Natural Balance Hoofcare

Recognizing Hoof Deformity

One of the keys to treating hoof pathologies and/or maintaining feet in a way to prevent pathologies is learning how to recognize when the external hoof capsule has lost it's relationship to the bones within the hoof capsule. From what you have read so far, you may already have a good idea as to what would constitute hoof deformity. From the definition or description of Natural Balance, we know that the hoof is balanced when the hoof capsule is in its most optimal relationship to the boney structures within. Because the outer hoof wall does migrate and lose its relationship to the coffin bone, it is not the most reliable reference when determining balance. Not always having well marked Radiographs available, the true apex of the frog, the center of the foot and the sole callus are more reliable landmarks for determining where the coffin bone is within the hoof capsule because they do not lose their relationship to the bone. For this reason, we will primarily focus on those structures when determining hoof capsule deformity. To begin, look at the hoof from the bottom. Locate and draw a line across the widest part of the foot. For most feet, this location is about 3/4" to 1" behind the true tip of the frog apex, or where the bars terminate. (Figure 1-A & 2-A) Next, you will need to determine the point of breakover. Draw a line across the toe where it looks like the foot pivots on as the heels come off the ground. (Figure 1-B & 2-B) You will then need to find the location of surface mass that represents the most caudal region of support. For horses with shoes on, this is typically the heels of the shoe. (Figure 1-C) For barefoot horses, this can be the back of the heels and perhaps the back of the frog if the heels end near the back of the frog, otherwise this is typically the back of the heels. Draw a line across the back of the foot establishing this area of caudal support. (Figure 2-C) Figure 1 - Domestic Shod Foot  Figure 2 - Domestic Bare Foot As you can see in figure 1, there is definitely more ground surface mass ahead of the widest part of the foot than what is behind the widest part of the foot. In figure 2, the distance ahead of the widest part of the foot and behind the widest part of the foot is approximately the same. As you may have gathered already from the wild horse information, the optimal ratio of ground surface mass from the point of breakover to the widest part of the foot and then from there to the point of full posterior support should be about 1/3 to 2/3's respectively. If we look at a lateral view of the foot in figure 1, we can clearly see that the heels are long and under run, not allowing the back of the frog to make primary contact with the ground on load. (Figure 3) Figure 3 - Lateral View of Shod Foot in Figure 1 Typically, the low, under run heel is accompanied by a long toe, as seen above. Most often, this type of deformity is a result of trying to align the pastern and dorsal hoof wall by leaving the heel and thinning the toe from the bottom. In actuality, what this procedure usually ends up doing is weekening the sole callus at the toe and disturbing the protective support material beneath the tip of the coffin bone. As mentioned above, it also does not allow the "digital cushion - lateral cartilage" mechanism to be activated from initial frog contact at the time of load. All-in-all, the result of this type of deformity causes undue stress on the navicular bone due to the extended point of breakover. The lack of frog contact decreases the blood flow and causes the frog to shrink, allowing the heels to contract. It is not uncommon for horses with this conformation to interfer, forge and stumble. In the shoeing and trimming sections of this series we will discuss ways to help overcome these types of hoof deformities and better service the needs of the foot.

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