Hoofcare and Lameness Magazine -- Newsletter December 1999

H & L Online News
December, 1999

A collection of informal news from Hoofcare & Lameness: The Journal of Equine Foot Science
Fran Jurga, Publisher

Check out our huge double booth and display at the AAEP Convention in Albuquerque, December 5-7, Booth 414-416

This issue of Hoofcare & Lameness is generously sponsored by our friend Rusty Freeman a high-tech hoof repair specialist on the Northeast racing circuit. Visit Rusty at (you guessed it) www.quartercrack.com .... Learn about his consulting work for quarter crack repair, check in on some interesting cases, and find out about interesting new materials Rusty uses to get racehorses and show horses back in training!

NEW READERS: Hoofcare & Lameness, the company behind this e-letter, publishes a quarterly printed journal, dedicated to the prevention and treatment of lameness problems in horses and the promotion of professional-quality hoofcare. H&L supports and encourages a worldwide network of farriers, veterinarians, and equine therapists who generously share information with each other and with the horse-owning public through the magazine. New subscribers to the "real" magazine are always welcome. Additional resources are a reference book and videotape retail sales center and an active Internet world wide web informational site (http://www.hoofcare.com).

IN THIS ISSUE:
Remembering Burney Chapman
Breeders' Cup hoofnotes
"Farrier and their Tools" fundraising wall calendar
Hoofcare On the Road
Secretariat Stamp
Anti-inflammatories, Aspirin, and Glucosamine
Vet School Vandalism in Washington State
Veterinary Practice Acts
Conformation Vs Athleticism
Judgement in New Hampshire
AAEP Convention Preview
Quarter Horse Congress: A Mob in Ohio
Eric Wauters is Dead
Princess Anne on "natural" horsecare
AQHA New Drug Rules
New Shoes: Y2K Technology Trickle-Down
Old Shoes: Forecasts from the Last Century
The New Market: Product Showcase
About Our Sponsor: www.quartercrack.com
Book review: No Foot No Horse
About Hoofcare & Lameness

REMEMBERING BURNEY CHAPMAN
Many of you who have identified yourselves as farriers received a special edition of Hoofcare Online on November 11, notifying you that our friend Burney Chapman had died. Others may read a tribute to him at our web site; just click on "Farewell to Burney Chapman" on the home page. For any newcomers out there, Burney Chapman was a horseshoer from Lubbock, Texas who specialized in foundered horses and brought the heart-bar shoe out of the cobwebs and back into action. Along the way, he helped many people, angered some, and won the friendship of all, whether they agreed with him or not. He was diagnosed with brain cancer a few years ago after collapsing at the AAEP Convention, survived major surgery and multiple treatments, but died this month.

Thanks to everyone who responded with their own memories or tributes to Burney. We heard from people as far away as India and South Africa who had great memories of working with Burney. I made sure that all the messages were forwarded on to Blane and Baker, two of Burney’s horseshoeing sons, so they could read them. After reading all your notes and kind words, Blane Chapman wrote to Hoofcare: "I knew dad was special to us all, however I will never know the way he touched people’s lives the way they know he did. This is all so overwhelming that I don' t know how to thank everyone. Can you help me figure out some way to let all Burney's friends around the world that we appreciate all their kind thoughts and words?"

(Consider it done, Blane.)

Donations in Burney’s memory may be sent to the American Farrier’s Association; for more information on how to do so, check the website at www.amfarriers.com

One of Burney’s clients (and friends) Hyperion Farms in New York and Florida, has a tribute to Burney, visit http://www.hyperionfarm.com/burney_chapman.htm; also visit their page on laminitis at http://www.hyperionfarm.com/laminitis.htm. This farm’s web site is a treasure chest of information.

THANK YOU to everyone who has already sent in his or her renewal check for the next century of Hoofcare & Lameness. It is nice to see familiar names in the mailbox each morning! (PS You can renew by using the subscription order form on our web site, www.hoofcare.com; print it out and fax/mail it, or use the secure server and order online via credit card.)

