Sore Frog? includes discussion of Stringhalt

[Ed Thayer]

Pulled the shoes off Ozzie last week and he has since started to walk very gingerly
on his front feet it seems. I have not worked him recently so I doubt it is any kind of lameness. When I checked his feet, all looks good except the frog extends beyond the outer hoof wall and I wonder if he is putting his weight on the frog more than the hoof.

Does that create a problem until his frog toughens up or the hoof grows out?

Ed

[jac]

Hi Ed .. I am assuming you mean his frog is now the 1st point of contact now that the thickness of the shoes has been removed ?? If so then a quick trim of the frog with the knife and drop the heels and buck the toe back should see him go fine again…
John

[Gabe Ayers]

Ed-
You may have that soreness resolved by now, but I have found that often when I pull the shoes off after the winter season their feet can be soft and sensitive, even if well trimmed. It does seem to take some time with the frog and sole back on the ground for the hoof to harden and become comfortable, particularly on rocky, hard ground.
-Brad

[jen judkins]

Ed, its probably a combination of things. The wet ground this time of year will sometimes cause foot soreness, especially when the shoe first comes off. It can also create some thrush in an oversized frog. Trim the frog along the sulcus and I bet you will see some whitish material. Clean it out regularly and put some desitin or other antifungal ointment on it.

Both problems get better with the dryer ground later in the spring. Jen.

[Ed Thayer]

His feet were trimmed yesterday and things look real good. Now he just needs to recover from the vet visit and his shots.

[menageriehill]

I am new around large animls. But here goes. I bought a jack a couple of months ago. Since it has started rainning quite a bit “Jack” kinda springs one leg up when he walks, kinda like I do when I get in sticky mud. But he springs it up pretty high. This is his left rear leg. When I took him out and worked him some he quit. But is quick to start it back up when in his corral. Any ideas? I hve looked at his foot and dont see anything in it!

[sickle hocks]

@ menageriehill…
Hard to say online, and this is in vet territory… One possibility to consider is stringhalt or springhalt…can be an inherited nervous condition, but possibly also due to a nutrient deficiency (are you feeding any mineral?)
I’m not saying this is what it is, just one possibility to consider..and perhaps unlikely if it has just started…but otherwise it sounded kind of like it
here is a video that shows the characteristic gait..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gVaQqQp7OhQ

[menageriehill]

that looks like what he does. Ithas just started in the last couple weeks. He does seem interested in some bedding that has beenaround awhile. It was wood shavings. I figured it might have had some small edibles in it. He also acts nervous(or bored) and has dug holes in his stall. Is the springhalt curable or what?

[menageriehill]

Him being interested in the bedding might be a sign of his need of minerals.

[sickle hocks]

If he’s moving like the horse in the video you probably want to involve a vet. I’m just guessing at stringhalt because of the way you describe him but I haven’t seen the horse and I’m sure not a vet, so let’s not be too sure that’s what it is.
When I say stringhalt is a nervous condition, I don’t mean the horse is nervous, just that it’s a condition of his nervous system…I don’t think it’s very well understood yet…inherited / or mineral deficiency and some say it is a learned habit, or a result of eating poisonous plants. You won’t do any harm to work on getting him a balanced diet with an appropriate mineral supplement, and make sure he’s not getting into any poisonous plants you might have in your area…but if it were me I would be looking for a good horse vet to make a proper diagnosis and give me some advice, it might make all the difference.
I am not sure how serious it gets, or how often it goes away on it’s own…They sometimes cut one of the tendons to control it but it may not always work so well. And we might be barking up the wrong tree entirely, if it’s really something else.
Maybe someone else here has some experience with it.
Good luck, let us know what happens..

[Big Horses]

Back him up. If he’s “stringy” he’ll yank that hind leg up and sometimes quiver the leg, like he’s got something on the hoof. You’ll also be able to see the same reaction sometimes if you make him pivot on it.
John

[menageriehill]

Hmmm! I really appreciate your reply, and I know you were just trying to help. Thats what we are here for right. I went to the feed store today and got a mineral block for the donkey. He and the goats went right for it. Then I took Jack out and worked him for about an hour. He didnt to the spring step but one time while out “working”. Which consisted of him walking thru the woods with me behind on a long line. so hopfully it was just something he was doing from boredom. Thanks again!!

[Jean]

One of the donkeys at the farm I work at has stinghalt but he only shows signs of it in the winter when he is kept in a pretty small pen and it is cold out. In the summer I never see it.

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