I took Bubba out with no boots on to get a short video of him walking with and without the boots for comparison and for a “before” shot for my before and after. But suddenly…he could walk almost completely normal! Well, almost. He will happily walk around and turn but still gimps occasionally at a rock here and there. Still, that is a MAJOR improvement.
We had our first soak in about four days because he kicked over so many buckets that I ran out of Apple Cider Vinegar. Also, on Friday and Saturday I have my daughter with me so soaking all four of his hooves for thirty minutes is just not a reasonable expectation with a 20 month old competing for my attention. However, today we got the soak done in about 45 minutes with no kicked over buckets as well as beveling his hooves so that’s certainly a record.
I picked up more Bermuda pellets and White Willow Bark. I was pleasantly surprised at the price difference between Bermuda Pellets and Beet Pulp. I buy shredded Beet Pulp with no molasses but it’s still about $14 and some change for 25 lbs or $22 and some change for a 50lb bag from a feed store that I prefer not to buy bag feed from for reasons that I won’t discuss. The Bermuda Pellets were $12.50 (plus tax) for a 50lb bag from “The Hay Guy.” That’s a pretty big difference! Another benefit is that, for a horse who we are trying to limit sugar intake with, it’s much easier to feed Bermuda Pellets because they don’t have to be rinsed like Beet Pulp does in order to safely ensure there is no more left over sugar. I bag my supplements in cute little sandwich bags (or gallon bags if necessary) in order to make the feeding process quicker and also ensure that each supplement is measured precisely. I’m going to bump him up to 1 full cup of Bermuda Pellets because the “Lakota Mix” and White Willow Bark really overpower a 1/2 cup of Bermuda Pellets.
Also, I remeasured my White Willow Bark and figured out I was giving him about 3 capsules more than necessary. I’m supposed to be giving him 2 teaspoons and I thought that a teaspoon was about 4 and 1/2 capsules. It’s actually exactly 3 capsules. So he will be getting 6 capsules or 2400 mg of White Willow Bark two times a day and we’ll see if anything changes. That stretches the bottle from lasting between 5 and 6 days to lasting about 8 days. A bottle of 100 capsules runs about $9 but I got mine on sale for just short of $7.
I keep forgetting to take pictures of all four of his hooves for my progress photos…ugh…In the front, which are the two that were causing lameness, there wasn’t much to see. The fungal issues were in the collateral groove beneath a tiny crevice just beside the edge of the frog. There were a few little holes along the outer wall that I’ve picked out and some little spots on the sides that had sort of peeled up which I’ve been keeping clean and packing with the thrush treatments, but it hardly compares to the back two. The back have way worse fungal problems but one in particular is worse than the other. There are two caverns bellow the tip of the bars in which my little dental pick could go spelunking. It’s incredible the amount of crap that comes out of there. One side is just a hole about the size of a piece of thick pencil led but with a much bigger space underneath. The white line in the back two hooves is also much more crumbly and weak. After cleaning out the black fungus, there is now an empty ridge. If I had to guess, I’d say he had something along the lines of Seedy Toe/White Line Disease in the back two, but not in the front.
Oh! As far as the pieces of carpet I attempted to use on his back hooves…one came completely off and the other was half exposed. But that could be due to the crappy tape. I’m considering trying again now that I bought real duct tape.
On a completely unrelated note, I got my head chewed off by Bubba’s ex Farrier yesterday. She is pro-shoe and anti-barefoot as well as being insulted, I’m sure, that I went to not only someone else but the kind of someone she hates for my hoof services. I knew it was coming but it didn’t make it much easier to sit through. Joanna handled the situation beautifully in my opinion and was very calm and comforting for me. It was upsetting but I have absolutely no problem, and actually much experience, doing what I know is right even when others don’t agree (and fervently argue against it.) Some others even felt that we should have argued our case rather than taking a more peaceful, neutral road, but honestly arguing with people who have already made up their minds that they hate what you are doing is a waste of time. I really feel that Joanna’s reluctance to get in a screaming match via public internet shows much more maturity and better character than said ex Farrier’s embarrassing display of rudeness…
If you’re taking this road as well, don’t expect everyone to agree with you. I’ve learned there are certain things in life that you must educate yourself about and be absolutely positive on so that when you’re met with opposition you are prepared to stand your ground. If you don’t, you’ll be constantly changing your tactics to please others, you’ll end up getting no where and having nothing to show for all of your stress and effort.
Repeat after me; I will respect the differing opinions of others and listen with an open mind, but I will humbly resolve to do what I know is right and will not be intimidated, pressured, or bullied into doing otherwise.
fulltilthorses 