Make certain that you visit all the pages here and especially the PDF file downloads below and on the Vet page. Our industry must learn how to apply Physics to the hoof capsule instead of the Geometry that we have used for centuries. If you have not done so. Get a copy of the January/ February 2008 American Farrier Journal and read the article I wrote on Physics vs. Geometry. It may open your eyes and mind a bit. Physics is all around us. It was Newton's 3rd law of motion that says, "For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction."
Keeping that one simple law in mind you can see why the use of a lot of the products we have today may make the horse feel better immediately; but in the long run, the foot hoof capsule simply meta morphs itself into an entire set of new problems that need to be addressed. Or maybe ,the limb itself take the brunt and we see an increase of other things happening. Maybe that is the reason that joint injections are drastically on the rise.
In that same edition of the Farrier Journal was a great article about a Florida Farrier that makes a living patching quarter . I enjoyed reading it an awful lot. But it brought out a great example of what I am talking about. We are simply "dealing" with things, NOT FIXING THEM. The physics are all wrong if the hoof capsule is blowing apart like that. The Farrier in the article did not develop the problems, he is simply making a good living providing a service patching the problems so the horse can continue to show. There in lies our problem!
There is way too much money to be made doing patches, fancy shoes, putting casts on feet, pouring in pad high tech material, and on and on. Get the PHYSICS RIGHT AND YOU WILL FIND NO OR LITTLE NEED FOR SUCH PRODUCTS OR FORGING SKILLS!!
I made every shoe from bar stock for over 10 years. I was one of the very first ones to use "Equilox" I was at the first training session for "Glu-Strider" in Ocala Florida. So I know what I am talking about when I say.......... IT'S ALL ABOUT PHYSICS..........Not about products.
Let me tell you how I shoe horses now.... and my feet look consistently better than they ever have in the past 35 years of shoeing horses! Fact is... the proof is in the hoof we look at......If you keep doing the same old thing, you will keep getting the same old thing...... MAYBE...Just MAYBE... it is time to get out of the rut our profession has been in for CENTURIES!!!!!!!! I never use a forge, I have not used a clip for over 10 years, I carry St. Croix Lite Rim steel shoes and Victory Elite aluminum shoes, a couple boxes of nails which I use an average of only 6 per foot (many times only 4 per foot) a few rasps, knives and anvil and floor tools. THAT is all I need. I'm shoeing out of a simple F-150 with tool boxes on the sides and that is it. HEY GUYS!!!!!!! It isn't about the truck!!!!! I used to think it was!!! It IS about the horse!!!!!!! Think about it!
By popular request from clients like yours; WE now offer several limited opportunities for you to learn how to apply the Symmetrical Hoof-care Protocol. If you are interested in more information on those opportunities, please contact us.
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One of the things I have come to recognize is the
CORRELATION BETWEEN THE FROG PALMER ANGLE AND THE P-III PALMER ANGLE.
Below are pictures of 2 feet which illustrate this relationship.
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Figure 1: Though not a perfect foot, this foot shows minimal distortion and has a strong capsule with few signs of stress.
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Figure 2: Though not a bad foot, compare it to the foot in Figure 1. This foot is on the same horse, but shows more hoof capsule distortion and signs of stress.
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Figure 3: Note how intact the wall and white line are in this view. Also note how closely matched the medial/lateral aspects of the sole and bars are.
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Figure 4: In this shot, note how the white line is torn away and the wall is non-existent on the right. This corresponds to the weak area of the wall seen in Figure 2. Neither the sole nor the bars match medially/laterally; the right bar being straighter so as to help support the weak area at the white line.
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Figure 5: The stick lies on the frog. Notice the correlation between the hoof ground surface and the frog ground surface. Ideal is a 2-4 degree differential in the UNLOADED foot. This foot has about 3 degrees.
PLEASE CHECK BACK OFTEN TO SEE WHAT IS NEW
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Figure 6: Now note the correlation of the frog/ground differential in this foot...it is about 6 degrees. I have found that as the differential increases there comes a predictable amount of hoof capsule distortion. I have also found that there is a direct correlation between this angle and that of the P-III Palmer angle...an important guideline to use when X-rays are not available.
© Martin D. Kenny 2008
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