Breeders' Cup Hoofnotes
Long-time readers of "Hoofcare Online" know that I look forward to the Breeders' Cup each year to make snide comments about the few horses that survive the racing season to face each other at the annual flat racing championships. Several horses running in the Breeders' Cup this year had unusual stories to tell, including a mare that suffered heat stroke and several trained by D. Wayne Lukas, who ran wearing the new nasal strips for horses, similar to what human marathon athletes wear. The four-by-six inch strips are legal in Florida, where they are considered "equipment," rather than medication. (See www.breathright.com for more info.)

As in other years, it seemed like a bleeding quarter crack and glue-on shoes were required for admission to the winners circle, if not the starting gate itself. Character horse of the year goes to Sprint winner Artax. Racing fans may remember Artax as the horse who was pulled up in a claiming race before this year’s Preakness Stakes, when a drunk racing fan ran out on the track, stopped the horse, and punched him in the face. Since then, the Cinderella-esque Artax set a new record at Belmont for both six and seven furlongs, shattering even Dr Fager’s longstanding record; in the Breeders Cup, he equaled the record set by Mr. Prospector. Artax’s trainer gave credit to the acupuncturist and the hoof repair specialist who kept this horse going.

Apparently, horses running this year also received intense magnetic work; trainers are really starting to give credit to the therapists and mechanics who keep these horses propped up. Sadly, yesterday, November 27, Artax’s retirement was announced. The trainer thought his foot was flaring up, but a scan showed a lesion in the upper suspensory ligament that could cause future problems. The good news? Artax is a leading contender for Horse of the Year. And the surprise? He will stand at Center Brook Farm in Climax, New York.

"Farriers and Their Tools" for Y2K
We interrupt this newsletter to bring you a special announcement (and a good laugh): A group of farriers in England has gone the Full Monty route in the name of charity. One of the hottest selling fundraising wall calendars for the millennium features a suburban London fire department’s members dressed (?) in slickers, sort of, and those big helmets. Not to be outdone, farriers led by Gary Martin and Billy Crothers worked with the leukemia charity and organized a posing of farriers dressed (or undressed) in aprons and bow ties. They got on the phone, looking for recruits. To their surprise, a farrier from Sussex, Mike Williams, showed up. Now, if you know Mike, you know he’s not the Chippendale type. But to everyone’s amazement, he announced that his son had just been diagnosed with leukemia. He was sporting a bald head, shaved to make his son feel less conspicuous of his own hair loss. He’s Mr. January.

If you’d like to order a copy of the Farrier and Their Tools calendar, send Mike Williams an email: farriery.is@tfp.uk.com; cost is about $10 for US orders. Get a glimpse of it at http://www.the-forge-pages.co.uk/pages/general/news3.htm

Where to visit the Hoofcare & Lameness Traveling Resource Center this month: December 5-8 American Assoc. Equine Practitioners, Albuquerque, NM (http://www.aaep.org) (with Dr Chris Pollitt, Dr Jean-Marie Denoix, and other top speakers)

Where you won't see Hoofcare & Lameness.... Unfortunately, there will be no Bluegrass Laminitis Symposium in 2000.

Looking ahead.... The Michigan Horseshoers Association traditionally has one of the oldest, and largest, farrier gatherings in North America. This year they will be meeting at Michigan State University’s livestock pavilion, a super facility for contests and trade shows, on the weekend of January 8. For more information, contact Garnet: farrshoe@tir.com

Have you received a letter yet with the new Secretariat stamp on it? To see an image of the Secretariat stamp, go to www.usps.com/news and click on the headline. Secretariat was voted by post office customers as one of five symbols of the 1970s. Secretariat died from complications of laminitis in the 1980s.

