Photos
Anna is an aged (23+yrs) donkey with severely neglected hooves. She has foundered in the past about 15 yrs ago and since then had been receiving infrequent and inadequate hoof care. This picture was taken before her first trim, on Dec1, 2006. notice how rounded her body posture is. Anna was barely able to walk forward and did most of her moving around by shuffling backwards. There are drag marks throughout her stall, showing how she moved.. When she was picked up by Denise to be taken back to her rehabilitation facility she basically had to be picked up and placed in the trailer.
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This picture was taken of Anna just moments after her second trim which occurred on Dec 14, 2006. Notice her improved body stance as well as how her expression has brightened up. When I showed up to trim her, Anna took one look at me and RAN out the barn door. She was trotting away from Denise as fast as she could.. We were THRILLED to see her making such haste away from me.. lol. |
Anna's hind feet before her first trim. (Dec 1) She was rocked back totally standing on the backs of her heels. |
Anna's hind feet after her first trim. WOW!! There was more work I could have done but she was tired, I was tired and the sun was going down. I was due back at this farm in 2 weeks, so I figured I would do more on her feet then.
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Anna's hind feet after her second trim on Dec 14, 2006. They almost look normal and Anna has completely stopped moving backwards as a way of locomotion. |
Anna's front feet before her first trim on Dec 1, 2006. Anna was so sore on these feet that when she was standing, she would constantly be shifting her weight bank and forth on her front feet. Never putting her weight on one for more then a few moments.
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Anna's front feet after their first trim Dec. 1, 2006
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Anna's front feet after her 2nd trim. I was able to take more heel off and natualize her angles a bit more. She still has a ways to go on her front feet, but she is well on her way towards healthy hooves for the first time in 15 years.
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This is a picture of the frog on Anna's hind foot. Taken during her first trim it shows how long the frog had grown, pulling forward totally covering "the bottom" of Anna's hoof. I had already trimmed off quite a bit by the time this picture was taken. |
A note about Anna..
Working on Anna's feet has been an incredible education for me and was probably one of the highlights of my year. It was SO COOL to see the donkey perk up and regain mobility so quickly. After her first trim, Denise called me to say that Anna was eating better, drinking better, and yes, pooping better then she had in weeks. The rehabilitation of an animal that has been the victim of neglect can be an awesome experience. It is an endeavor that works best with the support of a team of professionals. In addition to hoof care, Anna has had significant rehabilitative massage work (needed after years of her being in that hunched up posture) and nutritional management. |
Diamond's right front hoof Dec 06.. about 10 months into her natural hoof care transition. You cand see the concavity starting to emerge in her sole. This mare had some of the flattest soles I have seen.. no concavity what so ever. so I am thrilled to see it finally happening.
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Diamond's left front foot again with emerging concavity.. These pictures were taken after Diamond had just completed several miles of riding on a country gravel road as part of a challenge to ride 100+ miles a month barefoot!. She is doing great!! |
Grace ~ left front hoof April 06, shoes just removed, picture taken before trim |
Grace ~ left front hoof Aug 16, 2006. Picture taken after trim. white line is tighter (less flaring at the toe)
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Grace ~ sole view, April 2006 after shoe removal, before trim. Her frog was pretty well rotted completely away and her sole was flakey and poor quality. Her toes stretch forward causing a very long foot and adding lots of leverage when she moves.
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Grace ~ sole view Aug 16, 06. she just shed off a full layer of dead sole, exposing young, immature sole underneath. Her overall foot length has shorted up and her frog has recovered somewhat. Her heals have decontracted a bit as well. What is missing in this mare's hoof rehab plan is the exercise part of the equation. Grace is mostly a pasture pet who doesn't hvae to work to hard for a living. Her lack of exercise makes it difficult for her soles and frogs to callus up and wear properly. Her owner hopes to increase her exercise and I am sure when that happens, Grace's feet will benifit greatly from it. With just the trimming alone, her feet have come so far, imagine if we can get the exercise part of this going too!! |