A talk with a vet in Boise about glue-on shoes for laminitis cases

I was at a clinic in Idaho last month, and a vet there, Dr. Ellis, told me she's seen a real shift. She said some farriers now use glue-on shoes for almost every bad laminitis case, even when the horse can still take a nail. Her point was that it takes all the pressure off the white line and lets the hoof wall just be a wall again. But I've always been taught that a well-fit nail-on shoe, with the right pad and maybe some pour-in, gives better support for a long term fix. She showed me x-rays of a pony we both knew, and the difference after six weeks in glue-ons was hard to argue with. It made me wonder if I'm being too stuck in my ways about using nails when the hoof is already in crisis. What's the group's take on when to switch from traditional nailing to a full glue-on system for these tough founder cases?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_derek21d ago

Look at us, still arguing about nails when the hoof is literally falling apart. Maybe the old way isn't the only way? If the x-rays show it working, what are we even holding onto, just the sound of the hammer?

derek86820d ago

That hammer sound is just nostalgia at this point.