Pathologies >>> "Cammy" Case History Begin 7/2004
from BAREFOOTTRIM.COM

NEWEST UPDATE APRIL 5, 2005

Photo taken at first evaluation 7/28/2004    (camera date is off 4 days)

7/28/04 ... "Cammie"
17 year old Quarter mare
Long history of shoes and injury on Right Hind

Shoes all 4 - barshoes/pads/wedges on hind.

Mare presents conformationally correct but exhibits extreme pain with hollowed back, tucked up gut and hollowed, tense hindquarters and tail held tense. Stance displays rear standing under indicating pain in heels. Face shows pain and worry. Lameness all 4 during movement at reluctant walk. Most extreme pain exhibited in right hind. Question of whole body toxicity due to aggravated and prolonged disease of hooves.

	LEFT FRONT INITIAL EVAL.  ... bar shoes with pads. Excessively long heels and toes. Coronary Band shows excessive pressure at the quarters. Coronary Band almost parallel to ground plane. Possibly beginning of founder. Hoof generally showing compromised horn health and growth.
	HINDS - LEFT VIEW Bar shoes with clips. Mare showing discomfort with standing under indicating toe pain. Toes long. Heels long. Extensive rot all around walls at groundlevel.
	RIGHT HIND: injury to coronary and hoof. Extensive crack through quarter/heel. Extensive hoof rot at wall and sole. Exhibiting extreme pain with weight bearing. PLAN:  trim as indicated. Debride rotting hoof material. Use of pads and packing with Calendula/Tea Tree Oil Ointment if needed for antibacterial, antifungal and rapid growth properties.
	Planned trim of RIGHT HIND

PLAN OF ACTION: 7/28/04 - Removal of front shoes and pads. Trim. Bute prn for 2 days then chg. to WWB. Allow fronts to become comfortable and stronger before removing rear shoes in 3 days. Use of styrofoam sole pads for extreme rear hoof pain after removal of shoes if needed.  Diet to include BS Senior (6 qts. daily divided into 3 feedings) with free-choice hay, vitamin supplement and 4 oz. "Cool Calories" X2 daily. to increase weight.

TREATMENT: 1:00 pm 7/28/04 - Remove front shoes. Debride rotted material and trim hooves (walls) to live sole. Trim excessive bar material. Balance and Level. Mustang roll around entire hoof. Rocker toes to approx. 10 degrees. (Less on LF as sole is questionable.)1 gm Bute AM & PM for 2 days. Cut dosage in 1/2 upon presentation of comfort either day. On day 3, discontinue Bute and give 3 tbsp White Willow Bark, C&S, X2 daily PRN.  Turnout 24/7 on limited grass paddock. Old Mac Boots to be purchased and used if mare continues to exhibit pain.

OBSERVATION IMMEDIATELY AFTER 1st FRONT TRIM:  Mare still exibiting lameness but lessened in fronts as mare walked. Hindquarters are exhibiting extreme pain. Mare was walked up steep hill to paddock without resistance. Left front exhibiting more discomfort than right.

REPORT FROM OWNER after treatment:
3:30 pm -- mare moving at walk with much more comfort. Followed owner freely without coercion. Back end still in pain (no treatment today) but fronts bearing weight evenly and w/o evidence of extreme discomfort. Owner was notified that mare would probably be ouchy for a long period of time until such time that soles grew back to natural thickness. Suggestion of Old Mac boots or other protective boots made to owner.

7:00 pm -- no change from 3:30 report. Mare still moving at liberty with little discomfort in fronts. Rear hooves still evident of pain. Owner is very encouraged.

