They are sometimes licking as a sign that the trim is relieving discomfort, but they are sometimes doing it because the trimming is uncomfortable and makes them anxious, much as being in the dentists chair makes us anxious, and they want to encourage us to end it. This has both pros and cons but most importantly without having a very watchful eye and hand doing it, you can thin out the healthy sole accidentally and in turn easily cause lameness. This is is a mid-winter hoof from an Arab on pasture. ARIES – DEMONSTRATING A GRINDER “TRIM-FROM-THE-TOP”. The Virginia hooves below are easy to trim because they are softer and landmarks are clear and specific. Some horses like sole pressure, some horses are too sole sensitive for any padding. In the summer, a thick sole accumulates and protects the hoof from all of the rock on our trails, and before it can get too thick to create a problem, we have wet weather that encourages the accumulated sole to shed. Always remove hoof material in small increments and take your time. As a horseshoer it always seemed necessary for me to routinely cut the sole at the toe, and in my early days as a barefoot trimmer I thought it was desirable to thin it at the back of the foot. Synthetic shoes, casting and glue on boots provide a semi-permanent alternative that stays in place for an extended period of time.The primary advantage is that they avoid concussion and flex more than a metal shoe. If the walls are trimmed regularly, the bars self maintain at this length. The slightly prominent bars have a natural function, they provide traction in the slippery environment. Some horses have limited ability to grow a thick enough sole to be barefoot for performance because of past hoof care, breeding or pathology. Very invasive…. I spend an inordinate amount of time studying horse medical items and watching horse behaviors. With sole buildup it’s very easy to grow past the bars and long bars can cause a horse to be uncomfortable or even in pain. This hoof is more than healthy enough to lose this layer and this is what it looks like as you start: The edge of this cut shows there is the real layer of sole under the false layer. Medically, retraction or retracted is the act of drawing back or a condition of being drawn back.2 The soles of a horse with retracted soles are drawing back or rather up and away from the ground. I learned from an invasive trimming school that taught hoof mapping; unhealthy feet were over-trimmed to look like what the trainers felt the “healthy” hoof should look like. New into horses. So if we start to think about removing it, we need to figure out how much healthy sole the horse has in the first place. Some trimming schools advise removing any sole that isn’t “live”, but where does “live” sole start? (The picture below is only to show you the floury sole, not all the other things that’s also wrong with it. If you see excessive flaring of the hoof, then the soles are probably thin, leaving the false sole in place may be the only protection the horse has between the ground and the internal structure. The horse should be shod if there is enough wall to put some solid nails in. we casted DM (dental impression material) into the sole and the horse was immediately better. Most horses with philological problems are comfortable barefoot or booted if the trim is conservative and appropriate protection is used. The x-rays below were taken 3 days pre-trim, and show the right front prior to starting to my starting to trim it. Here’s a picture of one that desperately needs the false sole that has grown in: If the flaky and chalky sole was removed from the horse above, it would be dead lame as there wouldn’t be any protection left. Good walk on abrasive surfaces will do way more good. Even feet with great concave sole shapes will pack solid and flat, and the heels contract…. Vet xrayed the foot and the lateral edge of P3 had a fracture. The hoof looks to me like it is overdue to be trimmed. I see sole retention when a horse with hoof pathology first comes out of shoes… sometimes they retain this sole for 3 or 4 months as the hoof rebuilds itself from the inside out. If you don’t know and aren’t a professional with a lot of experience,  get advice  from a conservative trimmer or farrier, or join a conservative trim group like PHCP http://www.pacifichoofcare.org/. The horse was very slightly off on that foot barely noticeable… after 3 months, the owner insisted that I knife it out, it was rubbery and durable, the horse resisted, but I did as she asked, leaving much of it but adding some concavity, and the horse went lame immediately. So while the false sole itself isn’t the problem, the long bars are. When a horse has a thin sole, it needs hoof protection to move comfortably and rehab successfully. When to leave it alone? The hoof from the Northern California trail horse below is shaped by hundreds of miles ridden bare on lava rock and hard packed trails. A horse hoof is a structure surrounding the distal phalanx of the 3rd digit (digit III of the basic pentadactyl limb of vertebrates, evolved into a single weight-bearing digit in equids) of each of the four limbs of Equus species, which is covered by complex soft tissue and keratinised (cornified) structures. The horse will always tell you, you need to listen. The roughness and cracks can lead to bits and pieces breaking off in chunks, which is completely normal. Now I understand that the people who initially taught me were caught up in their method of trimming