Quickie Tootsie Post

I have plenty to write about, as usual, but again as usual I have been completely overwhelmingly swamped with life, working full time as well as managing an ever-growing small business AND doing schoolwork, riding Pangea, and trying to squeeze in a little time with poor neglected Future Hubs as well. Literally I am nonstop on the go from the second I wake up until the second I pass out, more than I think I ever have been. It's actually a bit of a blessing to not have a horse that I am gearing for competition right now, simply because there is absolutely no possible way I would ever be able to find enough time to do it - much less have the time on weekends (my prime trimming time) to actually ever GO to a show. Someday when I am only working ONE job... then maybe I will have time for blogging. As it is, I am pretty sure I am behind on absolutely everything that I have to do anyway.

So this post is quick, just a little update on Pangea's yecky little feet. She came to me with a history of being shod for years, feet hacked apart, bruised and sad and thin soled and weak. I was told, just as I was told with Gogo when I bought her, that her feet were terrible and would have to be therapeutically shod for all of eternity. Well, we all know how well that went over with Gogo! Pangea's feet, while still very poor, have shown remarkable rapid improvement inbetween trim times, but it wasn't until I put comparison photos side by side that I really got a good look at how much better she is doing already.

 Today's lesson in managing the barefoot horse: don't cut away good healthy frog material! The picture on the left is Pangea's left foot before her first trim done by me, clearly showing where someone took a hoof knife and pared away loads of material. The entire back of her foot looks shrunken and small. On the right you'll see the foot just a mere 4 weeks later, again before I trimmed her. LOOK at the difference in that frog! All I did was not touch it and ride her regularly on differing terrain. She's not particularly comfortable on gravel but everywhere she lands, she lands heel first on this foot. (The other front foot lands about 90% of the time heel first and the frog is taking a longer time to develop.)

Awesome. More on our most recent Mr. Toad's Wild Ride trail adventure soon!