Ok, so here are the boys, they didn't have names in their short lives so my boys named the Welsh looking one Thor and the Shetland looking one Loki, they were amazing today!! This is pic heavy. Thor has some laminitis in the front and a pretty bad crack, which might have to get booted, we will know in a couple of days, Loki has severe founder issue (which was a given), we gave him some bute and linamant ointment on his leggy's for those tight tendons.
Thank god for bute!! We gave him a little before we started. Now we just have to watch him closely. He is the worst I have taken in as far as hoof issues, usually they are starving/sick/abused. This is just pure neglect and lack of knowledge.
Stick me in the lack of knowledge category. Ok, we do pick the hooves, but don't have them trimmed, and they still look healthy and fine. Educate me please. If that nastiness is from not being trimmed, what is it that is keeping ours so normal looking?
Some horses naturally wear their hooves down pretty well, we see that a lot with mustangs. Some horses don't. Part depends on the footing as well and the conformation. These guys were on a soft muddy pasture. Lack of proper nutrition played a part in it as well. Usually in ponies and mini's we see founder more from obesity that skinny. But as this little guys proves, there are exceptions to every rule. Also, they were only eating wild grass and treats. Generally ponies and mini's don't do well on free grass fed diets, and spring grass is higher in calories and protien.
This is my experiences. Others may have a different opinion. Also, I have found once they have foundered they will forever be more prone to it.
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Thank you. You eliviated my fears because I DO NOT want that to happen to them. They ARE Mustangs. I feel soooo much better now. We have colicci dirt here. hard sand if that makes any sense. Not like concrete, but not soft like a beach either.
It is not fun for them, and it is really hard to bring them back to a "usuable" condition. But we have done it before, time will tell. I did mustang rescue for years, other than some really back cracks from to dry of hoof, I personally haven't run into a lot of feet issues with them, same with their teeth, unless they have been being bred for generations by us!! Nature has a tendency to eliminate these problems.
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I don't know the horses history because they were dumped at an exotic cat rescue and that is where we got them. But they do have good teeth that they love to show us when we give them ivermectin