I found this article on hoof bruises
https://equusmagazine.com/lameness/h...s-happen-29327
I'm not sure if its still bruise or a crack or a crack and a bruise, but I thought the information on hoof bruises in the article was pretty enlightening.
Things that stuck out:
If a bruise is visible the trauma occured weeks or months ago
Main cause is traveling at speed over hard terrain
Muddy surfaces cause most discomfort because mud gets packed in, expands, and pressure builds on the bruise, stone surfaces are less uncomfortable
Several types of bruises, two seemed to fit most closely--
Hoof wall bruise caused and exacerbated by hard surfaces
Heel and bar bruise caused by bearing too much weight on sensitive back tissue
Can a bruise be a compound bruise of 2 types? Can one bruise lead into another by weight shifting?
New shoe or not, it doesn't seem like running in mud at race speed for 9 3/4f is likely to be discomfort-free or that the existing bruise won't be exacerbated.
He weighs something like 1300 lbs, could his weight be part of the problem? That's a lot of weight on a bruise.
I can't imagine he'll loose Saturday, but is he going to come out of it hobbling again?
Seems very murky.
TBH I don't have enough background on shoes to really understand the shoe article, even though I spent 10 years as a kid getting paid to groom horses at the stable in front of my neighborhood. I volunteered to help a rescue center near me last summer with grooming, was so proud the muscle memory of sliding a hand down a horse's leg to raise its hoof and clean it out was like I had never stopped. It's the little things in life.
To the shoe people--does the shoe article mean there is no problem since super-farrier man worked his magic?
