Anyway, when I went to feed the boys, Gilly came into the barn while I was getting their oats. I feed them outside so he turned and went back out and to the feeder by the gate. When I came back to the barn to fill up the water bucket and get hay, here is what I saw laying on the barn floor.
I picked it up and carried it to the yard by the patio so I could get my camera and take a picture. This is a cast of one of his hind feet, I can tell because they are have a more pointed toe than the front feet. I was looking at the long marks the bars of his hoof left. When he first started getting the barefoot trim almost 4 years ago he hardly had any bars but not look at them! Almost to the end of the frog! (click on picture to enlarge) There is also a large snow flake on the left side too!
Since it's cold outside and I am a wimp about the cold today I am staying inside and addressing my Christmas cards and am going to watch a movie, "Tombstone". Lots of horses in there to watch and Sam Elliott too (sigh) one of my favorite cowboys....my number one favorite is Tom Selleck (bigger sigh) and I have a lot of his movies too. So I'll be in front of the TV all day! LOL
My two favorite cowboys!!!
13 comments:
HAHA I love your hoof cast, I am finding them everywhere too!
Aha great find. I love finding those in the winter as well as when you pick their feet and they come out completely clean.
Jane, as a fairly new horse owner, since I've only had Pepper since May, I'm wondering if you shoe Gilly? I've had Pepper shoed in the front only over the summer and fall, since we do a lot of trail riding. But I just had her shoes pulled for the winter and got her trimmed up. I'm trying to find the time to do some reading on the issue and it appears that 'most' people let their horses go barefoot. So I thought I'd ask you and your horsey friends. So, does a horse only ridden on trails need to be shoed? Or is it better to leave her feet be and just get her trimmed when she needs it?
Thank you in advance.
JoJo
Amanda, I have found them before but not in as good a shape as this one was.
Sydney, yes, it was a good find. I love the look of the hoof after the snow cleans it out, nice!
JoJo, no, I have never had shoes on Gilly, and will never put shoes on, boots maybe, if he needs them. I know a woman around here that trail rides all the time and doesn't shoe her horse. She rides 25 to 40 miles a week and does the barefoot trim on her horse. The man that trims Gilly's feet is a certified barefoot trimmer, farriers who haven't had the training for this don't know how to do a true barefoot trim. There is more to is than just cutting off excess hoof or putting on a rolled edge on the hoof.
Here is a link to one of my older posts about barefoot trimming.
http://janeaugenstein.blogspot.com/2009/03/gillys-barefoot-trim.html
Depending on the horses feet, it may take a few months for the foot to be in really good shape to ride trails barefoot or only after one trim.
Google Jaime Jackson and Pete Ramey for more info on barefoot. These two men are the leading barefoot trimmers.
Congratulations on the new horse!!! Have fun riding! :-)
Jane...how cool is that! And, I'm with you on the cowboys.
Hi Jane ~ What a great find indeed!!! I too just LOVE when the hoof is all clean from the snow.
There is a certain romance about Cowboys isn't there!
~Jeni
What a great find indeed! Lucky you :)
Whenever I need a smile I just look at your header. I love those two!!!!!
xo, misha
How cool, and cool that he's gotten such healthy hooves!
Those two are the best!!
Hmm. No snow yet, and yay us.
My 2 favorite cowboys also :-)
Thank you so much for your feedback, Jane. I'm going to check out your earlier post and then will put Google to use finding information in the direction you've pointed me.
I'm still learning and want to know it all, but I realize that, like anything worthwhile, it's going to take time and effort to research all of this.
Now, another question. On your earlier post, I notice you have Gilly's front legs wrapped. The reason for this is????
JoJo
Jacque, thanks, yea, great cowboys!!!
Jeni, now I just have to look for one from Pokey's little feet. Ahh, cowboys and the old west!!! :-)
Misha, thanks! they are quite the pair!
Leah, we got more snow last night and it's soooo cold! I think these two just may be everyones favorite cowboys!!!
JoJo, you are welcome for the info. I read a lot of books about horses and like to learn everything I can about them.
The leg wraps are called Polo wraps, stretchy cotton fleece.They should be applied snugly but with even pressure to support the tendons. I only have them on about an hour when working, then take them off. I don't use them very often, I do like to have them on sometimes when taking pictures, to see his legs better.
I would think this would be used more by people whose horses are stalled all the time. Gilly is outside running in 5 acres all the time so maybe he doesn't need them at all. Some people use them all the time and some don't. Also some people use splint boots to work horses or trail ride with them, again they are for protection. I don't use them either. There is probably a lot of info out there about the pros and cons of them too. (thank goodness for the internet, there is so much info at our fingertips!)
Hope that helps! :-)
Awww! I love how you find something magical about Gilley's hoof cast. It does look photo worthy with snow as a background.
Enjoy your movies!
~Lisa
Lisa, the movie was great, lots of horses in it! ;-)
I showed the hoof cast and she said "It reminds me of a fossil, with the color and texture, and that the cast doesn't show the entire sole...like how most fossils are incomplete. Or, a "yeti" cast ;)" That made me really laugh, Yeti, another name for Big Foot.....Gilly has really big feet to now he has another nick name, Yeti!!! LOL
JoJo, you are welcome for the info. Please keep me updated on Pepper!!! you can email me privately if you like janeaugenstein@hughes.net
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