Snow Balls

I know winter does funny things, but this one always surprises me.

In the right contentions, snow will build up under horses hooves, making them walk around on bowling balls. Left unattended they can go lame. 

It isn’t just the cold that causes it, but 30 below doesn't help. 

This is more common when they are shod. The snow packs in under the lip of the shoe and keeps building. But bare feet can do it as well, though keeping them trimmed down seems to help. 

If it’s gonna be awhile before they fall off naturally, I’ll often give them some help. The pick side of a pair of fencing pliers works well. The horses are happy to stand for you because they want their footing back. 

Good for now. 

With conditions not changing for awhile, I don’t doubt that they’ll build back up in time. If so, I’ll chip them off again. I hate to see them walk around like this, it’s hard on their tendons. It also makes them skidish because they don’t have the confidence of sure footing. The joys of Wyoming winters.