out, he began to longe in circles around me without a longe line. He’s so much fun. My mission is to get this same mood and behavior under saddle. At liberty, he’s like a big Golden Retriever, as my mom remarked.

I longed Wizard for about 15 minutes. He jumped around and fussed at the far end of the arena, but he was in the ring with a silly young Thorughbred who was bucking on his longe line. I gave Wizard a pass. When the other horse left, he longed just fine. I used a mullen mouth loose-ring Happy Mouth bit on Wizard for the first time. Improvement, but still a lot of chewing. My reins are so long that my hands are past the laced portion. He stretches down, but it does not feel like those nice toe-touching stretches that we want in dressage. Then the reins are totally long, and he scrunches his neck up really short and tucked under and then he tenses up and bounces a little bit. I’m trying to just let go and allow him to trot, but it feels so awkward and crooked. I’m sort of wondering if he’s going to do the porpoising thing from Ride 4 again. So part of it is my own trepidation and part of it is me over-analyzing everything.

So we just worked on walking this time out. He was tense and started doing a little bouncing but I got a flat-footed walk eventually. We rode for about 10 minutes. Now that the weather is milder, I’m hoping that my friend can hop on and take him for a spin tonight and maybe give me some pointers.

Here were are. Wizard is chomping on the bit. The rein was looser in the frame before but I’m tightening it here. You can see how low he wants to carry his head. I’d let him carry it that low but then he tucks his head up and I have a foot of extra rein. Also note the neck strap. It’s too short to really help me until we are trotting and cantering.

Wizard Session 31: Trampled Underfoot

Thurs, 1/1/09

Happy New Year! My mom always told me to spend New Year’s Day doing what I want to be doing for the rest of the year. So I went to the barn :^) I also worked during the day, which is fine since I love my job.

The weather was COLD. The ground was pretty hard so I decided to do a longeing session with Wizard indoors. Before I started longeing him, we were standing in the indoor arena and something startled him. He jumped forward a step or two and tripped over my foot with his hoof. The sensation of a COLD human foot getting grazed by a horse foot is not a good one. Owwwwie! It was a little purple the following day but now it’s just a little sore. It could have been far worse. And I managed to never, ever get stepped on by a horse for 31 years so I suppose I was due for a little tap by a hoof. Good thing he’s barefoot!

Wizard is getting a better grasp on verbal commands on the longe line. We still do not canter, since I think that trotting and walking are best for his mental and physical development at this point. Plus, I don’t train with the longe line as long as I like since he needs a shorter line to listen to my cues. As he gets more advanced, I’ll longe him on the longest line possible. My favorite line is the World’s Finest Lunge Line and it’s long enough to do a 20m circle.

We warmed up without side reins and I put them on for a few minutes when Wizard was at the peak of the session. He is still showing evasion to the bit whenever there is ANY contact. Is it his teeth? Is it the bit? I’m not sure. He needs more work done to his teeth so I’m hoping that will help him.

When he works in the KK Ultra, his mouth works very quickly. When he works in the Myler Comfort Snaffle (no hooks), he pulls downward a lot, more than just a stretch.

I’m also in the process of regrouping and trying to figure out exactly what I need to do to take our next step forward under saddle. Right now, I feel him tense up when I prepare to trot. He walks with a VERY LOW head set and he lifts his head much higher to trot, even at liberty. It makes the walk-trot transition a little difficult for me. It feels like he’s going to rush forward so I take a stronger hold on the reins, which I KNOW is the wrong thing to do. Sit up, let go of his face, and go FORWARD. It will be ugly before it’s pretty. Sounds so simple, but my brain cannot let me do it.