Anti-inflammatories, Aspirin, and Glucosamine: Medical news you might be able to use….
Are you taking Ibuprofen or other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory (nsaid) medication for your aches and pains? What about the advice you hear about taking aspirin to avoid a heart attack? Should you take both? No! Says a new report issued last week at the meeting of the American College of Rheumatology, in fact: "NSAIDs and aspirin when taken alone increase the risk of gastrointestinal bleeding or perforation from ulcers by two- or three-fold," said study author Dr. Elliot Rosenstein. "Taking an NSAID and aspirin together boosts that danger to seven-fold." Some good news did come from that conference, though. A three-year Belgian study released in Boston compared disease symptoms and the average widths of joint space in 106 human patients taking 1,500 milligrams a day of glucosamine sulfate and 106 patients taking a placebo. Researchers found that symptoms, including a narrowing of the joint space width, worsened for patients taking the placebo. Those taking the glucosamine compound experienced no joint space width narrowing, while other symptoms showed improvement, researchers found. Glucosamine is widely used by humans for themselves and horses; it is a major ingredient in products like Grand Flex, Cosequin, and other "flex" supplements.

Vet School Vandalism in Washington State
Vandals broke into animal research laboratories at Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine in Puyallup on November 22. Research equipment, plus microscopes and computers, were destroyed, chlorine poured on floors, and graffiti painted on the walls. The Animal Liberation Front may be responsible; the FBI is investigating.

Veterinary Practice Acts
Several states are considering changes in the wording of their state veterinary practice act, and concern is being raised about how these changes would be interpreted or enforced if these practice acts become law. In some states, farriers are lumped in with other non-veterinarian animal healthcare professionals; other states have definitions of the work that farriers should legally perform. Most states have little or no muscle to enforce these acts unless the other professionals are licensed by the states, and this in turn has led to speculation of increased pressure to license animal therapists and farriers.

Many problems have been identified with interpreting the practice acts; chief among them is their often broad wording. Another problem is that they cover all animals, and there are specific concerns of owners of show horses and racehorses, particularly when they travel from state to state, that are not shared by, say, dog and cat owners. Hoofcare & Lameness urges all readers to learn as much as possible about the existing veterinary practice in different states. Many veterinarians are unaware of some of the wording, and all express confusion about how changes could affect their work and their liability in supervising or referring the services of other healthcare professionals.

Groups like the American Farrier’s Association and IAATH (International Alliance for Animal Therapy and Health) are trying to provide services for legislative consultation on what services their professionals perform and how they are trained and tested. All agree that these legislative actions are not deliberate attempts to subjugate one profession to another. Contact either group, your regional farrier association, and your state horse council for more information.

Conformation vs. Athleticism: Not to be confused!
The 1999 US Dressage Federation Symposium in Maryland focused on Dr Hilary Clayton’s analysis of movement and athleticism in horses compared with German celebrity dressage trainer Conrad Schumacher’s visual dissection of the art of selecting a performing horse. International dressage mounts of the past and present were trotted out for analysis; conformation flaws often did not affect performance, or else the horse’s superior athletic ability allowed it to surpass its limitations.

Conversely, horses without superior movement or athleticism are rarely able to overcome conformational limitations, which can lead to recurrent injury, gait abnormalities, and compensatory lameness. Dressage continues to evolve, with "toe flicking" or "goose stepping" becoming increasingly less desirable in gaits like the extended trot. International trainer Ferdi Eilberg commented in Horse & Hound recently, "Today you’ve got to have correct, big paces with lift from the shoulder—a bit more knee rather than too much toe….for giving expression to the movement. Conformation stands on one side and mechanical action on the other. Some things you can put up with, because the mechanical action makes up for them. Sometimes, it’s the way a horse moves and presents itself that matters (as opposed to how it looks standing still)."

