My OTTB is now going in a hackamore, barefoot behind, with boots.
Oh, and I'm also making terrible puns.
Where did this girl come from? My whole riding life I've believed in four steel shoes, a fancy stitch padded hunter bridle, and a snaffle.
The pun thing isn't exactly new :(
Whatever, the boots were a sad necessity and an admission on my part that maybe the barefoot thing wasn't meant to be. Over the last week, Lucy has gotten more and more uncomfortable to the point where she won't stand square; she is always resting at least one of her hind legs (and she alternates between the two). I took her into the indoor two days ago to see if she'd trot around so I could look at her move, and I could not persuade her to move. This is the same horse who normally can't wait for me to take the halter off before she squeals at the top of her pony lungs and rockets across the ring, so yeah, obviously I felt really crappy about this whole thing.
Then yesterday my friend lent me a pair of Boa boots that she had. According to the measurements on Boa's website, they would fit Lucy so I figured it would be worth a shot! I put them on yesterday in the aisle and at first she moved her feet around a bit, trying to get a feel for her new kicks, and when I took her off the crossties she was totally fine.
She started walking to the ring with the same mincing steps she has been taking lately, but as we got closer, she started walking more normally. I put her on the lunge line and let her walk around for a while, then asked her to trot. She looked SO much better. I felt relieved.
I didn't ride her yesterday because though her lameness improved, she wasn't 100%. I think most of what is left is high up in her hind end and was caused from her compensating for the discomfort in her feet. I thought it wouldn't really be fair to add my weight to the equation if I already knew she was sore in the hind end. She wore the boots all day today in turnout and I'm about to go see how she's feeling and hopefully ride. :)
Don't get disheartened! Boots are awesome. :)
ReplyDeleteAre you using them with pad inserts? That can really help build sole and kick start her tootsies to growing Ono beautiful rock crunchers. :)
no, but they do have inserts for the things that go around her fetlocks to prevent sand/dirt from getting trapped in the boot. Is that what you're talking about? Point me in the right direction! I am all for speeding up this process lol!
ReplyDeleteI found a link but my phone won't let me paste it - email at lcastle @ gmail.com and I'll forward it to you. :)
ReplyDeleteYou can get pad inserts via Easy Boots website. They are great for added comfort-maybe for your longer trail rides. Boots are great for in transition phase if you decide that Lucy can handle the barefoot. It's not easy for all to transition, but it CAN be done for all, if you are comfortable to do it. Totally no pressure, though, as I know it can be frustrating. :) Also, a make shift pad is cut up some thick cheap pool floatys, as long as they fit in boot and aren't too thick. Road work may be too much for her hooves now, but little bits at a time should help.
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