Tony’s
story
Tony is a 13 year old thoroughbred gelding. He arrived
at Foothill Arabians in March of 2006. He was out of a
herd disbursement sale. His owner had high hopes of hunting
with him someday. Colorado, Montana etc. Tony was in very
poor condition. He was malnourished. His feet were in
awful condition, he had mechanical founder in all four
feet, (Hoof wall shearing away from the coffin bone) his
heels in the dirt, toes way out front, his soles and frogs
smashed into the ground. There was a huge slip in both
front feet. He was at least a grade 3 lameness. He had
moderate to serious back issues as well. To top it off,
he is also sight impaired.
Tony’s rehabilitation
program
First and foremost, a sensible feeding program was developed.
Tony needed the condition to be able to even think about
carrying a rider. To build that, he needed to gain some
weight! He’s free fed quality grass hay & given
a large flake of 4-way pasture mix in the evening.
Tony is also fed a bucket daily containing beet pulp
shreds, wheat bran & senior feed, mixed with Forco*
probiotic, a good hoof/joint supplement, & corn
oil. (Plus plenty of carrots!)
Tony was also worked on by both Equine body worker,
Gesa Brinks or Equine Chiropractor, Dr. Cheryl Ricketts-Mulvey
every 6-8 weeks.
Although, he improved the first few months, he still
stumbled to the point of being dangerous to ride. Particularly
downhill. Not promising for dragging elk out of the
Montana wilderness. He was so weak, you could pull him
off the midline by his tail. All those involved concurred,
he was likely suffering from neurological issues. Possibly
Wobbler Syndrome or EPM. The vet, the Chiropractor,
the body worker, and myself. Then came Valerie. I’m
speaking of Valerie Jaques, Certified Farrier. Valerie
has a passion for shoeing horses. She actually pounds
steel on her FREE time! Valerie took one look at Tony,
and felt she could help him. She pulled his toes back
& got some support under his coffin bone. The results
were dramatic & instantaneous. The blood flow returned
to his feet. After a correct trim & his first set
of shoes, he was growing foot. His stumbling started
to subside and Tony began to do ground work. Longing
over poles & cavelleti to strengthen his back. Backing
up hills for balance. By his second shoeing, he was
under saddle and feeling strong. Tony is now going down
the trail, and is sound, just a few months later. His
neurological symptoms have all disappeared. Tony is
an extreme case. However, What Tony can teach us, is
the importance of a holistic approach. Looking at everything
from saddle fit, to hoof care can solve many equine
problems, behavioral and physical.
Wobbler Syndrome can be caused in
adult horses by compression injuries to the spinal cord,
possibly from flipping over etc.
EPM: Equine Protozoal Myeloencephalitis
is an infection of the central nervous system, caused
by ingesting the parasite.
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& After |
