strasser hoofcare

["Jasmine Cave" <barefootappy@hotmail.com>]

In order to have a strasser type trim there are several other things that 
must be done. The first thing is to have a natural living area for you 
horse. This includes:
1. enviornmental temperature- outside living. Strasser feels it is unhealthy 
for a horse to be in a warm barn then pulled outside in the cold. She feels 
the horse is better off living outside year round.
2.movement- she feels the horse has developed a continuous motion lifestyle 
and keeping a horse stabled would be unhealthy.She feels the horse would be 
better off living outside in a pasture or paddock so it could move around 
freely.
3.herdlife- the horse has developed as a herd animal and it is better for 
the horse mentally to have others of its own kind to groom each other and 
socialize with.
4.nutrition- the horse developed as a grazing animal and should be out to 
graze pasture grass or given free-choice hay. She feels feeding only 2-3X 
day is unhealthy for the horse.
5.body posture- In the wild the horse has a lower head position. When 
stabled the horse must eat and drink in an unaturally high position.
6.exposure of the hooves to water- The hooves must be soaked 15 minutes per 
day. In the wild this is done when the horse goes to a water hole to drink. 
It can also be done by riding the horse in water for 15 minutes or by useing 
soaking boots.
7.resting spaces- in the wild the horse is in open space, when stabled the 
horse is kept in a small space where amonia from urine can cause problems 
with the hooves.
8.oils- strasser feels that hoof oils cause more problems than they help and 
should not be used. She does recomend the use of a water based conditoner 
after the hooves have been soaked to help hold in moisture for hooves that 
are prone to drying out. This conditioner is sold on Jaime Jacksons site.
9.direct ground contact- stabled horses do not get this. Bedding prevents 
the expansion of the hoof capsule and changes the angle the horse stands at 
because the hooves sink into bedding. strasser uses rubber mats in her run 
in. If the horse likes to lay done she says to have a pile of shavings or 
sand for the horse to lay abd roll in, but only in one spot, NOT the whole 
floor of the run in.
This is all talked about in detail in the book " A Lifetime of 
Soundness".She also talks about several hoof diseases and prevention. So 
what Strasser recomends is a paddock or pasture with a run in shed and 
keeping the horses in a social group. If you are going to be riding on lots 
of rocks you should add stones to the area the horses stand most like around 
the water tank. If you are unable to do this she recommends using hoofboots. 
Strasser uses swiss boots, but any boot that does not put a lot of pressure 
on the hoof is fine. Easyboots are not recommended. She allows hoofboots 
because they are temporary and do not damage the hoof like putting nails in 
it to shoe.
In order to do the strasser trim the horse must have natural living 
conditions and have a physiologically correct trimming by a qualified 
hoofcare specialist. She DOES NOT recommend anyone just start trimming on 
their own without supervision.

Web Sites:
1. The Horse's Hoof magazine and trimming supplies
    http://www.TheHorsesHoof.com
2. Dr. Strasser english site (not up yet)
    http://www.strasserhoofcare.com
3. Tribe Equus
    http://www.TribeEquus.com
    trimming critiques http://www.tribeequus.com/learning.html
4. laminitis and navicular help
    http://members.screenz.com/gretchenfathauer
    http://www.vitaroyal.com
5. Jaime Jackson
    http://www.alltel.net/~star/index.html
6. natural balence shoes (for those of you who don't have natural boarding) 
http://www.hopeforsoundness.com
7.The horse show radio program
   listen online to the Sabine Kells interview or old jaime jackson
interviews. http://www.thehorseshow.com
8. yahoo groups
   http://groups.yahoo.com/groups/naturalhorsetrim
   http://groups.yahoo.com/groups/barefootendurancehorses
9. old macs
   http://yourhorsecare.com
10. horsesneakers
   http://personal.riverusers.com/~horsneaker

Jasmine

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