Karen's EasyCare & Endurance Musings

Old Mac's G2's and Dome Comfort Pads Make for a Happy Horse :)

I took a few photos earlier this morning of Rocky and his Old Macs G2's.  Looks like the spring thaw is well underway and we have been alternating between muddy swampy goop and frozen hard ground.  As you can see from these photos, it's quite the mess! 

Rocky has been wearing his G2's for four days now in these conditions and I wanted to see how things looked inside.  Well, I didn't really *want* to (lol), but I figured that I had better check to make sure he wasn't getting any rubs anywhere, or scratches.  I'll put a note next to each of the photos below explaining what they are.  Click to enlarge. 

This shows the area that the horses are in now.  It's been like this all week.  It melts during the day and becomes a goopy mess.  Then at night, freezes up hard. 

Here is how the boots look on Rocky when I got him out.  He's wearing the G2's on his fronts, with dome comfort pads inside.  I'm not using an inside gaiter or anything because I thought it might get too messy and wanted to see how it would work without.

After digging through the caked on mud, I found the end of the leather buckle strap.  Used a tool to grab onto it and pull it to open.  I did this same thing when putting the boot back on and was able to get it nice and snug.

Here is how the boots looked inside.  I was able to use a hoofpick to clean a bit of the mud out.  Once things dry out further, I'll take the boots off and give them a good cleaning. 

I bought some medicated foot powder at the $1 store and have been putting that inside the boots.  This helps keep it from getting smelly and so far so good - no signs of any thrush and no stench. 

I used a brush and brushed off the foot that I took the boot off of.  You can see that there has been no rubbing from the boots and everything looks great!

Another view showing Rocky's RF from the outside.  There are no signs of scratches, rubbing, or tenderness.  I am pretty sure that he is going to be diagnosed with insulin resistance (since he has all the signs) and am glad that he can wear the boots for extended periods in these kinds of conditions.  I am really glad that he can walk around comfortably on the frozen uneven ground and have total hoof protection.  Rocky is a happy camper! 

Now if only this mud would dry out and stay dried out!! 

 

Death Valley Encounter Photo Album

Here is a photo album with photos from all four days and 200 miles of the Death Valley Encounter.  You'll see lots of the scenery and the footing.  There are also many photos of the new Easyboot Edge boots.  I used dome comfort pads in them all four days and used four Edge's on Chief (he is the one in the grey ear-cam shots), and two Edges on Tig (the bay pictured here w/ the blue and black tack).  Two of the Edges I used did all four days and 200 miles and two did two days and 100 miles.  They held up really well, never once came off, and did not cause any rubbing on either horse.  I used no vetwrap and made no modifications to the boots. 

We had perfect weather for the entire ride.  It was great this year! It definitely seemed a lot easier than the previous year - that's what happens when your comfort level is raised a bit.  ;)  Next year the ride will be even better and will be run in reverse.  That will allow us to have a nicer place for the New Year's Party. 

Ten Tips on How to Fit Your Dome Comfort Pads Into Your Easyboot Epics

This also works for fitting EasyCare Dome Comfort Pads into other EasyCare hoof boots and should go very well in Old Mac G2's; they will also fit with trimming into original Old Mac's, Boa Horse Boots, and EasySoakers.  These pads may work in other manufacturers boots too, like Cavallo's Simple Boot, or Davis Soaking boot, possibly a Marquis hoof boot - if there are any others, let me know.  These dome comfort pads will soon be available in a size 1 which will fit the most common size Easyboot.  Easyboot sizing is the same for regular Easyboots, Epics, Bares, Grips and the Custom boot.  More information on pad sizing can be found at the bottom fo this post. 

TEN TIPS FOR CUSTOMIZING DOME COMFORT PAD FIT INTO AN EASYBOOT, EPIC, BARE, GRIP, OR CUSTOM EASYBOOT 

So what are EasyCare's Comfort Pads good for, anyway?

Here is a comment from an endurance rider who just recently attended a Pete Ramey clinic.  I learned with my own horses, especially Rocky -- that using comfort pads in his boots (I like the Dome shaped pads the best)  did more for improving his hoof quality and speeding his transition to barefoot than riding him barefoot or having him turned out on hard rocky ground for well over a year.  I wish I had figured it out sooner.   Posting this because I think it could potentially help some horses out there.

An important point I got from the clinic is to use my boots more. I have really only been using the boots for competitions and going barefoot the rest of the time at home and on training rides. I did notice that sometimes my horse seemed to be a little foot sore and a little short strided but I just kind of put it aside thinking it was better to "toughen" up her feet and I would never get her hoofs hard and develop thicker soles by using boots.

I found out I was wrong. What would happen is that my horse would start to walk toe first. Not super obvious but I could tell. Pete implies that as soon as your horse starts walking toe first you start going backward in hoof development. He said I would actually develop a stronger, tougher, better developed hoof using boots and having a properly loaded hoof with a properly working hoof mechanism then gimping along barefoot..

So, that's the main thing I am going to do...to use boots more around home. Also you have to use the foam pads. That I did already and I think they are great.

Lauren

 

Dome Pad Comfort Pad Sizing

We are going to be adding EasyCare Dome Comfort Pads in size 1's.  This will be nice for those using size 1 Easyboots - no more trimming them down!  I mostly use 1's and like the shape of the dome pads the best. 

