Podiatry
No hoof no horse is the old saying. To that end Dr Maker enjoys working with local farriers to formulate an appropriate program for farrier care. Gait analysis and an understanding of the biomechanics of the foot is as essential as the team approach between farrier and veterinarian. We approach these cases individually and often with radiographic assessments.
What we look for in this process is:
- Sole Depth - the amount of sole underneath the apex of the coffin bone.
- Palmar Angle - the angle that the wings of the coffin bone make with the ground.
- Digital Breakover - the horizontal distance from the apex of the coffin bone to where the foot or shoe stops touching the ground.
- Horn/Lamellar Zone - the distance between the outside of the hoof wall and the coffin bone, measured in two places, just below the extensor process of the coffin bone, and at the Alec of the coffin bone.
- Coronary Band-Extensor Process Distance – the vertical distance between the top of the coronary band and the top of the extensor process.
- Bone Angle - the Angle the bottom of the coffin bone makes with its face, at the toe.
“The important thing to remember is that the inside health of the foot determines its outside health. We should shift our focus from trying to create the "perfect" cosmetic appearance to understanding what a healthy foot looks like on the inside and out, and strive for that. Our horses will thank us”.
Here is a couple picts of a recent unattended seedy toe which resulted in osteomyelitis of the coffin bone from start to finish. Check out the full story and video on our facebook and instram pages.
Farriers:We are lucky in the roaring fork valley to be able to work with a group of highly talented and dedicated farriers. Here are the names and point of contact of several we work with serving the Roaring Fork, Eagle Valleys and I70 areas (garfield, Eagle and Pitkin counties).
- Cricket McLaren 970-390-9019 (Eagle Valley)
- Annette Terhune-Kracl 970-930-0062
- Aaron Schwaderer 412-417-4712
- Chris Aldefer -951-265-7439
- Chris Comroe 970-306-8720 (eagle I70)
- Nate Oetter - 970-560-6058
- Molly Ring 970-379-0034
- Tom Cristel -317-586-7834
- Dan Spradlin – 970-618-4869
- Cougar Pursley 931-349-7118
- Molly Ring – 970-963-9458
- Nate May 970-274-9493
- Brenton Flohe 970-765-6442
- Randy Wedhorn – 970-379-7652
- Kevin Farrell - 970-366-0542
- Josh Aikens 970-319-9905
- Colton Matindale 970-846-3497
- Umberto Romero 970-379-1056