AAEP Convention Preview
It’s easy to look at the schedule of speakers for December’s AAEP convention (www.aaep.org) and see the cluster of foot-related speakers, headlined by Pollitt, Denoix, Parks, Moyer, etc. But dig a little deeper in the program and you’ll find more "don’t miss" presentations, such as:
Kester News Hour (Sunday 10:15 a.m.) This was a great hit last year; summaries of new developments from all over the world.
Purchase exams of jumpers, dressage horses by Dr Dan Marks (Sun. 1:55 p.m.)
How to glue on therapeutic shoes by Dr Steve O’Grady (Tues 8:20 a.m.)
How to mark the foot for radiography by Dr Barbara Page (Tues 11:20 a.m.)
Canker and white line disease with Drs Mike Ball and Tracy Turner, Sun.
Suspensory Ligament with Drs Bramlage and Nolan. Sun.
Farrier/Vet Relationships with Dr Young, Emil Carre, and Walt Taylor, Mon.
Treating Sore Backs with Drs Marks and Denoix, Wed.

Judgement in New Hampshire
Several states now have "no fault" liability laws related to the operation of horse facilities and the implied risk of being among horses. A New Hampshire farrier recently found out how risky this was when, in the course of shoeing, a fractious horse backed up into her rig, causing considerable damage. The farrier’s effort to reclaim the deductible from the farm or owner’s insurance failed, due to the state’s limited equine liability law.

Quarter Horse Congress: A Mob in Ohio
A record 8,500 horses required stabling at this year’s All-American Quarter Horse Congress in Ohio!

Eric Wauters
Farrier-turned-showjumper Eric Wauters, 48, committed suicide on October 20 near Brussels. Eric was a regular representative of Belgium in international show jumping at the Olympics, World and European Championships.

The Natural Life How far should concern for animal welfare go?
From a speech by HRH Princess Anne, of England: "You could argue that the most natural place for horses is in fields but most of the damage to my horses has been done in the field and has been of their own making."

AQHA New Drug Rules
The American Quarter Horse Association’s new therapeutic medication rule is not in effect until 2000, the AQHA reports. Erroneous information was prematurely published in September, but the new rules will not affect AQHA competition until the new year. Several key medications, including isoxsuprine, "Bute", and Banamine will no longer require medication reports.

New Shoes: Ready for Y2K Trickle Down?
Nike’s product designers predict that they will soon have the materials and technology to "spray" disposable, form-fitting sneakers onto human feet. In one canister, foam that hardens into flexible mid-soles; in another, rubber bottoms; in a third, polyurethane uppers. Let’s hope Nike has an equine athlete division….

Not far-out enough for you? How about magnets planted in floors (or arenas) that counteract magnets implanted in your shoes, allowing you (or your horse) to leap higher than your athletic ability alone would ever permit? Many new materials are in development at the Cornell University Materials Science and Engineering Department. (Reports courtesy ESPN News on human sports equipment)

And then there was the last century’s "Great Hope"
About 100 years ago, the great hope for horseshoes was an experiment begun by the German Minister of War, which called for making horseshoes out of compressed paper. Since nails didn’t work well with the paper shoes, they were held on by cement glue. They were even tested in the snow on front feet, for traction. And you thought gluing shoes on was something new? (News item found in Iowa Turf, February 1896)

NEW MARKET: Products That Lead to Solutions!
http://www.cyberhorse.net.au/pro-fit Rugs for foals from Australia; this site claims that turning foals out in all-weather conditions wearing waterproof rugs is conducive to growth and healthy development. They sure are cute.

Our friends at EasyCare Inc., makers of Easy Boots, have purchased DC Ice Boots, which will now be available as EasyIce Boots. This is a 17" gel-cooled boot, freezable in a cooler. For a limited time, beginning December 1, EasyCare is offering a free Easy Boot with every pair of EasyIces purchased. Send an email to admin@easyboot.com

A lethal-looking (but effective) new aluminum hoofpick called "The Power Pick" will make a great gift for the horseowners on your Christmas list. Visit www.soundequine.com

About our sponsor:
The World Wide Web’s most interesting web site about farriery…..isn’t about a farrier’s work at all. But it is about hooves, and shoes, and tools that will look familiar. Rusty Freeman says he’s not a farrier, because he doesn’t nail shoes on. He’s a patcher, a gluer, a Dremeler of hooves who has no regular clients, just a list of consults to followup from week to week. Not too long ago, a quarter crack patch at the track was a top-secret operation, done in the dark of the stall, with no one allowed to watch. Voila, there’s your patch, and here’s your bill. Rusty Freeman has created a huge, double-deep web site full of case studies, before-and-afters, and how-tos. He’s not only opened the stall door, he’s brought the horse out under the lights!

