Arthur":33xccoca said:My husband is a farrier and is doing exactly what the vets are telling him and they have told him that what they are seeing is correct.
Arthur":3l2pwqcj said:I feel the battle is expensive and not a winning situation. I was just curious as to what other people have done.
Navicular is never a winning situation, and I'm very sorry that you are faced with it.
Navicular seems to be so common now that someone must own one.
There are things you can look for to help prevent it, though. Way back when - I was a student in a Vet Tech program. As part of the Anatomy & Physiology course, it was explained that Navicular is much, much more common in horses with upright pasterns. If I remember correctly, the reason is that the upright pasterns prevent the flexibility that is required to absorb shock and support the body.
Hard to go out there every day and seeing the lameness or not seeing it that bad, saddling up only to unsaddle and be more aggravated than when you started.
Yes, that would be very difficult.
You hope for more. Mentally the decision you have to make wears on you. Out of site out of mind I suppose. Two horses in one year is hard to swallow.
Arthur":29qec67y said:Because of the Quarter horse make up. Both were predisposed to Navicular.
Would you mind expanding on that statement, please? We've had Quarter Horses for 50 years, and have never had a Navicular horse. I'm a bit confused as to why Quarter Horse breed predisposes an animal to Navicular Disease.
They have done a lot for us and out of site, out of mind was not meant the way it sounds. They will always be in our minds.
Good deal, I'm so happy to hear that. I'm not familiar with Adequan, but I sure hope it works for you.
msscamp":yklsw98x said:Arthur":yklsw98x said:Because of the Quarter horse make up. Both were predisposed to Navicular.
Would you mind expanding on that statement, please? We've had Quarter Horses for 50 years, and have never had a Navicular horse. I'm a bit confused as to why Quarter Horse breed predisposes an animal to Navicular Disease.
They have done a lot for us and out of site, out of mind was not meant the way it sounds. They will always be in our minds.
Good deal, I'm so happy to hear that. I'm not familiar with Adequan, but I sure hope it works for you.
Quarter horses are particularly prone to the disease but it is unknown whether this is due to some hereditary factor or is related to conformation. The more pressure that is applied to the navicular bone from the deep flexor tendon, the more likely the horse will suffer from navicular disease.
Quarter horses and thoroughbreds have proportionally small feet and high body weight, which may explain the tendency towards development of navicular disease in these breeds.
Chris H":1k5grb0z said:msscamp":1k5grb0z said:Arthur":1k5grb0z said:Because of the Quarter horse make up. Both were predisposed to Navicular.
Would you mind expanding on that statement, please? We've had Quarter Horses for 50 years, and have never had a Navicular horse. I'm a bit confused as to why Quarter Horse breed predisposes an animal to Navicular Disease.
They have done a lot for us and out of site, out of mind was not meant the way it sounds. They will always be in our minds.
Good deal, I'm so happy to hear that. I'm not familiar with Adequan, but I sure hope it works for you.
Quarter horses are particularly prone to the disease but it is unknown whether this is due to some hereditary factor or is related to conformation. The more pressure that is applied to the navicular bone from the deep flexor tendon, the more likely the horse will suffer from navicular disease.
Quarter horses and thoroughbreds have proportionally small feet and high body weight, which may explain the tendency towards development of navicular disease in these breeds.
Actually, I'd argue that shoes reduce the ability of the hoof to withstand concussion/impact. Shoes prevent excess wear of a hoof on hard surfaces, also give some extra traction on some surfaces. I'd guess most ranch horses grow and are developed on range/pasture and not shod until work requires it. I'd think those horses would develop a larger hoof than one growing up confined to smaller areas and on softer surfaces as stalls and small paddocks tend to be.Interesting. Thanks for the information! I wonder if ranch work plays a factor - since most ranch horses aren't shod, and shoes help to absorb concussion/impact.
Chris H":185ghwyc said:Actually, I'd argue that shoes reduce the ability of the hoof to withstand concussion/impact.Interesting. Thanks for the information! I wonder if ranch work plays a factor - since most ranch horses aren't shod, and shoes help to absorb concussion/impact.
It depends on the circumstances. Our current set of circumstances dictates that our horses are kept in corrals with concrete aprons extending apprx 5' from the feedbunks (former feedlot). For whatever reason - they tend to like to stand on those aprons, stomp flies, and they subsequently go lame. Shoes alleviate that problem, because they protect the hoof, and absorb concussion/impact. Now, depending on how severe it is in a particular area, drought causes the ground to become very hard - sort of like concrete - and shoes in that situation would go a long ways towards protecting a horses feet from concussion/impact.
Shoes prevent excess wear of a hoof on hard surfaces, also give some extra traction on some surfaces. I'd guess most ranch horses grow and are developed on range/pasture and not shod until work requires it.
Obviously, I don't know about your area - but in this area horses are rarely shod unless they are salebarn/feedlot/performance horses.
I'd think those horses would develop a larger hoof than one growing up confined to smaller areas and on softer surfaces as stalls and small paddocks tend to be.
Not necessarily. We've had a number of horses who were raised and ran on range/pasture, were never shod, and they had smaller hooves. I think hoof development is a genetic thing, more than an environmental thing.
The conventional horseshoe is very unforgiving and does not allow the horses hoof to flex normally under normal use, contributing to lameness.
Arthur":2wa1rsf5 said:All Quarter Horses are predisposed to Navicular disease.