NOTE:  "After Trim" photos coming shortly ... (7/29/04)

PROGRESS NOTES:

8/1/04:    Barn Mgr. dosed with 2.5 gms. x 2 Bute on Friday/Sat.  instead of 1 gm.  Sunday mare was not given Bute in AM as pain seemed 'under control'.  Mare seemed comfortable on soft ground but very uncomfortable on gravel and cement all 4. Was brought into barn to remove rear shoes. 1 dose of Hypericum 30C was given prior to removal of shoes as per consulting Dr. L. Lofton. LR shoe was removed first to give mare a steady platform while RR was being treated. Major black rot was evident. No major incidence. RR shoe was pulled exposing excessive rot. Chunks of hoof came off still attached to shoe clips. Hoof was thoroughly cleaned then soaked in solution of Calendula tincture and water for 5 mins. Trim proceeded without incidence and mare remained comfortable on both rears. Walked out of barn without evidence of any discomfort on rear hooves.  Fronts still sore. Walked up steep hill to paddock without resistance.

8/4/04:  Checked on Cammie in afternoon. She readily gave me each one of her hooves for examination with no evidence of excessive pain in any one of them. She followed me easily uphill and downhill as requested on soft ground with minimal visual lameness in LF.  Turn on the forehand at liberty; turn on the haunches at liberty. Backup freely at libery when requested. Mare is alert, bright, eager and seems like a different horse. Progress is excellent. No hay was in paddock and no water was in paddock.   Request  to Brn. Mgr. to see that Cammie has hay at all times with access to fresh water.  According to Brn. Mgr. mare was receiving no pain medication at this time because she was doing "fine".  Brn. Mgr. stated appetite is good, attitude is good.  Request to Brn. Mgr. to notify me at once if there were any changes. She agreed.  Owner and Mgr. did not feel she needed boots at this time.

8/4 - 8/25: Continual checking in per telephone with owner and visual checks X2. Cammie seems to be doing well. Gaining weight and moving freely and comfortably. Was put on White Willow Bark, 3 tbs. X2 daily = 1 oz. daily. Mare's paddock was expanded so she had access to grass.  No notifications or calls from Barn Mgr. as to updates or reports.

8/25:  2nd trim. LF exhibiting dropped sole but no excessive pain on soft ground. Ouchy on gravel. Marked growth at periople of all 4's - LF periople vertical to ground level. (indicating dropped).  Did not trim LF at all due to changes in periople. Will keep a close eye on that hoof. Trimmed other 3 hooves minimally to take down heels a bit more to achieve more ground parallel P3 and comfort for mare. RR was surprisingly strong and appeared very healthy. All hoof rot is eliminated. Sole callous forming nicely on all except LF. Mare was a bit sore on concrete floor and slab but according to owner she "ran away" from her when released to grass paddock after trim.  Owner also states that mare has been trotting at liberty and seemed "really happy" out in her paddock even though still 'ouchy' on gravel and cement.  Expected soreness on gravel and cement due to lack of sole in all 4's from prior trimming and shoeing - only 1/8" has grown in and will take another 2 - 3 months for mare to grow rest of sole.

Reported Diet:  6 qts. of BS Senior, Sunshine vitamin supplement, hay given 2X daily, WWB given daily.

No changes to diet made at this time. Mare is gaining weight. Coat is glossy and smooth. Attitude of mare is excellent and mare is progressing well at this time. LF needs to be carefully watched. -- founder. RR will also be watched for any indications of progressing founder.  Additional request for any changes to be made to me immediately. 

8/28: Received phone call from 3rd party reporting conversation overheard at barn - barn "farrier" was asked to take a look at this mare due to her "excessive pain". Farrier and Barn Mgr. supposedly stated that mare was noted to be in extreme pain and distress due to dropped P3 in LF.  Reported that mare could not walk - was refusing to walk onto cement so that farrier went to mare rather than watching mare walk. Shoes were being strongly recommended to save mare's "life". Mare was in "life threating" condition of founder and needed to be stalled and shod immediately.

I called owner immediately after receiving this notification to ask why I had not been notified of these changes. Owner states she had NO idea - mare seemed to be doing well other than being ouchy, still, on gravel and cement. Her LF was sore but "we already knew that". Owner would go to see mare immediately and report back to me.

