Now this is just an opinion but i think that some haflingers have hooves that are too large for their leg, and it is because of people messing with them (this is also my general theory of the draft horses as well).
My idea stems from my experience with my own horse. I think many farriers make the hoof fit the horse shoe instead of making the shoe fit the horse. Since having my mare, her hoof has actually come down 1 size. Her feet used to flare badly and crack. Now, that her feet are a healthier shape, they do not crack and other then getting her heals trimmed, her hooves do great between trims of 6-8 weeks.
Now can someone explain how the huge draft plates work? To me it looks like it deforms the hoof. I get it that the main purpose of the draft shoes is to make them look flashy with lots of knee action in the ring. Does it actually help the horse to pull a load better? Someone please enlighten me, otherwise I will continue to view the draft plates as a form of interference and perhaps even torture.
It has also been brought to my attention that my mare has very upright pasterns, and because of that more concusive force goes up her leg, compared to a horse with a more flexible pasturn and fetlock connection. So it has been mentioned that she could be prone to becoming sore doing work on hard ground for extended periods of time.
I also know that some breeds of horse that live in marshy locations will grow a wider hoof in proportion to their body to help support them on the mashy ground.
So i would have to think, if the size of the hoof is exagerated by man, then it could cause problems, but if enlarged by nature, it would serve a purpose.
Alana
Baltimore, Md
-----Original Message-----
From: Marilyn Mitchell marilynmitchell61@yahoo.com
Sent 1/12/2010 8:53:59 PM
To: haflingerfriends@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [haflingerfriends] Draft Horses
All this talk about height and bone reminded me of something. On our trip to Disneyland, there was a beautiful gray Percheron pulling one of the street cars. I'm 5'4" and his wither was waaaaay over my head. He was a mountain! I was struck dumb in the presence of that horse.
Toby? Well, he's not done growing yet; still, I can drape my arms over his back. He's just a little pile of haflinger fluff by comparison.
Say, has anyone heard of haffies developing problems associated with weak fetlocks in relation to their large feet? I saw one photo recently where the fetlock (I'm refering to the front "ankle" Am I using the correct term?) on the stallion looked delicate in proportion to the hoof below it.
Personally, I like my haffie's cankles.
Marilyn
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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