Sure, Rusty has something to sell—himself, his hoofcare products, and his trademark "Millennium" patches---but there is much, much more on this web site. Remember that some of these horrific looking feet belong to hard-pounding Standardbreds in the northeastern USA, and are quite different from pleasure or sport horses in hoof shape and shoe size, web, or materials. Also on the site you’ll find some of Rusty’s Quarter horse and hunter/jumper cases, from all over North America. Got a minute…or make that an hour or two…visit www.quartercrack.com and find out how bad a foot can be, and how an optimistic hoof repair consultant tackles them all.

NEW BOOK
"No Foot No Horse: Foot Balance, The Key to Soundness and Performance" by Gail Williams PhD and Martin Deacon FWCF is, on the one hand, a gallery of fine-art farriery from England and an interesting treatise on the role of hoof balance in overall horse movement and well-being, on the other. Stunning color photos and diagrams punctuate a clean layout dedicated to the rebalancing of the British-type heavyish sport-y horse. Like all before-and-after hoof balance visuals, it hardly seems fair to the former farrier to have his or her months-old work compared to shiny new trims and sho es, but maybe it’s necessary to make the point. Martin’s shoes and clips are pretty flawless, Gail’s text is thought-provoking. (Note: this book covers the "full foot" or "Traditional British" or "symmetrical foot" school of hoof balance. The authors politely doesn’t bash others, they just exclude mention of them.) The books will be here just in time for Christmas (we hope), the boat from Hong Kong is due on or about December 10. Hard cover, color throughout, 150 pages. $45 per book plus $6 postage in USA. See full review in Hoofcare #72 (the real magazine). Reserve your copy with a credit card; we’ll charge you when the books arrive. Advance sample may be seen at our booth at AAEP Convention.

Coming Soon: "The Equine Distal Limb: An Atlas of Clinical Anatomy and Comparative Imaging" by Jean-Marie Denoix! We hope to have the books early in the next century.

About H&L Publishing....
Hoofcare & Lameness, The Journal of Equine Foot Science, is a professional journal of technical information related to the prevention and therapy of performance-related injuries, conformational challenges, and diseases of the foot that affect the world's horses. Published since 1985, H&L is read by veterinarians, farriers, therapists, and owners/trainers/riders around the world and is the leading resource for the dissemination of new research, technologies, and ideas about the soundness of horses. H&L is published four times in each subscription period and is sold by subscription only. Cost is $50 in US, $55 in Canada and Mexico, $70 elsewhere in US dollars. An industry-wide "e-letter" called "Hoofcare Online" is sent free of charge to anyone interested in reading news from the hoofcare industry. Hoofcare's Editorial Advisory Board includes: Robert Bowker DVM, Doug Butler PhD, Sue Dyson MRCVS, Emil Carre, Hilary Clayton MRCVS, Bruce Daniels, David Duckett, David Farley, Paul Goodness, Alison Hayes, Kim Henneman DVM, David Hood DVM, Alice Johnson, Grant Moon, William Moyer DVM, Rob Sigafoos, Allen Smith PhD, Tracy Turner DVM, Michael Wildenstein, Janice Young DVM, Chris Pollitt MRCVS, Alan Bailey AWCF, Simon Curtis FWCF, Edward Martin FWCF, Jean-Marie Denoix DVM, Bernard Duvernay, and Osamu Aoki DVM. H&L's print and email publications are supplemented by a reference book/video resource center, and hoof science information archive on the Internet's World Wide Web at http://www.hoofcare.com.

Mailing address: Hoofcare Publishing PO Box 6600 Gloucester MA 01930 tel 978 281 3222 fax 978 283 8775 email webinquiry@hoofcare.com Internet http://www.hoofcare.com

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