Owner called later on to state there seemed to be a misunderstanding among relayed conversations. The mare was, in fact, ouchy on gravel but still moving well on grass and in paddock. Was walking up to her freely "looking for her treats" and not displaying any changes from Wed. 8/ 25. Would notify me with any further changes.

8/29: Received call from another boarder at mare's barn stating mare was in extreme pain and she could not understand why this mare was being allowed to be in such a painful state. Boarder stated she *was*, in fact, merely a new person w/horse and does not have any experience with this "sort of thing" but felt this mare was in life threatening pain and situation and something needed to be done immediately. Could not understand why shoes were not put on this mare for protection and pain.  I said I would, again, contact owner to have her check on the mare as I was unable to do so at that time. Owner promised to check in on mare and let me know of any changes. I also called Barn Mgr. to request immediate call to me. I received no calls that night concerning mare's condition. Did receive apology call from 3rd party. I called back following day to say I would not discuss this mare with her again and did not wish to receive 3rd and 4th hand reports from people not associated directly with this horse and event.  

8/31:  I went to barn to check on mare. She seemed more comfortable than day of 2nd. trim. She chased me for treats out in her paddock. She spun on both fronts when asked for hip disengagement on both sides. She trotted behind me from one paddock to the other. She backed uphill without resistance. She was careful going down hill on her LF. LF showed approximately 1/8" of growth from 8/25. Sole dropped but wall is growing. Barn mgr. was at barn. When I first asked her how Cammie was doing mgr. stated, "She seems to be doing fine!" She had given her Bute on 8/29 and am of 8/30 but had not given her any more after that. We "discussed" mare's LF dropped sole. I assured her that the wall was growing, P3 had dropped but that from initial examination on 7/28 we (me and owner) were expecting that Cammie might founder or was in the process of foundering when the mare was purchased and trailered in prior to shoe removals. Barn Mgr. questioned the dropped sole saying she thought it had dropped even further and she saw no wall growth at all. I stated the growth at the periople and mgr. stated well, "I don't know anything about growth at the periople - all I know is that it looks like the sole has dropped more. "  I explained about watching for wall growth and how to assess growth and tried to explain the healing process again. After conversation about diet and direction of treatment I again requested that barn mgr. call me, as agreed upon before, with any concerns or changes noted.

9/1/04:  I trimmed mare's owner's other pony and then checked on Cammie. No changes were noted. Mare in good attitude and disposition moving freely and with mere traces of discomfort while on grass paddock. Moving well uphill and downhill. Will continue to watch LF and possible RF developments. RF is questionable as to possible rotation occuring. Mare did not have boots on.

9/2/04: Received call from owner stating 2 vets and the barn farrier had examined the mare. Stating mare was in "life-threating" condition with founder and needed to be stalled and shod immediately. Farrier mentioned glue-on shoes. Owner stated that it was said that if she did not comply with vets, farrier and barn managers' recommendations then she and I would both be charged with animal cruelty, abuse and negligence. Vets stated that the trim caused the founder and that we (owner and myself) were "killing this mare";  treatment is "cruel and abusive" and causing the mare "unreasonable pain" and that and if owner   tried to move the mare from the barn then formal charges WOULD be made against both of us.  Mare was put into stall with some shavings and because boots had just been delived in mail, they were put on the mare.

It was also reported by an "eye-witness" that the mare was loose in the yard and had to be "caught" in order to be examined ... she was running down towards the road. The ground upon which this mare had to have been "running" on is sandy with gravel and pebbles. When vets were asked why the mare was moving so comfortably on this without indications of extreme pain they replied that the dropped and rotated Coffin Bone had killed the nerves in the entire LEG and therefore the mare could not feel anything. (see above paragraph were I am accused of causing unreasonable pain to this mare.)

9/3/04:  I called both Marjorie Smith and Gene Ovnicek to request counsel. It was suggested that the mare be moved to another barn where owner could exercise her right to her choice of treatment for her own horse. Arrangements were made to move the mare.

