My how times flies, and as you can see, I am not a dedicated Blogger. It's been 2 years since my last post. Much has happened in that time. I had a full knee replacement on my right knee in January 2021 and then another full replacement on the left this past January 2022. Needless to say, I have a standing appointment with my physical therapist Carla every week. She is great at putting me back together when I mangle up a body part. And the ol’ body parts just don’t work like they used so I’m not able to go out and do maintenance hoof care in the field.

I still see hoof clients here mainly for rehabilitation or serious lameness issues. If you are concerned about how your horses' hooves look, how he/she behaves or has a lameness issue, I am available for consultation and rehabilitation. There is not much I haven't seen when it comes to distortion in hooves and not many hooves that can't be fixed. Founder hooves and navicular conditions used to be considered time to retire your horse, but now these and many other issues are treatable.  

I’m still offering custom diet plans based on testing your hay, or average hay values for the area. I can recommend a custom mineral supplement based on the missing or deficient minerals in the hay forage. I calculate how much to supplement based on amounts in the hay and the correct ratios needed for optimum absorption and health.  

LayzD also has a nice group of boarded horses here. They help pay my bills but also support The Wings Programs Inc. Without our boarders we would have a hard time supporting the rescue and sanctuary horses. Limited space is available for long term boarding but we always find room for short term/vacation boarding. If you need to travel and want a great place for your horse to stay while you are gone, check us out. We have both a 40’ and 60’ round pen, a 100x150 outdoor arena and 60’x80’ indoor arena.
 
More updates to come...  

     Copper and zinc are two of the most common trace mineral deficiencies around the world.

     "In addition to the levels of these two minerals often being too low in the diet, factors such as high iron intake and high sulfate in water or forage makes the situation even worse by interfering with absorption.
     While other deficiencies may not be easily visible, zinc and copper problems often present in ways that are readily seen.
     A dead giveaway of copper and zinc deficiency is bleaching of the coat and red ends on black manes and tails. This is typically blamed on sun exposure, which is true, but horses with adequate levels of melanin will not experience these changes.
Melanin is the pigment that gives skin and hair its color. Melanin also protects against UV radiation and chemical damage. Copper (all colors) and zinc in combination with copper (darker colors) are essential for the production of generous amounts of melanin.
     Hoof quality also suffers with copper and zinc deficiency. Deficiencies of either copper or zinc have been linked to:
     Soft feet
     Cracks
     Sole hemorrhages
     Abscesses
     Thrush
     Dramatic improvements in hoof quality are often seen following adequate zinc and copper supplementation.
     Only dietary analysis can tell you the precise amounts needed but consider a ballpark figure of 250 mg of copper and 850 mg zinc as the starting point for horses showing outward evidence of deficiency."
- Eleanor Kellon, VMD

​So today I trimmed 5 extremely overgrown horses’ hooves.  Well, the reality, which will not surprise anyone, since after 3 surgeries in one year, everyone knows I will not trim 5 horses in one day;   I had help.   I spent the day training an owner how to trim his horse’s hooves.  This is his second lesson, and I would take his barefoot trim over any certified or not farrier in my area.  Yes, he needs a lot of additional training, but overall, he is doing great.  
 
Then it rained, and rained and rained.  So much that I had planned and wanted to do, but the grey, cool (cold for some) godawful wet overtook the outside, so the inside chores raised their ugly heads.  I drew all the shades open to the top to get as much natural light as possible.  And started in, with various detours to Amazon for those safety essentials like ordering the camper’s fire extinguishers.  Who of you will fault me for that?   And some whimsical …the Buddhist horse wind flags for the driveway.  And an EAT book.
 
An EAT book???  No this is not about food.   Once we are Eagala certified you will be seeing EAP (Equine Assisted Psychotherapy) proliferate my posts, but for now it is EAT – Equine Assisted Therapy.   After committing to a lot of Moola, $$$$$, I will be getting recertified by the Equine Assisted Growth and Learning Association and Wings Programs Inc will have an official therapy program available.  Eagala is the premier international certification program in EAP.   The model requires a licensed mental health professional and I have a great one.  And an Equine Specialist, yours truly.  And 1 or more horses.  You see, it is a 3-part team.  The horses are therapy team members just like the humans. 
 
Have I piqued your attention?  I hope so.  There will be more on this, and the training journey of my hoof trim protégé coming soon. 
 
Tell me what you want to hear about, and I will try to fulfill your request.  Is there a particular horse here at The Wings Programs Inc and LayzD Equine Services LLC you would like to know more about?  Hoof care questions?  Send a message and see what pops up in the next Blog. 

On Monday (day 3) this gelding was treated with PEMF (Pulsed Electro-Magnetic Wave) or MagnaWave therapy.  We have found this to be very useful in increasing circulation and promoting healing in recent injuries and also with rehabbing old injuries.  He walked out much better after the treatment.  On Tuesday the heat was gone in the leg, swelling less but still there.   Cold hosing and polticing were done on both Monday and Tuesday.  

Wednesday morning he was back to limping but not as bad as when he came in.  It was decided to do a follow up PEMF treatment and once again he improved.  By Friday he was back to lame and holding the hoof up, laying down frequently and I could tell he was not feeling good.  Continued with cold and poltice therapies.  

I began to suspect a hoof abscess.  Unfortunately with the shoe and pad there is no way to assess the hoof.  Saturday the owner came to pick the horse up (he was out of town during the therapy week).  In discussion it was revealed that the vet did not do radiographs (x-rays) so diagnosis was with presenting symptoms.  During the hosing and clipping of the excess hair, a pastern cut was observed that appeared to be recent rather than an old scar.  This could also contribute to the injury.   

The hooves themselves do not appear to be correctly balanced prior to installing the shoes and pads.  It was determined that the owner would take the horse back to the vet for a follow up examination, request shoe removal and discuss our findings with the vet to help get a better diagnosis of the situation.  This time the owner is able to talk with the vet armed with lots of education and information so he can ask probing questions and be part of the treatment plan.  He will follow up with me and hopefully with more information, a bare hoof to examine we can get this horse back to soundness quickly.  

On arrival day (Saturday) I worked on assessment and initial treatment.  I did one cold hosing and polticing and 1 serving of feed with nutricuitals.  I guess he wasnt sure of the taste as it took all day for him to clean his tub.  Sunday included cold hosing in the am, again in the afternoon and reapplying of poltice.   As with the day before, in the afternoon he was still working on the his feed but I am sure it will be gone this morning.  

Photos after am cold hosing.   The area still has heat in it.  Today (Monday) he will get PEMF treatment which is more effective in an acute injury to help with healing.  

Reapplication of mud poltice in the afternoon.