XXXII. CONTRACTED HEELS.
To expand a contracted foot or quarter the first thing to do is to get the foot soft by poulticing or stuffing with “Whiterock” for a couple of nights. Use hoof expanders that are stronger than the hoof, some feet are so strong and stiff at the quarters that the foot has to be weakened between the bars and frog so that the expanders will expand it. If you want the inside quarter expanded leave the last two heel nails out of the inside of shoe, put a toe clip on shoe and a clip back at the outside heel and do just the reverse to expand an outside quarter. In this way you will be getting all the expansion on the contracted quarter. If this shoe is fitted so that the expander can be placed in the foot after the shoe has been nailed on, the contracted quarter will be expanded over a quarter of an inch before the shoe is clinched up. Nails should not be used back towards the heels of a contracted foot that is to be expanded. When the foot expands wider than the shoe, reset shoes and renew the position of expander to act stronger. The softer you keep the feet the faster they will spread, do not let them get dry and hard. The expansion you get in the foot of a yearling or a two or three-year-old can be kept after the expander has been discarded by not allowing the heels to be kept too high for too long a time. But in aged horses that have had contracted feet or quarters for years and have become set, you can expand the feet or quarters, and when you stop using the expanders the heels and quarters will contract right back to where they were before, in the majority of cases. In cases of this kind in aged horses after the feet have been expanded the quarters should be cut down low and the coronets blistered on both inside and outside quarters.
There are lots of horses with contracted heels and the heels become so high from the coronet to the shoe bearing surface and have stayed this way for such a length of time that they cannot be cut down without hurting or injuring the horse, until after the feet have been expanded. The sensitive part of the foot gets a long ways down from the coronet in a contracted foot, and to cut or lower the quarters and heels to place the foot at a proper angle, it cannot be done until the foot is expanded. The more you expand the foot the lower you can cut or rasp down the heels. The more you expand the heels the higher up you are driving the sensitive interior of the foot at the quarters. In many aged horses after the feet are expanded it will be well to continue the use of expanders, to prevent contraction, for a period of six or twelve months.
XXXIII. CAUSE OF CONTRACTED HEELS.
A disease called Thrush, located in and about the frog is sure to contract the heels of a foot, if not cured quickly. A foot troubled with thrush should be cured when first discovered, if not the frog keeps perishing away until there is not enough of it there to hold or keep the heels from contracting. Another cause is allowing feet to grow too high at the heels and letting them remain too high for too long a time. When the heels get too high the frog is too far away from the ground to get any expansion, or to prevent contraction. The closer the frog is kept to the ground on a horse running in pasture or shod and working, all the better. Stock running in pasture, young or old, should have their feet rasped down regularly every five or six weeks at the longest. Some may need it oftener than that. This fixing of feet on stock running out, assists expansion and prevents contraction. If the feet are allowed to grow too long on stock running in pasture the position the animal has to stand in while grazing, with one leg out in front of the other will contract or curl the inside quarter of each front foot, and wing out the outside quarter. Shoes staying on too long, and horses kept on dry, hard floors where they do not get any moisture, will cause contraction. The feet of horses kept on dry hard floors should be stuffed at least every other night with clay, or whiterock, or something of a moistening nature. Contraction is the main cause of both quartercracks and corns. To cure Thrush, cleanse the frog thoroughly, then a few applications of dry powdered calomel to the frog will dry the disease up and leave the frog healthy.
XXXIV. CORNS.
A live, painful corn is caused by different things. High contracted heels will cause corns as well as short ones. Shoeing and leaving the shoes on too long, and undue concussion will cause corns. The majority of cases of corns will be found in contracted feet. I find the most successful way to treat corns is to get the foot or feet soft and keep them soft. Shoe with a bar shoe, lower the heels so as you can get all the frog pressure possible on the bar of the shoe, after the shoe has been fitted, and before nailing to the foot, cut the heel bearing away from the shoe where the corn is located, an inch of the bearing surface ahead of the corn and half an inch or more away from the shoe to break the jar and reduce the concussion. If foot is contracted use an expander inserted in foot before shoe is fitted, and keep foot soft. I do not recommend cutting the bars and sole away where the corn is located and leaving the wall standing up all alone, but cut the whole heel seat of corn and bar down flat, away from the bearing surface of shoe.
XXXV. TOE CRACK OR SPLIT FOOT.
A foot with a toe crack should be kept as short as possible at the toe. Apply a stiff hoof expander, use one or two rivets or clamps as high up and as near the coronet as possible after cutting the horn where one side laps over the other the full length of the crack. After inserting the hoof expander fit a bar shoe to the foot with a clip at each side of the toe, and before nailing shoe to foot cut the bearing of foot away from the shoe across the toe. If the foot is not contracted any I would recommend a clip back at each heel. Treat the same as is prescribed for Quartercrack, after cutting away half inch each side of crack at the coronet. If foot is contracted do not use any clips back at the heels and keep the foot soft.