9/4/04:  Mare was moved to another barn. I will examine mare today, as of this writing (9/5/04) and report condition of mare. I received and nasty, accusatory e-mail from barn manager yesterday, 9/4 - only 2nd correspondence and notification from this mgr. since mare arrived on 7/28/04 to this barn.  I have not replied. Portions of this correspondence received yesterday (my comments now being stated here will be in italics) included,

"The horse has been going through mechanical founder for a month (guesstimated by the vet),..."     (read above initial report of 7/29) Initially, when mare first came into barn we had expected that the horse was in the state of "foundering" when she came in to begin with, one month prior.

"The bottom of those (boots) are a horse shoe.  (Owner) put those on and she was going about like Fred Astaire- that was while she was foundering-it felt so good to her to get that sole up off the ground. " 

        (exactly - the boots are providing comfort, support and protection. That's why they were suggested to begin          with earlier on in treatment.)

"imagine what a proper set of shoes and pads specifically made for her could have done?? Of course shoes can't help her right now- there is nothing left to nail to."

        (If the present boots are helping her and allowing the hoof to expand and contract thus pumping vital,           healthy oxygen-rich blood to the hooves, then why the need for iron shoes that will inhibit circulation,           produce tissue and cell life-threatening frequencies from concussion on iron and deaden capillaries? Would          this not exacerbate the founder condition and inhibit any sort of healing?)

"this is about a horse that went from bad to worse and peoples pride
and beliefs getting in the way to the point that a horse has it's  life  on the line."

        (The HORSE is the final answer in whether or not it is getting worse or better. All indications have been          continually that the horse is feeling better ie: improved attitude, disposition and movement and that              although the horse may be in a state of founder recovery at this time the horse is still eating,                 drinking, moving, playing and showing other signs of feeling "good".  Again, we had expected that the horse         was in the state of "foundering" when she came in to begin with, one month prior. I warned owner of this and we both expected that this (full founder) might happen. Vets had NOT seen the condition the mare was in when she arrived -- Thursday, 9/2/04 was the FIRST time they had ever seen her so they had     nothing to compare with. Barn Mgr. has continually refused to see that mare has been making steady          improvements in her movement, overall physical appearance and health, appetite and general disposition          even argueing,  at one point, that the Bute was still in effect and of course she's going to feel "Fine" on that.       The Bute had been  given 12+ hours PRIOR to this so the effects would have been worn off by that time. I          mentioned then that  1 gm of Bute peaks in efficiency at 4 - 6 hrs where upon she replied, "Well, I gave her     2.5 gms. of bute not  just 1 gm." -- this was not in accordance to the instructions I left for this mare and          even so, after 12+hrs. the effects of the bute were negligible.)

"Also my vets said her digital pulse was BOUNDING and that if someone else didn't feel it they don't know
where to check for it- it was that strong. You had told me she had no digital pulse."

        (I checked her pulse the day before when I was there to see her. There was NO digital pulse. Both front hooves were evenly warm - yes, hooves are SUPPOSED to be warm as they are a live, viable portion of the body that has blood circulating through them producing body temperature warmth. It is possible that she may well have had a bounding pulse on that day when the vets were there. I don't know. I didn't check it that day.)

9/5/04:  Owner reports mare was moved without incidence and, in fact, she moved "beautifully" both on and off the trailer and then when taken out to her paddock. With 2 geldings next to her she went into immediate heat and owner reported she was "trotting and prancing with her tail up showing off!" ... with absolutely no lameness at all.

Owner also stated that mare had been standing in stall for 2 days and brn. mgr. had not taken off the boots even once so mare now has thrush in her LF. Was cleaned out and treated with "Thrush Buster" and the boots re-applied.

I will be checking on the mare this afternoon with owner and will post photos that I'll take.  I will also try to get the photos of the first trim posted.

GO SEE PHOTO JOURNAL with NOTES HERE:

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