There is a lot of room for us to become, in our own practice area, the central source of medical information regarding shoeing and lameness. This takes a good bit of effort and a real “outreach’ to client and farrier. It can be done with the one tool we are best at, the acquisition and careful dispensing of information that we can put together regarding the health of the foot. These include:
1. Radiograph guided hoof trimming and shoeing
2. Ultrasonography
3. Digital Radiography
4. Thermography
5. Nutritional and health counseling
Become the “local” expert in hoof health and farrier science. Publish a newsletter on the subject and speak to small groups clients. Participate in farrier education at both the national and local level. Attend and or speak at farrier symposiums. Don’t be intimidated by the “Internet”. We’ve got more “gurus” than they do! Tap into the stream of educational materials available such as journals, videos and colleague recommendations. Realize that you don’t have to convince a national audience of your knowledge; the one client in front of you at the time is plenty! Take time to talk to farriers, discuss your ideas based on fact or clinical experience rather than dictate your thoughts and don’t lecture them unless you have a tray full of slides! Give them a goal, not a prescription engraved on a stone tablet (i.e. “we’d like to see this horse grow a little more heel!”). Let them “choose” how to accomplish your goal. It’s a good idea to be respectful in all discussions with people who carry hammers and bend iron for a living! All of us need to realize that there are probably more horses in the world today that spend their entire working lives unshod and without the benefit of our combined expertise! There is little doubt they’d be better off with our help in many instances, but the fact remains that many lead long, productive lives unshod.
This fact can lead to some confusion among many clients, who suddenly ask for a “mustang” trim or others who advocate a return to “natural” trims, not ever realizing that we have changed all the natural patterns of their lives and physiology by introducing confinement, artificial bedding, weight bearing and artificial diets to them, altering their hoof growth in the process. Shoeing, hoof care and hoof repair become necessary in many situations of domestication. We need to be skilled in assessing the appropriateness and quality of the shoes and technology used and thus help in the adaptation to demands placed on our equine patients.
We can
use the principles of the natural trim as seen here. The right front foot has been trimmed and balanced appropriately, the left front will be trimmed next. One must be aware of the latest in shoeing” fads” and realize
that while certain shoes are suddenly popular because they solve one type of
lameness, they are not always a substitute for tried and true methods. Become
familiar with the options, and work within the confines of your knowledge and
the assistance of a competent farrier. The
“self-adjusting” shoe, banana shoe or “rock and roll” shoe is appropriate in
some cases, but must be applied by a skilled farrier in response to specific
needs and directions.
