Case Study Rant

Case Study "Rant"

The Dutch Warmblood averages 16.2 hands but can reach up to 18 hands at the withers. An eager, reliable, and intelligent breed, these horses were bred to be first class dressage and show jumping horses, but do well in pleasure and almost any kind of riding. Its coat can be pinto, chestnut, bay, black, or grey with white markings. Dutch Warmbloods are known for their enormous scope for jumping. Many Dutch Warmbloods are seen at Class A hunter shows all across the United States. Many champion hunters in the United States are Dutch Warmbloods.	Rant is a Dutch Warmblood . He is a powerful and very well-mannered horse watch Rant video

These hooves belong to "Rant" a Dutch Warmblood jumping horse imported from the Netherlands. His owner was advised by a friend to remove Rant's shoes and try a natural barefoot hoof trim, because his hooves were in poor condition from several years of being shod. Note the height of the hoof capsule. In a natural wild hoof the hoof capsule is lower in height and shorter in length.	Rant's right front hoof was overgrown, chipped and flared. The shoe was missing because the nails had broken through his hoof walls on the outside of the hoof, causing the shoe to come loose and fall off. Note the flaring and separation of the outer hoof wall, especially at the toe.	I lowered Rant's heels to the level of the frog and beveled the outer hoof walls to the white line to redirect the stress of ground contact from a force tearing at his lamina to a compressive inward force. Note the contracted heels giving the hoof a long, narrow shape. The depth of the concavity of the hoof is also quite shallow at the point of the frog. With proper trim, diet and exercise the hoof will develop over time into a shape that is shorter, wider, less upright, and with greater concavity and sole thickness. In other words, a more natural shape. This will give him healthier hooves and improve his performance.

These are Rant's front hooves, pre-trim. Note the shoe and nails on the left hoof.	This is Rant's left front hoof after removing the shoe, lowering the heels and applying a bevel around the outer wall from the widest part of the hoof around the toe back to the white line. Note the nail damage in the discolored area. Again, note the lack of concavity from the point of the frog to the hoof wall around the toe. ("Flat footed").	These are his finished front hooves after removing the flare and lightly rounding the edge of the outer walls. As Rant begins to grow healthy hoof wall I will be able to apply more of a "mustang roll," blending the outside of the outer hoof wall to the angle of the bevel with a radius to help reduce chipping. They're not real pretty yet, but they are on their way to better hoof health. His rear hooves looked the same after I removed the shoes and applied the natural barefoot trim.
The pictures below were taken in December '07, five months after the initial trim. What a change! Rant's hooves are less upright, with a shorter toe, and beginning to show good concavity. I am very pleased with his progress, and so is Rant. It is a beautiful sight to see him glide across the pasture, seeming to float above the ground with his smooth gate and magnificent carriage.