Documenting the Hoof
Why and how do we document the hoof? It may be more important than we think!
Documenting the hoof had been a foreign concept to me prior to my first time hearing about it, but now that I’ve learned about it, I am totally committed and in love with it!
What is hoof documenting and who should be doing it?
Whether you’re rehabbing a foot or just interested in learning more about your horse’s feet, you should be documenting the feet!
It’s a really quite simple but extremely effective way that we can start our hoof care learning journey! By just taking standardized photos of all four hooves and comparing current photos to ones you’ve taken in the past, you can spot subtle changes; good or bad!
Seeing good changes, especially when rehabbing, is such a good feeling to know you’re headed in the right direction. And spotting a slight negative change can allow you to help your horse before it becomes a larger issue.
What are the benefits of documenting a horse’s hooves?
We all know that the hooves literally give the horse a platform to stand on and affect how to horse moves, their posture and more, perhaps making them one of the most important aspects of an equine’s anatomy!
By documenting the hoof, we can track the progress and notice subtle improvements over time.
If not improvements, you can catch minute changes and imperfections before they become more detrimental.
This allows horse care professionals, such as vets and hoof care providers to make changes in a horse’s care routine to better tend to the horse.
What are the best images to take in order to track the hoof?
There are six main images that are most important for tracking and evaluating the current state of the hoof. These are called the body image (taken on both sides!), the dorsal view, the lateral view, the solar view, the caudal view and the oblique view.
By sticking to these main angles in a sort of checklist manner, it will quickly become a habit, making sure you don’t forget an image! I typically follow the order in the graphic here. I find it an easy way to move around the hoof, but you’ll find what works best for you!
When taking images of all four hooves, it can be difficult to remember the order the photos were taken in. I recommend two solutions for this! You can write which hoof is in the photo on a piece of paper or something similar and make sure it is in view. Or you can take a sharpie and write somewhere on the hoof wall an identifying mark. Personally, I use LF (for Left Front), RH (for Right Hind), and so on.
It is also a good idea to make sure that the date is either saved on your phone or somewhere written in the photo. The identifying marker and the date could save a lot of heart and headache in the future! (Just trust me on this one!)
While these are the main images, you can always add in other angles to document something you feel isn’t perfectly shown in the set image angles!
How do we get the same images each time?
It’s extremely important to get the same angle in each photo (as close as you can!). This way your eye doesn’t get tricked into thinking there is a change in the hoof when it is really just an optical illusion because of the angle of the photo.
How often should you be taking hoof photos?
If it’s not a rehabilitation situation, perhaps every three months would be a good time frame between photo sets. If you are rehabbing, I would recommend as often as you have the time to/can; once a month preferably!
Ideas for Documenting
A really good starting point for documenting the hoof would be to take photos right before your hoof care provider comes for your horse and immediately after. Compare the two sets of photos and note the changes. Have a conversation with your HCP, discuss what changes you see, and ask why the changes were made and how it helps the horse and its movement/soundness.
