Shoe saga, and xc fun.

It's been one month since Riley's shoes were pulled and we've had a series of ups and downs. These were expected, and sadly the downs slightly outweigh the ups. Here he is looking incredible one week after his shoes we pulled:

Sorry about the lack of quality, it's pulled off the video. But whoa! He looks great.

Looking fancy.

After this big improvement things only went downhill. The weather got wet again and his feet started to deteriorate. He was noticeably uncomfortable on anything but grass. I diligently applied the turpentine as often as I was out there, we pumped him full of double strength Farrier's Formula and crossed our fingers. Then the weather got really wet again, and despite being in during the day in a nice dry stall his feet started crumbling. They looked like they were growing though and so I was thankful for that but I was really unsure of what P would say at our 4 week trim date.

Here's some comparison photos:

The angle looks slightly better after 4 weeks. Not a huge improvement.

To my unskilled eye, I see some progress here. The left photo was post-trim so it appears neater, but the new photo reveals a slightly wider frog and some significant growth at the hoof wall. *I had just applied magic cushion the day before which is why his foot is a weird color.

Again, I think the angle has improved a little, and his heels look less under run. Not sure what that wrinkle near his heel means?

I don't see a ton of changes here and his sole was starting to exfoliate a lot.

P told me that his hoof grows really evenly, and that is a good thing. He said that he wanted to reduce the flare, but would have a hard time doing so right now because he's so sore. His soles were still paper thin and P recommended that we put shoes back on to make him comfortable. I was really hoping we could wait another month but based on how Riley was mincing around on anything but grass, I had to agree. So he got hot-shoed (to hope for the best possible fit. P told me that he could put leather pads too, but for now he wants to let the sole do it's thing and that the pads would be something to consider down the road.

Waiting for the farrier. Sir Snooze-a-lot.

I know the whole shoeing thing is a big arguing point within the horse community, but it has been hard watching the changes even over the span of just 4 weeks. I am as patient as they come but after taking Riley to xc school last Sunday I felt like a horrible horse owner. Don't be alarmed, we didn't jump anything, we just hacked around and led my friend and her baby horse over some things, but was was nearly crippled walking on blue stone. It was dramatic the change when he'd hit the grass again, but he was miserable otherwise. He's got a great attitude and he didn't get stubborn or mean, but I knew he wasn't happy either. I got off after the last water crossing on the way back to the trailers because I could hardly stand how he was hobbling along. We wound up giving him a little bute when we got home. Sigh. I think we'll try pulling his shoes again over the winter but we'll have to see how he does.

Being a cutie pie hanging out in the shade.

Don't mind me and my sweet fanny pack.

I'm going away for a few days so I'm hoping that a couple days of bute and some R & R and he'll be ready to get back to work. P had me trot him on grass and pavement after he got his shoes and he was still really short in front. We will re-evaluate next week.

In other news, we're moving barns... well, the whole crew is rather. The property has been sold to a BNR from another country (she's coming to train with Phillip Dutton down the road) so we're looking for a new barn to rent. I'm excited about moving since we all agree that our #1 luxury item is access to hacking right off the property! Fingers crossed we can find a great place for the winter!

It's a good thing he's cute: