Our newest rescue – who is still without a name –is now looking much better. A specialist vet came down from Cordoba to X-ray his grossly overgrown hooves and consult with our vet and farrier so they could be cut back into more of a normal shape. His hooves were neglected for so long that they resembled ram’s horns, but his owner apparently told SEPRONA that this was the pony’s fault because his hooves grew upwards and not down. And we thought we had heard it all!
Our little black stallion was sedated and each of his hooves X-rayed. After consultation, they were then marked with chalk to show Jaime, our farrier, how far back it was safe to cut. Once the huge chunks of hoof had been removed the remainder had to be trimmed and reshaped as best it could be. The process was long and painstaking but, fortunately, the pony did not appear to suffer any pain or distress.
Once the sedative wore off, he could walk in a more normal fashion. After such prolonged neglect he will never be completely sound, as his back hooves, in particular, have grown curved, damaging the bones and the tendons. However, there is no reason why he can’t live very happily, and he shows no sign of being in pain, or of losing his interest in the ladies!
We have now submitted a vet’s report to the court and will be pursuing prosecution of the owner.
