I generally keep Andi barefoot but, because I was planning to do some Competitive Trail riding with him last season, I had the farrier I was using at the time put shoes on his front feet. His hind feet were left barefoot.

The farrier visits were always arranged by my friends who own the stable where Andi’s boarded. The farrier would always come while I was at work. On one particular visit, I wasn’t at work so I was able to be there for Andi’s trim. What I saw when Andi’s shoes were pulled off horrified me. Andi had developed White Line disease in his front feet, and his hoof wall was separating along the white line. What concerned me almost more was my farrier’s obvious lack of knowledge of how to manage this problem.

My friend Donna, already a client of Carolyn’s, mentioned Andi’s problems to her and, through Donna, I received her advice, advice that my own farrier was unable to give me. A few days later I had Andi’s shoes pulled and a week after that Carolyn came out to do an assessment of the problem. Even though Andi’s feet had just been trimmed, Carolyn ended up having to do a full trim on him, that’s how poorly my farrier had been doing his job. A considerable amount of flaring had been allowed to develop. This flaring likely contributed significantly to Andi developing White Line disease. Because of the White Line disease Andi and I had to miss all but one of the Competitive Trail rides that we had been planning to compete in.

Prior to putting shoes on Andi he had always been a little “ouchy” when walking across gravel but not so much that it prevented us from riding across it when it became necessary. However, after Andi’s shoes were pulled and before Carolyn began working on him, Andi’s feet were so sore that he actually refused to walk across the gravel laneway that he needed to cross to get into the barn. When I finally did convince him to walk across the gravel he carried his neck very low, an obvious sign of discomfort.

The difference in Andi’s feet since Carolyn began working on him has been dramatic. In just a few trims, the White Line disease appears to have cleared up and so much flaring has been removed from Andi’s feet that they actually look like they belong to a different horse! The change in the shape of his feet is that dramatic. In addition, Andi seems to be more comfortable walking on gravel than ever before. He shows very little sign of “ouchiness” now and this is only after two months of barefoot trimming. Imagine what he’ll be like after a year!

Not only have I had the benefit of seeing huge improvements in Andi’s feet but Carolyn has been great at educating me along the way; an opportunity that I value greatly.

I’m looking forward to continuing to work with Carolyn to ensure Andi has healthy feet and I can’t wait to compete next year with my happy, barefoot horse!

Jennifer Gardner and Seramist Andiamo (Andi)"