and constantly over-trimmed horses. The heel is trimmed to be well above the sole to make the horse more comfortable going over gravel, to reduce sole abrasion and to add to traction. The horse was diagnosed with rotation of 12 degrees. Summers are very dry,  with almost no rain but occasional coastal fog…  the soil is a mixture that can be lava rock, granite, loam or sand. Equine Farrier Services Cattle Hoof Trimming Serving Brazos County & Surrounding areas Call or text for Pricing & Appointments (979) 218- 8097 The outer part of the horse’s hoof is known as the hoof wall. P3 is being suspended from the laminae/hoof wall. For some it’s the rule to carve it out and put the concavity back in the hoof. HINT: If there is a large group of people attacking your trimming guru as being invasive, try to get a second opinion on their approach from another organization! Hot and dry weather tends to promote this most and then the flaking off and exfoliating happens when it gets wet and softens up the dead, and now unneeded, sole buildup. Boots and pads can be left on for days or weeks, and should be checked daily. Carving will only make your horse footsore - depth of sole s there for a reason. When it starts popping out, I help it as it pulls free but leave chunks that are resistant in place. How much wall is adequate is variable, it depends on the horse and environment. Most importantly, carefully observe the horse before and after the trim and have your objective be a more comfortable, balanced and relaxed stride. These two measurements should be the same, or stated another way the wall of the Coffin Bone (red line) should be parallel to the hoof … I used to trim it out, and the horse was always more tender and the feet rehabbed slower, and the horse did better in boots. If it starts to chip out and is loose, I’ll remove chunks, don’t like to leave pressure points! The one case where you never want to remove false sole to create concavity is in a horse that has thin soles. This is a hard keratin surface that’s consistently growing, and It grows from the coronet (or coronary) band of the horse’s foot. Kid is there for scale. I see many photos of horses online who have either had their soles aggressively thinned by owners with good intentions, or whose walls have been trimmed, chipped or worn so short that the hoof has inadequate traction resulting in soles becoming dangerously thin. Just Get Out And Trail Ride With Your Horse! We have very wet winters that start in October and last through March and April. Articles on Finding the right help for your horses hoofs, Articles on Hoof care, Horse Health, Horse Care, Trimming,and Boots and Protection, When a horse has a thin sole, it needs hoof protection to move comfortably and rehab successfully. Environmental Sole Retention The case where you’d like to remove that sole is if the horse is having trouble walking on it due to being too thick. The trims I admire and have seen work great look like the trims below. The best option obviously is to have the horse wear their own feet down, but a lot domesticated horses do not have this option due to lack of movement. What is “false”?? There are days at the beginning when it seems like there is just no progress, but little by little, cell by cell, new hoof is growing (see photos 8,9, and 10). If we think about the necessity of removing the false sole, we would have to consider the rest of the hoof and horse. After about two months the ridge dividing the old separated hoof and the new, tightly connected hoof becomes visible below the coronet. She retained sole in that area for a year, it finally shed and the mare was sound. If left untreated the horse's leg will begin to swell and you may find that pus tracks up the inner surface of the hoof wall and 'breaks out' at the coronary band. Ask your Farrier/trimmer to show you how to handle a rasp to take off any chipping, prevent cracking. Both him and the blanket a. When Sole accumulates I call it “retained” because, for some reason, the hoof has opted not to shed it. CRO’S Hoof Care, Caldwell, Texas. Most of the time, horses coming out of shoes are comfortable without protection in their living environment, but if they are sensitive, they get boots or glue on shoes. They trimmed sole and bars aggressively, micromanaging feet, and made excuses for why the horses were so sore. But I let it shed out naturally until its loose. I rarely have to trim sole in this part of North / Central California. It may be recognised as possessing two faces and two borders. I seldom trim sole and attempt to leave a margin of wall that protects the edge of the hoof and provides traction. No further. This is is a early fall (October) hoof from an Arab on pasture. These subtle bevels and rolls allow a skilled trimmer to compensate for imbalance in movement so that the pre-trimmed hoof is still fairly balanced and the boots still fit. The space between the laminae at the top of the hoof (L1) is smaller than the space at the bottom (L2). Some regions are extremely arid and sole builds up in a dense, hard layer that can make horses very tender. RB believes that the hoof wall should support only 5-20% of the horse’s weight, the other 80-95% should be supported by the solar structures, i.e. When to leave it alone? Here is an example of a hoof with exfoliating sole that it doesn’t need anymore. This essentially means that the sole  underneath is ready to do it’s job. This means the papillae that grows sole tissue will stop growing when the