100 Miles in Epics - Photos of Tigger's Pasterns & Feet

Here are a few photos I took just this evening.  Click to enlarge.  I left Tig's boots on after the ride ended on Sunday night and took them off tonight.  I had regular Epics on his front feet both days of the ride, with dome shaped comfort pads in them.  On his hinds I used regular Easyboots and used Easyfoam in them.  One of the boots was on his foot (pictured) for two full weeks.  The other one just for four days.  I'm really pleased with the results.  I was sure glad to have the pads in the boots for the sections of trail that were rocky, and also for the parts that were hardpacked.  I also was glad to have the boots on for the deep sand sections - the boots help to keep the horses from sinking as deep in the sand as a horse that is regularly shod.  Check out how clean the boots look inside too, after doing 50 miles in all that sand!  I did not vetwrap on day 2 and you can see there is not even a small rub anywhere on either pastern!!  I did vetwrap the first day because I was testing some new gaiters that hold promise  (I can't post photos of those yet).  On the first day I took off one of his front boots at lunch to check inside and they were completely clean inside.  It's all due to the boots fitting him so well.  It really helps with Epics to flatten down the metal teeth and cover them with duct tape.  That lets you get a closer fit around the top of the hoof and reduces the chance of anything getting inside.  If stuff still gets inside, using plumber's putty can help with that.  I didn't do that this time and still had a clean boot both days after riding 50 miles.  I'll try to get a photo album up soon of the ride.  I still need to get photos together from the Grand Canyon ride.  I get a little behind when I do a 5 day ride one week and then a 2 day ride the very next weekend. 

Dome Pads are Here!

Finally - the EasyCare Dome Comfort Pads have arrived in SIZES!  They are in stock right now in sizes small, medium, and large.  They fit into the Easyboot line of boots, size 00 through 6.

These are my favorite pads to use for endurance riding.  I think they are great for my horses - they give them extra cushioning and support while providing additional stimulation to the bottom of their hoof.  I've used them while transitioning a horse to barefoot that was taking forever with excellent results as well.   Here is an article on peripheral loading and the pad effect. 

EasyCare Hoof Boot Contest Update - we are now over 16,000 miles!

With the most recent results 74 riders in the Easyboot Contest have ridden over 16,000 miles!  It's great to see so many doing so well with this.  We had a few riders at the Virgin Rim ride who are in the contest and they all did really well.  Three of us did both days of the ride.  I rode two different horses and Rick Leonard and Claire Toomey both rode the same horse both days using Epics or Bare hoof boots.   Their horses both looked great at the finish of a tough 100 miles! 

Here are some photos of Chief's boots that I used on him yesterday.  These boots had all been used before.  I like to use boots that have been broken in prior to any actual competition.  What is great is that you can see in these photos the dome shaped Comfort Pads are in all four of the boots.  I had used them also in advance several times so that they would squish down a bit as they will cause Chief's boots to turn if they are brand new and I start an endurance ride with them.  I had these broken in just right because Chief's boots did not turn at all during the ride and I am very pleased with how good they look after doing all that downhill and going over hard rocky footing yesterday.  Chief's legs are tight and cool today and he looks fantastic.  We'll be driving home tomorrow so he and Tigger are both getting to rest today.  The Bares in the photos have done several endurance rides.  The Epics have too, actually I think only one boot was fairly new and the others have all done at least 250 to 500 miles.  You can tell that Chief is easy on his equipment, which means he is also fairly easy on himself which is why he does so well doing all of these miles.  He is fast approaching the 7000 mile mark.  My remaining goal for this ride season is to try and achieve that milestone with him.  Fingers and hooves crossed!

The Comfort Pads I used at EHSC

photo left:  Chief and buddy Rocky eat hay at the out vet check

Below are photos (click to enlarge) of Chief's comfort pads and boots that he used on the EHSC 50 yesterday.  The pads I used are 12 mm size small comfort pads and now that they have done 50 miles they are broken in just right for the next ride.  I normally wouldn't use new pads on a ride but I wanted to test these to see how well they would hold up.  I find that horses that have well balanced feet and a good fit on their boots don't wear the pads extremely fast.  If they do then I use the pads as a learning tool.  Several of us used pads in our boots on this ride, and they all came through in good enough shape to use again.  The terrain is rough and technical, I'm really glad that I had the pads in all four boots. 

I used the same Easyboot Epics on Chief's front feet that I used at Strawberry Fields.  They now have 205 competition miles on them.  What you see in the photos are the boots and pads as soon as I took them off, without being cleaned.  The first photos show the four pads I used with the two below pads that Dave Rabe used in the 50 on his horse.  The next photos are showing Chief's pasterns at different angles.  As usual, he came through the ride without any rubbing anywhere.  There is also a photo of the bottom of the tread on the Bares that I used on his hind feet - I've lost count how many rides those boots have done but it is quite a few.  I prefer to use 'used' boots on an endurance ride and only break in new boots on training rides.   

Chief's Comfort Pads after 155 Endurance Miles

These are the dome shaped Comfort Pads that Chief used for 155 miles at Strawberry Fields Forever.  We used Epics w/ the pads on his front feet, and Easyfoamed on Bares without gaiters on his hinds - all the boots stayed on 100% of the time!  Chief also used the pads ahead of that ride to get them broken in a bit.  I don't like using new pads in his boots for the first time on an endurance ride because they tend to cause his boots to turn slightly - even though he has a super snug fit in them.  If I break them in a little then it works great for him.  These pads probably got a little more beat up than usual because it was such a 'wet' ride, we had a lot of water crossings.  But still, they held up pretty well and Chief will no doubt get to use them a few more times.  He likes his comfort pads - just ask him!  :)  Note:  The dome shaped pads are going to be available through EasyCare in a few more weeks, until then the next best thing is to use the 6 and 12 mm regular Comfort Pads.