Hoof Nerds Unite!

Yeah, yeah, I know...odd title.  But I am slowly becoming what my friend would term a "hoof nerd".  So this and some posts in the future will be about what I am learning as I research and learn from peers about horses' feet.  For those non-horse people who read this, it's a lot more complex than you'd think.  

I mean think about it.  How big are horses?  Pretty damn big - and heavy.  (If you want to know how much without all the numbers involved, just have one accidentally step on you and put their full weight on your foot.  You'll quickly realize it.)  Now think about the feet that are supporting all that weight.  They have to be in good shape.  If their feet are in bad condition, it can affect a ton of other things in their health.

So, now that I know most of the basics of some of the other things I wanted to learn before I got Orion, I want to learn more about their feet.  Eventually I'd like to learn how to trim them myself, but for the time being, I'm going to concentrate on the anatomy of their hooves and how they should look when they're good.  

Every horse person that I know who has looked at Orion's agree that his feet are majorly weird, and not just because he'd needed a trim.  They're just odd.  It was pointed out to me the other day that his legs from the knee down are actually a bit odd.  It's what leads to him standing with his feet kind of splayed out all the time.  Put your heels together and point your toes away from each other - that's how he normally orients his front feet when he's not doing anything.

So, that's all for now, but you'll have more hoof care stuff to look forward to as I learn it!