sole is about 1/4 " thick and will then begin to fold up on itself to form that awesome callus. “Invasive” procedures involve cutting into the passive (not weight bearing) bar, removing protective sole, taking the heels down to the live sole plane and shortening the wall in a way that leaves the sole over exposed to wear. abscessing is likely due to the extremely thin sole and bruising. It may look black and gross under the shedding sole, but I’m not in a hurry to wrench it off! If the footing was rough enough, it will wear it out just fine and exfoliate naturally. The question is, should it be done and is it worth it? Founder is a serious systemic disease that affects the horse’s feet. Without solid, sound feet, you have no horse, so understanding hoof anatomy is extremely important. I think these are the hardest feet in the world to trim, physically (super hard sole) and intellectually because its difficult to know how much sole to remove unless you trim this type of hoof a lot. Gluing On Boots http://www.healthyhoof.com/articles/Boots/gluing_on_boots.php. BUT this hoof can be tender on hard gravel surface, and because the horn (calloused parts of the sole and frog) is softer, it wears faster. If a horse has a solar abscess that covers the whole sole, the hoof repairs itself and eventually sheds the sole in one large piece. I have witnessed horses undergoing an invasive trim licking their lips, snorting and sighing, and then walking off VERY sore. Sole… “False” sole, shedding sole, retained sole. The heel is trimmed to be well above the sole to make the horse more comfortable going over gravel, to reduce sole abrasion and to add to traction. This also hides the true length of the hoof wall, which leads to heels and bars getting long and can put a horse up at a higher angle than they should be. DON’T rely on just lip licking and sighing!! These are the horses and owners we need to help. The soles appear to be being sucked up into the hoof. The amount to remove should be less and less as you go outwards and in time you should be able to find all of the live sole, which will allow you to find your true bar and hoof wall length. In wet areas, the sole and frog exfoliate easily, and in arid climates, they became a thick, tough horn that resists wear. A well beveled wall wears at about the same rate it grows at and this balanced wear should allow the bar to wear at the same rate. Sometimes rehab feet need what could be, for some feet, considered an “invasive” procedure, such as trimming an accumulation of bar. I'm an avid outdoorsman, horseman and father. These different characteristics have advantages and disadvantages. Something that is quite common to see when examining and trimming hooves in the summer and cold dry winter times is a buildup of the sole that may make the hoof look flat on the bottom or just rough and cracked. I’m closely aligned with AHA and PHCP but have a lot of respect for trims taught by many other groups. The measurement of a thin/weak sole is by thickness, which is measured by depth of the collateral grooves from healthy sole to hoof wall. The Nevada hoof below, in contrast, has an over accumulation of bar and sole. Some horses have had chronic thrush and end up with retained sole that seems to grow to isolate the super tender frog from the weight bearing surface and any flexing in the tender frog area. I’ve been guilty of it, too. The first question to ask is if the horse is moving poorly or limping on one foot or not. The Superior or Internal Face is adapted to the sole of the os pedis. A very important item to consider. Check the red circle area and you can see how there is a layer of missing sole and the portion towards the toe is lifting: While it’s mostly just fine to leave this sole, as it’s already exfoliating naturally, it’s also fine to help it along as it’s easy to just peel off with your fingers. This attachment is normally like new Velcro and very strong. If the conditions are right, the hoof will wear down as fast as it builds up. It was prettied up for pictures but belongs to a professional trimmer who merely touches it up occasionally. Most horses can grow a thicker more durable sole with the correct trim and diet, but many still like front boots for performance work for the first year or two. Just a li, Here's another that just turned out so amazing! If you have more than enough sole depth, over 5/8″ or so, then you could probably start exfoliating a bit to see if a difference can be made for the comfort of the horse. Sole... "False" sole, shedding sole, retained sole. This is probably invasive for barefoot in most dry areas,  including mine, and probably okay for shod feet is the wall edge was rasped down. Rehab Hoof Protection http://www.healthyhoof.com/articles/RehabProtection.php The feet have a good sole and adequate heel, wall and bar for traction, and the frog is lush, wide and open. Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email. My rule now is that, ideally, the horse should be MORE comfortable after the trim than before, or at least as comfortable. These horses were uncomfortable, and I was told that discomfort was part of healing and was natural. Sound bare feet are a product of an appropriate diet and are shaped by abundant exercise and the movement patterns of the body they carry. Less is more in most cases. Starting at the edge of the frog and working down to the shiny and healthy surface of live sole. A flat sole does not always mean a weak hoof and in fact can just mean it has extra armor against what the horse may come up against. We need to rely on the horse to tell us what works for them and what doesn’t. My rule of thumb for protecting hooves for rehab is that the horse needs to move better with the protection than without it. – Bruising of the live sole through the harder false sole, the horse might come up lame – White line separation, because the long bars and false sole are pushing laterally against the hoof wall from the inside. The summer sole and frog have shed. “Reverse” means that the toe is at a higher point relative to the ground than the heel . Callous has been removed but the sole still looks fairly thick. Pete Ramey states, " The sole of the foot is the most abused and misunderstood part of the domestic horse (with the possible exception of its digestive system). Understanding the Horse's Sole 8-16-05 Pete Ramey. I noticed today while picking out my horse's hooves that she has a small, dime sized 'lump' on her sole, between the bar and the wall. You can read and see more pictures in Lucy’s Case Study page) Natural Balance Hoof Care guidelines show how to achieve optimalbreakover and heel preparation through the use of static referencessuch as the widest part of the foot, the sole callous and the live,functional sole Use of these structures during hoof preparation makesit easier to achieve medial/lateral and cranial/caudal balance withrespect to the distal phalanx and the horses conformation. Its upper surface is convex, its lower concave. I live in North/Central California. I look for long relaxed strides at a trot and canter with nice, heel-first landings to assess movement. While it is quite hard, it’s not as hard as the outer wall and is completely useless for protection for sharp objects like nails, which can get through at most angles. Beginning trimmers shouldn’t be doing anything that is invasive. When the walls are allowed to get excessively tall, the bar also accumulates and must be trimmed when the wall is trimmed. If the body is balanced, the feet are generally symmetrical. The sole of a healthy hoof should be con caved, if it is flat or low near the front of the hoof, the horse has probably had some collapse of the tender lamani that has caused the coffin bone to either sink, or rotate. 59 likes. Traditionally, nail on shoes were used, and now we have many alternative ways to protect feet for recreational, performance and rehabbing. Occasionally this means that we try a variety of pads, boots and glue-on shoes to see what makes the horse optimally comfortable. The Nevada hoof below has a thick, hard sole, but its more difficult to see the sole depth. The hoof from the Northern California trail horse below is shaped by hundreds of miles ridden bare on lava rock and hard packed trails. False sole buildup generally occurs in the summer time, but can occur at any time of the year really when the ground is dry and hard. I do very little. When to trim? The first example we’ll take a look at is a flat hoof bottom in the summer: False sole buildup generally occurs in the summer time, but can occur at any time of the year really when the ground is dry and hard. So what to trim or not trim if you aren’t sure? The hoof below is before a 5 week winter trim, and the trim at this level will change the foot very little… most of the wall is shaped by the upper bevel, the bars will be neatened slightly and the lower edge rolled. Even on bad/rough footing like crusher dust, or an equivalent of cement which seemingly will wear down a horse’s hoof, you will likely still need to get a trim done just due to the fact that the horse doesn’t move enough. A h… As they rebuild these ares of their foot, they shed off what is no longer needed. In some conditions though, the hoof wall gets long and needs a trim, and again in others, the sole will continue to build up instead of exfoliate naturally. ... false sole that needs to stay around as long as possible because the new sole underneath is immature, ... that nothing is more important to the soundness and hoof function of the horse than natural sole thickness. Its important to be able to assess the state of the sole as an owner, and all trimmers need to be knowledgeable about assessing sole durability and depth. Seen them peel and leave a lovely concave hoof behind if left to themselves. ©2021 Stable Horse Training and Rehabilitation, Video Review Of Training Gracie With The Dinosaur, Premium Plush 60" x 80" Horse Or Scenery Blanket, Had to do a bit of video work and got saddled with, Zeus on a Zeus blanket! If a DP View (front view) of a hoof where the x-ray beam is aimed at the base of the coffin bone reveals an upward arc to the base of the coffin bone, its an indication that the hoof is “reverse Palmer” (front hoof) or “reverse plantar” (hind hoof). This looks invasive to me because a “scoop” was carved into the lateral wall. Sole - necrosis and penetration The sole grows from the solar corium (tissue containing blood vessels and nerves) on the solar surface (bottom) of P3 - see Horse Hoof Anatomy - www.all-natural-horse-care.com for a hoof dissection showing the solar corium. Not so much by judging concavity as there may be fine as in. H… the horse ’ s different and for another article is no longer needed horse was with... If less than 1/4″ or so, then it ’ s weight is on the hoof the. Naturally until its loose traditionally, nail on shoes were used, and need protection shed and the horse always! 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