Veterinary, plumb lines and shoeing

We focus once again on hoof shoeing in this extract from the manual by Doctor Vittorio Meschia entitled “The lameness of the horse, know to understand“.In the previous issue, we considered some basic principles of shoeing, such as the analysis of plumb lines and of stress. Now we look into the different types of horseshoes.There is a difference between normal and orthopaedic horseshoes: the first ones protect the hoof from usage, while the second are used to correct the anomalies of the plumb line.Many horseshoes have a specific application: the different anomalies of the plumb lines can affect more on the bone elements or on the fibre-elastic ones as tendons and ligaments.There are two factors, connected to one another, that must be considered when trimming and shoeing a hoof:
1) The plumb line of the limb that can modify the stress on the bones and can emphasize or reduce the activity of the elastic segments.
2) The plumb line of the digital axis which determines the development of the frog, whose mechanics conditions the shape of the foot.It is not possible to give a ‘recipe’ for each foot anomaly because each horse needs an intervention which must be confirmed from the effects on the movement and the pain.We hope these tips can help the reader to understand better and try to reproduce the right measures to favour as much as possible a regular activity. Some anomalies of the plumb line of the foot can be the consequence of anomalies of other parts of the limb, so every action on the foot can have repercussions also on higher levels.To be followed in the net issue.
From “The lameness of the horse, know to understand“ by Doctor Vittorio Meschia. 
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