Willow has definitely had her hooves trimmed before, but not the way our Farrier does them. Our Farrier is a Natural Hoof Care specialist, and does barefoot horse care. I adore him. I loved the way he took care of Willow during the procedure...his patience and understanding of Horsenalities! He taught me so much during the process, it was amazing! I feel like I know my way around a hoof much better now, and I'm not afraid I'm going to hurt her.
Phil uses an angle grinder on the horses' hooves to create a smooth surface that's less likely to chip and split. Willow's hooves have been left unattended for so long that she's way over grown. She'll need to be seen every 4 weeks for awhile, until her hoof is back to the proper size. I knew she needed attention. I just didn't realize it had been that long since she'd had attention.
Let that be a thought on your mind if you adopt a horse from a rescue... They do the best they can for horses, but they can't attend to every horse all the time. If there are a lot of horses, and not a lot of caregivers, then there's not a lot of one on one care being given to the horses. That doesn't make the rescue a bad place...it just means that they aren't a home...they're a way-station in between death and salvation of a new, loving home. Don't expect that you're adopting a 100% fully healthy horse that's up to date on all immunizations, worming and routine care such as hoof care. The worst are attended to, and those that can wait, will and do. Facts are facts. You invest your resources where they're needed most. There's no shame in that....you just want to be mindful of it.
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