Surgical Corrective Farriery

Introduction
There are a variety of hoof wall lesions that can cause lameness or make the application and retention of a shoe difficult. Hoof cracks have a diversity of type and severity. Their cause needs to be addressed in order to prevent recurrence. Modern materials and methods allow most types of hoof wall lesions and hoof cracks to be repaired successfully.

Partial hoof wall avulsion
Partial hoof wall avulsion is the loss of some hoof wall. It can cause lameness, imbalance and nailing problems. It usually arises from an old over-reach lesion to the coronary band and/or subsequent horizontal crack that has grown down or from shoe loss pulling some hoof wall away.

Repair of partial hoof wall avulsion
Repair may be necessary where shoeing becomes difficult or unsatisfactory due to the hoof loss.

Composite (methylmethacrylate) repair is the strongest and most robust method. Composite is a 2 part glue sold by a number of manufacturers including Jameg (UK) and Equilox (USA).The easiest way is to partly nail the shoe onto the prepared foot (not placing nails in the lesion) prior to the repair. This allows the foot to be set down while the composite is curing. Any area adjacent to the repair that needs protecting, eg the nail-holes, should be covered by lanolin (Hydrous Wool Fat BP, J.M. Loveridge plc, Southampton, UK) or filled with Play-Doh (Tonka Corporation) (Figs 11.34–11.37). Where there is a large and severe partial hoof wall avulsion, the foot needs repairing before a shoe can be attached. The composite cannot bear weight until it has cured, therefore it must either be protected or held up during curing. If the void requiring filling is larger than 10mm3 then fibre-glass cloth must be used to provide a matrix. This gives the repair tensile strength. The cloth is impregnated with composite and applied in layers. Preparation of the area prior to gluing with acetone increases the strength and longevity of the repair. Initial setting time is approximately 10mins depending on the make and temperature. Full curing is in 24hrs. The material can be rasped and cut to shape and takes nails similarly to horn. When the horse is reshod the composite repair can be treated as if it were part of the hoof wall.  [...]