club foot

[skippersmom]

Does anyone have any experience with club foot (hoof). I've been told my mare may be club??

[horsegirl4]

my gelding has a slight club foot. what did u need to know?

[TDH]

I have a gelding who has a very slight club foot that is prevented from affecting him by the way it's trimmed. Once he's broke, he will be my "every day" riding horse for trails, parades, wagon trains etc.... If it's not a severe club foot, a knowledgeable farrier can keep the horse sound and useful.

If you're wondering what it is - in layman's terms, basically the hoof grows too straight to the ground instead of on the ideal 45º slant.

Diagram:
http://www.harvestfields.ca/HerbBook...2/image083.png

[CatsTack]

A true club foot is more rare than we think. As said above when the angle is too straight folks refer to the hoof as being a club foot, but it don't mean it's a true club foot. I noticed in the horses I trim that the bones are actually different in the foot.

Trimming correctly can help a club foot. Most horseys that have 'club' feet have just been poorly trimmed.

[PaintsQH]

Catstack, the last statement is incorrect. A club foot is not man made. Its not rare either. Bad farrier work can make a normal hoof look too upright by leaving too much heel and not enough toe, but a true club footed horse will have a more narrow heel, and be more upright and boxy then the other hoof. Proper trimming can correct it to a certain degree, but its always going to be there. You cant reverse nature. My 4 yr old Paint has one and its boxy, but my farrier has done a wonderful job over the last 3 years that unless you really look, or know what correct conformation is, you wouldnt even know he has one. But pick up the hoof, and you can see the narrow heel. He doesnt wear shoes, and has never been lame. I have him trimmed every 5-6 weeks, but sometimes at 4 weeks depending on the hoof growth. He also has buck teeth, but cant see that either unless he opens his mouth Bless his heart

[Spyder]

http://www.wiwfarm.com/cub_foot.htm

[PaintsQH]

Interesting link Spyder. Thanks for posting it. The sire of my APHA gelding is known to throw a club foot and parrot mouth "now and then", but they still stand him. I guess its the gamble some breeders chose to take. I ended up with both. I knew he had both, but chose to buy him anyway and it was the best purchase I ever made. Awesome W/P horse

[jolene.fargo]

I agree with PaintsQH, club feet aren't rare and aren't man made though I guess anything is possible on the man made part.
My friends gelding was born with a club foot, he's just being started under saddle and he's doing well. He had surgery over the winter to help correct it and with his proper trimming, he's perfectly sound and the club foot is fixed.
He was never lame on it before the surgery but my friend had it fixed just in case it was to cause trouble later on in his training and also because the surgery results were coming out at 99% corrected and perfectly sound.

My other friend just bought a 13 year old mare that is a multiple 3'6" and higher hunter champion and she has a noticable clubbed foot. Lots of horses all over have them, some are lame because of this and some are perfectly fine. The club foot causes the toe to hit first as I was explained from a friend, thus making the foot sore and causing more harmful damage.

I'll look into the surgery that my friend got done, there was 20 horses of all ages up to the age of 21. 19 horses are perfectly sound, 1 older mare dies on the table unfortunately. The surgery itself was quick and it didn't take long to heal.

[PaintsQH]

My vet suggested the surgery but I decided to see if trimming would help, and it did. He had a few little problems when I took him in for his first vet check after I bought him. Club foot, parrot mouth, one nut wonder Got a little paranoid thinking $$$$$ out the ying yang after the vet told me he might need the tendon cut, and abdominal surgery for the testicle. I waited until he was 2 to geld him. My farrier who I am on a more friend vs client relationship kept telling me to wait, it will drop. He felt it there and of course he was right. Not that I would take a farrier's advise over a vet's, but some are too quick to tell you surgery will be the only cure for a problem. I know they do know best, but after talking to numerous people/breeders, I decided to wait. Glad I did. Normal gelding procedure. It was there, just small. His club foot is fine (I had him xrayed at 2) and its great. It does require more precise trimming to keep him balanced, but Im hopeing for a long, sound healthy life for my boy.

Jolene-just some advise. Have his lower legs and hooves xrayed. Just to make sure both hooves are ok and its a valuable tool for the farrier. Since he is started under saddle now, you want to make sure you have a balanced horse.

[Range]

I disagree, some club feet are "man-made" through poor trimming. The angles of a hoof can be permanently altered through incorrect trimming.

98% of natural club feet occur on the off fore.

There are three degrees of club feet with a grade three being the worst.

Yes, they can be an inherited trait.

Make sure your farrier knows what he's doing in dealing with a club foot. The old way of doing things had the farrier whacking as much of the heel off of the club foot as possible to "stretch" the DDF. The DDF does NOT stretch, however, and whacking the heel off just increases the pull on the coffin bone - causing rotation and founder in that hoof.

They are manageable and most horses suffer no ill-effects from them as long as they aren't severe and the farrier is knowledgeable enough to realize that both feet don't have to match!

[yellowhorsesinc]

I have a mare with a club foot. She was born perfectly and got a contracted flexor tendon while growing. I had surgery done on her and we immediately started corrective trimming and she ended up with a severe club foot. She has had 4 foals and not one of them has had a club foot or even a tendency to club.
I am not sure I believe a club foot is inheritable unless the foal is born with one. A horse that grows into one is a wholly different thing.

[equine.trailrider]

I have a mare with somewhat of a club foot. A friend told me I shouldn't have her bred b/c it's hereditary. My new farrier is coming Thursday and I'm going to get his professional opinion. She's an very well bred paint and we'd like her offspring to keep.

[Logan-24-]

My Andy X has a slight club + toe in, but our farrier takes special care to it and we have not had a problem. Cammy (knock on wood) has not been lame a day in her life or at least the 3 years we've had her.

[jolene.fargo]

PaintsQH, he had x-rays before and after, he's good to go and is impressive to watch in the ring! My friend was so pleased with the whole process and how well he healed.
Her farrier was happy too, though again surgery is not for every horse. My friend knew that his club foot would hinder him at some point seeing as it was worse than most horses. As long as there is regular trimming, he won't ever have a problem competing.

The stallion that he comes from throws club feet. Not sure why she keeps breeding him but she doesn't mention it to peple who are looking at him for their mares. Terrible on her part. He's a nice looking stud but who cares when every foal is clubbed and half of them have a parrot mouth.

Good to know that some can be man-made from poor farrier work or growth into it. I'll have to read more into it.

[GreyDot]

Dot has one slightly clubbed foot. It's really not a problem. If it's just a bit narrow and upright, there is a lot that a farrier can do to open it up. The foot that really needs the help, though, is not the club one - it's the opposite one. That's usually the foot that has the flatter heels that can become under-run very easily. Every farrier that ever worked on Dot told me that they weren't as much worried about the slight clubbing as they were about supporting the heels of the other one. Don't worry, though - very mild club-footing is really quite common. Dot performed at a very high level with one, so I wouldn't worry about it too much. Just talk to your farrier and be sure to support that opposite foot's heels!

[CatsTack]

I club foot can be man made, most definitely. As I said trimming correctly can help a club foot. You're right a true club foot will always be there, however correct trimming can help.

Most club hooves are just "grazing hooves". In other words the horsey uses the club foot to stand on and doesn't switch.

[Crookedblaze]

A good friend of mine who was a trainer had a NSH with a club foot, and she competed in Nationals and won. A good farrier can make a huge difference, though.