We first met Birkes eight months ago. At the time, he had quarter cracks on the medial side of each hoof, starting at the hairline and extending downwards. Muscle, movement, and hoof imbalances are often the culprit in these cases, and these imbalances can form harmful feedback loops that worsen the symptoms and make it increasingly difficult to correct the patterns causing them.
At the time of filming of this video, Principal Farrier Seth Noble had been working with Birkes for six or seven months. The treatment plan has been to offer maximum support and stability for the hoof while trimming against Birkes' harmful growth patterns to gradually allow hm to regain more balanced movement and coordination as the hoof grows back out without further cracking.
You will see in this video how successful it has been thus far. You will also see Seth forge custom egg bar shoes for Birkes, give insights into how these negative growth patterns manifest in the hoof and can be corrected, and reiterate some fundamental horsemanship skills for horses.
Main theme song: “I Study Horses” by Mark Pickerel and His Praying Hands
Additional music by:
Roybushband
JuliusH
Thanks to Darcey Clark and Birkes for allowing us to film our work. Special thanks to Cedar Meadow Farms and Alyssa Pitts for letting us film on location.