Re: Re: club foot

["Whitney Bass" <bass@bigsky.net>]

Cheryl,
I've seen this pattern with 2 Arabs that I own and Kerry Ridgeway (at the
2000 Convention) even mentioned this habit of grazing as being common in
horses that have 2 different front feet.  I've been working on stretching
and massage exercises with my gelding (my mare with the problem, is
retired), and while he is eating his grain, I manually switch his legs for
him and stay there until he is done eating.  He'll do it, but I can tell
it's uncomfortable -- whenever he puts a lot of weight on the forward leg
(which is the clubby type foot, because he always keeps it back), he starts
to shake a little on that leg.  Seems to be improving the more we work on
it!!   But it's not technically a club foot -- I think it's at about 55-56
degrees.  And the one that he likes to keep forward tends to grow much more
toe than heel, and he ends up with 2 different front feet.  But, they're
looking more alike with every shoeing!

Whitney

> 
> I've heard the theory that a horse that continually scissors his front
legs
> with the same foot back while grazing can cause one foot to become
clubby.
> As it becomes more of a club foot he'll keep it back more thus beginning
a
> vicious cycle. If you have a long legged foal that is beginning to always
> scissor with the same foot back, raising their food a few inches off the
> ground so they don't have to scissor to eat may prevent it becoming a
> problem. Normally I would always feed at ground level, maybe this would
be
> an exception.
> 
> Anyone else notice this pattern with club footed horses?
> 
> Cheryl
> 
> 
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