You're not going to believe this....

[HoustonFarrier]

I got called to work on a big Shire mare last weekend. No one can pick up her feet, they are a mess. So, I go see the mare, and she is very pushy, absolutly will NOT pick up her feet. So I tell the owner, she needs to come to our place, so I can put her in the shoeing stocks. Owner agrees, so off we go. We get her home, she goes right in the stocks(evidently, she's been in them before). I trim her feet, they are SEVERLY overgrown. The bars wrap around the foot, and there are old abscess's under the bars. I trim the foot, get it cleaned up nice, and notice the horrible smell coming from her feet. I squeeze her frog, and it starts to bleed! She either has real bad thrush in the central sulcus, or canker. I clean her out as good as I can, trim all the dead frog off, put some betadine in there and take her back to the stables. I tell her this, and that she needs to get her to her vet ASAP. So, what does she do......she takes a picture of her mares feet, sends them to her vet, and vet says she does not have canker!!!!!! Can you believe that !!!! Geez.........:rolleyes::mad:

Steve

[lovesfortune]

so now what's happening? that sounds like a mess.

do you think she's not picking up her feet because she is in pain from all that? or just attitude? how do you treat for all that when you can't pick up her feet?

Does she have to stay at your place now??

[FoxFireEMT]

Some people just seem not to care 100% about their horses like they should.

[HoustonFarrier]

so now what's happening? that sounds like a mess.
Don't know. She is at the stables the owner is boarding her at. She has not told me anything else. The stables owner called me and told me what she did, and that the owner is moving the horse to another stable, because she thinks the current stable is at fault(which they aren't).

do you think she's not picking up her feet because she is in pain from all that? or just attitude?
Mostly learned response. I think she was done in stocks before, so that is all she knows. She bully's her owner allot, but she was a very nice for me...course I don't allow myself to be intimidated:)

how do you treat for all that when you can't pick up her feet?
Exactly ! Probably why she is in the position she is in now.

Does she have to stay at your place now??
Nope....unless the owner wakes up. This is the first draft she has ever had/seen/owned, and she was telling me I was wrong on reccomendations I was giving her....so....:eek:

Steve

[FoxFireEMT]

You just can't help the ignorant. You can't fix stupid!

hey I love my farrier because he helps me better understand things I don't know. I trust him w/ my horse hoof life! ;)

[lovesfortune]

ugh. what a headache. at least you treated her while she was at your place to give her a little relief. i hope her owner wises up and figures out she needs vet care and a new owner.

[vicklynn]

You have got to be kidding me. Someone slap that girl and wake her up.
No feet, no horse. So the horse continues to suffer, in some type of pain, or disease, cause the owner is an idiot.

[livaward]

Geeze! Poor Steve........aren't people aggravating!

[palomino]

Yikes- sounds like canker to me- thats why vets arent farriers I guess.

[cloedoll]

Oh my, poor horse!!

[Lakota's Pet]

ok, just me, but people that don't want to learn how to take care of their horses, especially drafts, should not own them. Period. I never understood how much different a draft was till my sister got her belgian. It's been a learning experience, and we have welcome any advice that the more experienced had to offer.

[KittySawrus]

D: respect for you Steve! I can tell half the people who replied to this wouldn't mind giving that girl a good shake, me included!

[luv2show]

Oh no, poor horse! I feel like I want to smack the owner :mad:

[sugarsgirl]

Aw, poor horse! I hope she gets everything worked out!

[PatriotsDreamer]

I wonder if the vet even really said it wasnt a canker or if she is just saying that because she doesnt want to have the vet out or something. It doesnt add up, there is blood and something is obviously NOT right. are you sure she really called the vet? id take a picture and send it to your personal vet and then tell her what your vet says.

[Steelhorserider]

You did your best for the mare....poor thing has a fool for an owner who wants to place blame everywhere but where it belongs--with her.

[medicine hat]

ah, the joys of dealing with the general public.....

[gaited07]

Does she not realize that you work on horse's feet ALL THE FREAKIN TIME and that YOU MIGHT KNOW SOMETHING!
Gee, lady, buy a ticket and get in the game before you loose that horses feet.

[PoniesRock101]

awwwwww poor horse!

[Dakota Rain]

Sounds like this lady AND the vet need to have their heads knocked together. Life is so much easie when owners, vets and farriers work together.

[42many]

I don't suppose you got any good pics of the bottoms while you had her in stocks, did you? I assume the lady could only send side views, since she couldn't pick them up at all... how can a vet even begin to make a solid yes/no response to a farrier's informed diagnosis based on that? Sheesh.

