Need help with the long term management of the hooves of a donkey. Through ignorance and misinformation donkey was allowed to founder himself of grass. He was removed from the grass and initial care given. He is on dry lot now. Need to know how best to handle the care of his feet to give him the best mobility. We are remote and so far have not found a farrier that is willing to work with donkeys. This will be a do it yourself project. Thanks for any advice.

-- Sharon Brewer (brew@cpty.net), May 03, 2001

Answers

You really need a competent farrier. Are the donk's feet really long? They may have to be nipped a little at a time so that the tendons and ligaments have a chance to contract. Also, with chronic laminitis an animal walks on their heel so that area will need special help as well.

I'm not sure about any books that may be out there to help you, but that's a thought too if you can't find a farrier to help you.

Good luck.

Stacy in NY

-- Stacy Rohan (KincoraFarm@aol.com), May 04, 2001.

Do a search on the net about trimming for laminitis/founder. There is lots of good info out there. I also suggest putting your donkey on a homepathic product by Equiopathics called Musculo-Skeletal. (Do a search for that to find a place to purchase). This product, and others by the same company, were developed by the Irish Equestrian Team in conjunction with their vets for both emergency and long term management of various physical problems in the horse. I've used the Colic rememdy with great success and have the Musculo for potential problems that may arise with my herd.

Founder can be a tough problem to lick but it can be licked. For pain management I suggest giving your donkey both a mud hole to stand in to cool off the hooves and a well bedded soft area to stand/lay in.

-- Stacia in OK (oneclassycowgirl@aol.com), May 04, 2001.

You will definately need to either learn how, or hire a farrier... Gosh its been a long time since I've used that word, lol...

In the mean time, you can file down those hooves a little at a time so that he gets used to walking each time... Maybe take the file out every other day or so, and take off a little more each time. They really need a trim, but a farrier will nip a little each visit, and be back at least once a week for some time, depending on how long they've grown.

Keep his frogs clean... Wash them with soap, water and the brush on the hoof pick each morning and evening. When working at the pleasure stable, they used to poor bleach on them twice each day, but I would get an expert's opinion on that. Is there a vet you can call just to ask some questions? They don't have to go out if you are SURE the problem is founder.

Don't over do the grain while the condition lasts... It might be better to halve his grain and give him some stale bread in the evenings.

Is there heat in any of his pasterns?? If so, a cooling wrap (can be just plain cool clean water soaked rags) might help... But if there is heat above the hoof, call the vet.

-- Sue Diederich (willow666@rocketmail.com), May 04, 2001.

I think this is a job for a farrier. It the animal has truly suffered founder, as opposed to a bout of laminitis, you are dealing with death of tissues and vascular system within the foot itself. Is the animal able to walk even? Stand? With horses, it is common to put them on a wedge shoe (emergency measures you can use rubber doorstops and duct tape them onto the foot, but you need to know if the bone has begun to rotate) to relieve the pressure and stop the coffin bone from dropping the point and coming out the bottom of the foot. If that happens, you're through, and the only thing to do will be euthanasia, so you really need to be talking to a farrier about this, and your vet's input (IF they're equine-competent that is) about long term care.

-- julie f. (rumplefrogskin@excite.com), May 04, 2001.

Agree with the farrier-thing, yes, please try to find one even if it's just for an initial consult. Founder is nothing a novice should mess with if they've never trimmed a hoof. You probably WILL lame your donk for life if you attempt this, though you are well-meaning. Try to keep his stall floor soft with bedding or sand, too. No, donk's feet shouldn't necessarily be long, they (and mules) are just tube-shaped; they're just usually pretty tough and don't need trimming quite as often as a horse, depending on your terrain there. Good luck in your search, I feel for ya. Founder ain't pretty. dh in nm

-- debra in nm (dhaden@nmtr.unm.edu), May 04, 2001.

Click the anvil/horseshoe/nail on the top right. Then click your state:

http://www.farriers.com/area1.htm

Perhaps you can find a farrier and if he can't get to you, maybe you can get to him/her. I've lived in places where I've had to trailer to one of the farrier's other appointments.

Don't take the chance of learning to trim the donk's hooves from non-professionals. Altho the angle of the pastern in followed, the donk is a bit different than the horse. And the condition dictates different conditions than normal.

-- ~Rogo (rogo2020@yahoo.com), May 05, 2001.