Q?
Do you always trim so drastically?
A. This is a question often asked at clinics. Usually the
horses I'm working on at clinics are in pretty bad shape.
The first few trims may involve intense reshaping, as these
horses usually need dramatic changes immediately. The
idea is to help the horse become more comfortable from the
very first trim so that he is better able to move around
without being in pain. The horse may well still be in discomfort,
but it's the pain we look to eliminate as best as possible.
As the horse's body adapts
and comes into balance the trim becomes more gradual and
eventually is only used to maintain symmetry, balance and
alignment.
This is an
'it depends' kind of answer, but on the long term basis,
the answer would be no. The initial series of trims may
well be more 'drastic' due to the initial changes that need
to be made. This can be true for a foundered horse, a navicular
horse or even just a 'sound' horse, who's feet haven't been
addressed in a long time. As time goes on and the feet and
body correct and grow more properly, the trim backs off
to simply maintain symmetry, balance and alignment. I use
the term 'drastic' to refer to the amound of hoof that needs
to be removed, reshaped or resculpted. Drastic is not being
used to mean that the trim is overly invasive to the foot,
leg or body. The idea is to help the horse become more comfortable
from the very first trim so that he is better able to move
around without being in pain. The horse may well still be
in discomfort, but it's the pain we look to eliminate as
best as possible.
Q?
Can you recommend a farrier like you in my area?
A. The short answer at this point in time (2007), is no.
There currently are very few farriers or trimmers who have
been instructed well enough, or who have had the desire
to change what they are doing well enough to learn what
we have to offer. There are more and more farriers and trimmers
who are changing or modifying what they do to come more
in line with our protocol, but that number is still quite
limited. There is one in N.H., a few in eastern Ohio, one
in GA., a couple in central FL. and just a few in a hand
full of states west of the Mississippi.
We are working to put together an apprenticeship type program
and eventually a school program for teaching our protocol
to caring horse owners, farriers and trimmers who are looking
for a more holistic and all encompassing approach to caring
for the feet and body.
Q?
How does your trim protocol differ from other protocols?
A. That's a tough question. In short, my trim protocol differs
in that One, the entire horse, it's situation, environment,
diet, body condition, etc. are all taken into account before
determining how to apply the trim to the horse. The basics
of the trim pretty much never change, but the basics may
be altered to accommodate some specific issue. I work primarily
from a holistic approach, but I never rule out the fact
that conventional methods may be necessary to help achieve
health or balance. Second, the protocol differs in that
whole horse is balanced as best as can be for that trim
on that day for that foot, with an end hoof and body condition
in mind somewhere in the future. The trim is based on pathological
knowledge of the foot and logical, common sense approaches
to caring for the horse and feet. There isn't any one trim
(or shoeing) that's right for every horse. There are similarities
with the trim between virtually every horse, but each trim
is different foreach horse. No recommendations can be, or
should be, made without knowing specific information about
said horse. Any person who simply starts barking orders
about 'you must do this or that' without knowing history,
condition, etc., is working off of a cookie-cutter type
approach to trimming feet. This approach will have a hit-n-miss
success rate. The care giver has to know specific information
before advice can be given. This is the reason why I need
to know so much information, see pictures, and even see
x-rays when prudent, just to offer trimming advice. One
simple, seemingly insignificant piece of information can
change the whole approach to how the trim and care for the
horse is managed.
Q?
Why do farriers / trimmers say that 'this is just your horse's
conformation'?
A. The short answer is, this is what has been thought, taught
and believed for generations based on old information. We,
as humans, take things to heart because we put a tremendous
amount of faith in our mentors, leaders and teachers. The
fact of the matter is, the mentor and leaders are only as
good as their mental thought process. If their thoughts
are skewed, then their beliefs and teachings will be skewed.