[PaintedLady]

Hate to sound like a complete....idiot....but...what's a canker?
I would FREAK if I ever saw blood coming out of a horse's feet! Is this a 'typical' thing...or one that's mostly indigenous of draft horses? (Hey...that's an honest question!!)

[HoustonFarrier]

Canker...in laymans terms...is thrush x 1 million.

It is a multi-faceted infection of the soft tissue of the hoof, which WILL move into the boney structure and blood system, and eventually kill the horse if not treated aggressivly. Some vets *think* it is more of a cancer than an infection.

Steve

[PaintedLady]

Thank you for the answer! We've had a 'wet year', but the horses (fortunately) mostly stand in/on dry. I keep their lots & stalls picked, and 'bedded' with wood chips/shavings. I don't *think* thrush is a problem, much less a canker! (Guess I've been lucky...can't imagine!!)

[westmanfarrier]

Just what sort of vet will give a diagnosis based on a photo? Yikes. I know a lot of people are out there to save a buck, but the vet should have the integrity to do a physical evaluation before mustering a diagnosis. He needs a culture, doesn't he, before he can say yes/no to canker?

[IrisGreen]

So sorry to hear about that Steve. Here you work with abandoned and rescued horses in far worse condition and owners that don't even want to do right by there horse. Now you have to deal with a "lady" that "thinks" she is doing right and doesn't see or want to see how bad the situation has progressed.

Does she know who she is dealing with? Apparently not or she would have listened to you and researched in to it, how to treat it, how to train her horse to pick up it's feet with out a stalk.

Did you tell her what Canker is? Maybe she would get more concerned if you told her it's an infection that can kill the horses if not treated by a vet that knows the condition.

How sad to know the lady thinks she knows what she is doing!! I'm a first time horse owner but I about freak any time something is wrong with Muffin. Call the vet, farrier and get everyone involved!! I go a little over board but I am learning what is worth freaking out over and what I can treat or bandage up. I couldn't imagine blood coming out of Muffins foot and not asking a ton of questions, wanting to know if you could board her for me so we could use your stalks to help with her treatment and definitely getting the vet out or on the phone to know what antibiotics we need to give her.

I wonder if you could figure out what vet she sent the pictures too and call them up and let them know the feet look good now that you trimmed them but that doesn't change the fact the Mare has a major infection in her frog.

What a mess. Sure hope the owner wises up before it's past the point of treatment.

[HoustonFarrier]

Just what sort of vet will give a diagnosis based on a photo?
Exactly....but I don't know the whole story yet....I don't know WHAT the owner said for sure?

He needs a culture, doesn't he, before he can say yes/no to canker?
At the very least, a hands on (by the vet) eval of the horse.

I did explain in-depth what canker is, and I made sure to impress upon her that it was the vet who needs to make the definitive diagnosis. I am only a farrier, and by law, I cannot diagnose any medical condition on a client horse.

Steve

[PaintedLady]

Is there any way you could...uhm...'throw your weight around'? I mean...we've all SEEN you working with Houston SPCA (I think that's the name...)
I know as a farrier you can't 'play a vet (on TV');), but could you at least run a REPORT on this horse/owner??
Do you know where she's moved this horse??
This gal really is ignoring everything you said. (I'm like IrisGreen....can't imagine...) And you've seen the condition with both eyes...and your hands!
So....a 'real' vet would 'run a culture' on this??

[Piper522]

I learn so much from these threads...I had no idea what "canker" ever was! Thanks for sharing Steve!

[PaintedLady]

I learn so much from these threads...I had no idea what "canker" ever was! Thanks for sharing Steve!
Same here, Piper. (obviously...)
I think what I've learned the most is, people never cease to amaze me!

[TLC97]

This lady is stupid and her vet is a whack job. Maybe we should give her an old fashioned forum beat down.

[HoustonFarrier]

Is there any way you could...uhm...'throw your weight around'?

The thought has occurred to me......but I don't know where she took the horse.

Steve

[PaintedLady]

After I wrote that, I wondered if you'd even *want* to! (throw your weight around.) I mean...you have a very respected position...don't 'blow' it over somebody being really stooooooopid. Ya know??)

[Diane of Buck's Hollow]

Sounds like you at least gave her some relief. Good Grief!!! Why!!!! Someone tell me why these people even want a horse, would ya!!!!!!!!

[KCandAllegro'sMom]

The thought has occurred to me......but I don't know where she took the horse.

Steve

Someone at the last stable might know where she moved...just a thought.