Henry Wahl

Henry came to me in June 2003. He had under run heels as well as contracted heels. The x-rays showed navicular spurs on both besides of both front feet. The owner was told the she might get one year out of him. The vet sent Sue to me the first shoeing I raised his angle 10 degrees, this stood Henry up to a natural angle he seemed to travel better right away. In time I slowly got rid of the wedges to where Henry could be shod with normal shoes. We re:x-rayed Henry in 2008 and found no changes too his navicular. In 2011 Sue took Henry on the ride for cancer on 22 highway. Sue said he never took a bad step.This is proof that hoof balance does make a difference.Now Henry is bare foot and happy 10 years later.

Tricky Garnier

This was a gelding that was brought for veterinary and farrier examination. The gelding has minimal response to hoof testers over the medial and lateral aspect of the frog as well as minimal response to sole pressure. The owner had him examined by another vet who performed nerve blocks and determined that there was a positive response to a lower posterior nerve block making them suspicious of heel and foot pain. I performed radio graphs of this patient and found him to be moderately to severely unbalanced medial to laterally as can be seen on the left DP radio graph. The coffin joint spaces have a significant difference in measurement. The patient was trimmed and balanced and radio graphs were taken again for interest purposes and the coffin joint was re-balanced to almost the millimeter. The navicular radio graphs of this patient did reveal some mild sclerosis in the navicular bone which most likely could be attributed to years of improper hoof care causing abnormal stress in the caudal heel region resulted in chronic changes of the bone and the surrounding soft tissue. After examining this horse and working with Ian to balance the horses feet I do believe that there is a fair to good prognosis that this horse can go on to have a long sound career.

B Kay

Front Feet Before (too small shoes, heels to far
forward, pastern hoof angle to low)

 Front Feet After (heels back under cannon
bone, hoof angle raised to balance with pastern)

                                      
                                                                         



Hind Feet Before (too small shoes, heels too far
forward, hoof pastern angle too low)

Hind Feet After (hoof angle raised to balance with
pastern, bigger shoe puts heel base under cannon bone)

                                                                                               



B Kay

 Shauna B Kay story

 

I bought Dr. Hempen B Kay late summer 2008 at the age of 17. I knew he was a stallion and had bred

approximately 100 mares until Irene had him gelded at age 13, Irene also trained him for Barrel Racing &

 

Team Roping. From the first time I rode him I loved him, he is an amazing animal.

Every jackpot we entered from the day I bought him I either won it or made money through to the PCBRA

finals September 2008.

We ended up the 1D runner up winning a beautiful buckle.

Winter 2008 I went in the Double Dollar series and did very well there also, however B Kay had a reoccurring

uveitis in his right eye that would not clear up. The vet in Peace River looked at him several

times and told me to increase his drops and it should clear up. He had injected dye to see if there was any

permanent damage under the cloudiness and said there wasn't any. I asked for a referral to somewhere

with more experience we ended up in Edmonton at Westwind Veterinary Clinic where he was diagnosed

with little or no sight left in his right eye.

Dr. Amy Doyle recommended removing the eye. I asked for a

second opinion we went to calgary to Moore & Company and met an optomoligist specialist from the care

Center, he said the same as Dr Doyle. We went back and Dr. Doyle removed his eye.  B Kay's eye

healed well and come spring 09 we took out our permit, our runs were ok at the start but I

could tell something was off and by June I was back at Westwind for a lameness exam. I thought because

of the way they had hoisted B Kay by his legs and feet to get B Kay on the operating table to do the

surgery that had caused him the trouble. B Kay was never packing a leg but he was off. Dr. Doyle did a

lameness exam and x rays. She concluded that B Kay showed signs of navicular on both front legs.

We tried a drug she recommended called Tildren that was done by an IV drip over 4 hours, it was very

expensive and suppose to go directly to the problem area to help. She also recommended a farrier that

could do corrective work; he came to the clinic to work on B Kay. We tried corrective shoeing & jell pads.

It did not work. I tried several different drugs and herbs that included adeqaun & silver lining herbs and

many others over the summer of 09 nothing worked. I also had tried all kinds of therapy from massage,

chiropactic & touch for health. I tried magnetic & back on track products. We also went to an equine

rehab therapy facility by Carstairs, Alberta.

I had a second opinion from Or. Chad Hewlett, he looked at B Kay's x

-rays and also watched him in the round pen and basically said the same thing Navicular

I refused to bute B Kay to run him

so I turned him out until spring 2010 when I was told about Dr. Charles

Briggs. We went to see Dr. Briggs and he also did a lameness exam and felt it was more Arthritis in both

front legs from the knee down
 

We tried injections that took the edge off and appeared to make B Kay sound, I competed in jackpots

throughout June, July& Aug 2010.

The first injections lasted about 5 weeks and each time they did not last as long. I decided when the

summer series of 5 jackpots at Swartzy's was over & B Kay had the fasted overall time & the open 10

buckle that it was time to retire him. It was not fair to him to keep going because he has the biggest

heart& would probably run on 3 legs if I asked him.

All the drugs that I tried were very expensive not to mention the travel from Manning, Alberta to the

Edmonton area. I was very discouraged and once again turned him out. Again he was not packing a leg

while walking in his pasture

My friend Marti told me that I should haul him to her Farrier Ian Zoerb in Brooks, Alberta. But by that point

I was so discouraged and had spent so much money. I believed what the vets had said about

B Kay having Nuvicular and Arthritis and that he was done. I turned him out and retired him again.

Well I should have listened to Marti then because I met up with her July 2012 and had B Kay with me so a

little girl could try him because I felt he still had a lot to

offer and thought maybe with the right family he

could help a child learn to do barrels.

Marti & her husband Terry who have both taken Ian Zoerb's farrier clinics twice had a look at B Kay and

being one of my best buddies Marti told me straight out if I was to get my ass to Ian she was almost a

100% sure he could get B Kay sound.

Marti did me a huge favor and called Ian and explained my issues with B Kay and we were extremely lucky

that Ian squeezed us in on July 25, 2012.

After Ian was done B Kay was sound.

I know fricken amazing!

I started with light workouts to let him get used to being balanced and at the correct angles. On Aug 4th,

5th & 6th we went in our first jackpots at Swartzy's (an amazing sand arena).

I had planned on just loping the pattern to see how B Kay handled the ground and the workout, well he

had different ideas. He remembered the arena on our way up the alley and when we were headed to the

first barrel he let me know he was feeling dam good and he was in charge. I let him pick his pace and just

went along for the ride. We ended up a tenth

too fast to win the 2 D average over the weekend.

This from a horse that was nowhere in shape and just got

trimmed and shoed correctly by Ian Zoerb

10 days earlier and had about 30 hours in a trailer from the 23rd - 26th.

We continued our light workouts increasing slowly and went to Ian for a second re-set on Aug 28th.

We went to the PCBRAfinals September 7th, 8th & 9th 2012

. We ended up winning the 2D on Sunday

with a 16.854, the fastest time was set by a professional barrel racer with a 16.016

I audited some of Ian's farrier clinic in Grande Prairie Oct 2012.

I cannot say enough about what Ian has done for B Kay. B Kay struts his

stuff in his pasture to let me

know how good he feels. I am very excited for 2013 barrel racing season to start.

I have arranged with Ian to have him come to Manning, Alberta the weekend of April 20, 21 & 22, 2013 to

teach a farrier clinic

. We are very lucky to have Ian share his knowledge with us.

 

Shauna Kamieniecki

 

 

 

 

 

.

 

l

 

.