We, as humans, are believers and followers. Those who think
outside the box and prefer to test and prove things before
believing are often thought of as weird, strange or bear
no weight in the eyes of society. So, when a farrier is
taught that the problem with a foundered horse is that the
deep digital flexor tendon is the problem and that it will
pull the coffin bone through the sole of the foot, followers
of said teacher believe that to be true, when in fact, it's
pathologically impossible for a 'tendon' to pull the coffin
bone.
As for 'conformation', this is very tough for farriers and
trimmers, because many of them believe that once a horse's
conformation is set, it cannot be changed. This, in my opinion,
isn't true. Granted, there are issues that are tough or
impossible to change, but those issues have to be pretty
severe. Minor conformational issues can, and are, changed
by simply modifying the trim to help reset body balance,
symmetry and alignment. If the body can slowly change over
time due to one issue or another, why can it not be reversed
by altering the trim to help the body correct itself. And
it's not just the trim that allows that to happen. Remember,
it's the whole body that's taken into consideration and
it's the whole body that's addressed, which possibly means
chiropractics, massage, acupuncture, cranial sacral or any
number of other treatments and procedures to help the body
correct itself. It's the whole body and that requires more
than
just a farrier or trimmer and horse owner.
Q? What IS a balanced trim?
A. That's a tough and often abstract or subjective answer.
For me though, it means the whole body working in unison
for complete harmony and health. Cheesy answer, I know,
but it's true. The long answer would be, there is balance
at many different levels. There is balance of the feet,
so that they can grow as uniformly, symmetrically, and in
a manner that allows the feet to
require little hoof care over time, i.e., the hoof care
necessary should be only enough to keep the feet in perfect
balance. That's rare, but that's the goal. The next level
of balance to me is that of the body. Most creatures tend
to be asymmetrical, but through guidance and help, we should
be able to come closer to symmetry.
That would mean that the shoulders, hips, spine and all
the related muscles should be equal and even in relation
to each ones counter part. Think of the body like that of
a suspension bridge. If one cable is looser than the rest
there isn't perfect balance. If one footing is off, the
bridge can't be level, stable or in balance. If one beam
of the bridge has more tension or is out of
place, there can't be perfect balance. So, the body has
to be as symmetrical as possible. There is balance in the
diet, and no, this doesn't refer to micro-managing the diet.
It simply means that the horse should be able to have available
all the necessary vitamins, mineral, proteins, fats, etc,
etc. that each specific horse requires, based on the amount
of work he does and based on
his body type. If the horse has the right diet and nutrients,
then the body should be able to produce any chemical or
supplement that horses body needs. We shouldn't have to
micro-manage the diet to ensure that 'we' feed 2 units of
zinc, 4 units of vitamin C, 1 unit of fat, 1/2 unit of protein,
and on and on. That's
getting in the horses way. Besides, that kind of diet regulation
can get very expensive and will likely wind up driving you
and/or the horse nuts. Just provide the basics and let the
horse do the rest. If the digestive track of the horse is
balanced, he will be able to handle extracting just what
he needs from his diet. If it's not balance, help it become
so, and then get out of the way.
Let the body take over.
Nature is a pretty amazing thing. Quite often, she knows
better than we do. After all, she's been managing all things
great and small for a lot longer than we have, regardless
of what we humans thing is best for the world.
Next there's balance in the environment. This has to do
with various surfaces for the horse to walk across, various
sources of water, good air, various dirts and soils, various
grasses, plants, shrubs and scrubs to graze upon. The greater
the grazing area and the greater the varied plants to eat,
the better the horse will be able to extract most, if not
all, the food and nutrients it needs.
Nature is at work again and providing just what that horse
needs.
The problem is, we don't all have enough pasture and grazing
area for our horses. So, this is where we can be inventive
or creative to help mimic Nature the best we can. Just think
outside the box. Oh, hills and flat land are all part of
a balanced environment. Some people are lucky enough to
have that naturally. Others have to create it the best way
possible.
Balance means complete harmony between all interacting factors
and variables. For the horse, that starts from the ground
and works it's way up. Balance can also be a state of mind.
If you think in balanced terms, you should be able to achieve
balance & harmony.
