Mark Johnson Farrier - another way?

07/09/2025

First up I think Red Horse products are fantastic! So nothing to do with that

This young lady is keeping the hoses leg low and into its body while treating keeping it and as comfortable as possible so nothing to do with that

The video shows perfectly the kind of behaviour which is becoming more and more prevalent, that sudden sn**ch of a limb away from us, as hoofcare providers, while bent over and in toward the horses body is what systematically wrecks our bodies

In this video you can clearly see the horse twitching from flies and the common utterance is “it’s the flies” or it’s whatever …

It’s not possible for those not in the industry to truly comprehend the impact of this but it’s often several times from the same horse magnified by horse after horse, day in day out - perhaps it’s our job and we should just “suck it up” but it didn’t used to be like this 🤷‍♂️

06/09/2025

She has put a deal of work into this and is well worth a read!

04/09/2025

3rd visit to this horse within the last 4 weeks, quite a heavy cob type but thankfully without the feathers

Laminitis can be fast moving and volatile but always the trigger has to be removed for a successful outcome

First visit to this desperately lame horse was simply to get its shoes off and onto one of the best beds in my opinion aubios, highly supportive yet conformable allowing full sole support and dynamic loading

The second visit was to perform what trimming I was able to with the horse lying down, I wanted to get some of the excess toe length off to facilitate an easier forward movement and reduce capsule stress

I don’t trim these horses aggressively as even minor adjustments can have a big impact on both hoof and whole body and I want to keep the horse as comfortable as I can during the process, preferring the little and often approach

Today we took this photo of the right front, probably it’s most painful foot, using these pads and with the horse willing to stand and now moving much better ( still far from right but way improved)! We had it standing flat, one foot on each pad but even like that the horse struggled to pick up the left front

So try this, place your hand flat on a table with your fingers outstretched and press down, then, lean forward with your forearm moving over the top of your hand and you feel the back of your wrist tighten, now, imagine your hand and wrist being sore and magnifying the pressure your putting through it, that’s no different here, with the compression on the already sore laminae and the increased tension from the DDFT the horse did not want to weight bear

By offering this conformable yet supportive elevation, the horse was then able to bear its weight on the right front, allowing the left to be trimmed

Ironically, due to its movement, I subtly reduced heel height and incorporated a soft heel bevel as the horse was beginning to display a pronounced heel first impact landing

This is all PERSONAL PREFERENCE TRIMMING, the horses personal preference, watching and responding to the feedback being given by the whole horse, not a tunnel vision “this is what the foot must be approach”

“If there’s a Pete Ramey method, I wouldn’t use it” - Pete Ramey

31/08/2025

If 6 years of wear doesn’t leave one with a basic understanding of biomechanics, I’m not sure what would?

The boots will be worn back to just forward of the tip of the pedal bone, run a line parallel to the front of P3 and project it out through the sole and that will be the optimum point of breakover

What does a Cavallo Boot sole look like after 6 years of riding? Here is a great comparison of new and old, from John Dye, "These boots lasted 6 years on my mule. Pictures don’t really do any justice but they wore thru front and back and have hardly any tread." We do recommend purchasing new boots when your sole tread has lost about 50% of its tread height.

27/08/2025

Here’s a date for the diary 👍

📣 The wait is over – here’s the incredible speaker line-up for the Horses Inside Out Conference 2026!

On 22–23 February 2026, we’re bringing together 11 world-class experts in equine health, performance, science, training, and welfare — all under one roof.

Meet the speakers:

Prof. Kevin Haussler – equine asymmetry & spinal health

Dr Sue Dyson – lameness & movement specialist

Dr Gillian Tabor – physiotherapy & rehabilitation

Dr Kathryn Nankervis – aqua training for symmetry

Dr Chris Pearce – dentistry & biomechanics

Prof. Meriel Moore-Colyer – equine nutrition

Gillian Higgins – biomechanics & anatomy

Dr Lee Clark – rider asymmetry

Roly Owers – welfare & ethics in performance

Dr Kirsty Lésniak – skeletal asymmetry

Ros Canter – Olympic & 5* Event Rider

Plus, a full exhibition programme, interactive sessions and networking opportunities.

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25/08/2025

This is so poignant right now, not only has this summer in the U.K. created some very weird sh1t with hoof growth and it’s quality, if the weather forecast is right, we are in for another massive environmental change as rain hits which again will challenge many horses in our inconsistent environment

In the late summer and early fall, some horses seem to have hoof issues "out of nowhere." With no changes to their care, diet, or management, some seem to suddenly struggle with stone bruising and abscessing, hoof sensitivity, chronic thrush or white line disease, and even laminitic issues or founder.

Often, owners and even professionals can blame this on the season - dry weather leads to hard ground, and a breeding of flies that leads to fly stomping and sore feet. Makes sense, right?

But some horses are much more sore than your run-of-the-mill fly stomping pain. Some owners see their horses in pain and think they might even have to make a decision about letting their best friend go before winter hits.. and they just can't seem to figure out where things went wrong and why their careful management isn't working.

In this "mini episode," Alicia, host of The Humble Hoof podcast, talks about hoof issues going into fall, and one possible cause: undiagnosed or unregulated PPID (Cushing's). This episode dives into what PPID is, how to diagnosed and treat it, and how it can help your horse- especially this time of year.

You can hear the entire episode on any podcast app under "The Humble Hoof," or directly at this link: https://thehumblehoof.com/2025/08/22/late-summer-hoof-issues-ppid-mini-episode/

Edited to add: ECIR recently had a discussion about utilizing TRH stim tests year round. This study was referenced (not that it was done in Australia, hence why the results look swapped from the Northern Hemisphere). I am keeping an eye on this information for future testing!

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/jvim.16017

Thank you to our amazing sponsors:

Cavallo Hoof Boots is offering 15% off a pair of Trek hoof boots at cavallo-inc.com with code HRN

A special shout out to Grid as New, Mud Control Grids – they are a game changer for any mud issues, big or small! – mudcontrolgrids.com

Also be sure to check out HayBoss Feeders – haybossfeeders.com – for all your slow-feeding needs. I get my Hay Boss feeders from Mountain Lane Farm in NH!

22/08/2025

Thank you for such a lovely review of our first day (no pressure for delivering the second day now 😅)
We had a brilliant group of Scootboot competition winners attending and are so looking forward to tomorrow!

18/08/2025

I was contacted about this horse after a diagnosis of hind DSLD and what I believe are associated upper body problems

The veterinary proposal was to de-nerve in order to improve the quality of comfort and consequently life

My thought was, “Ok we have that on the back burner but lets try and improve the biomechanics and see what the horse says?”

It was a clear NPA on the X-rays and in motion twisted its feet so …

Lets gain joint alignment by elevating the shoe package and address breakover so hopefully it can walk over and through its toe and not around it which I think was generating the twist in the action

Always! This is my best guess but the horse has the final say! Whether this has been right or wrong

For clarity and fairness the horse was a little overdue for shoeing due to the dreaded diary and my commitments

“Edit”
Prior to this I ran my thoughts past the bodyworker involved with the horse and after the conversation and the owners agreement, they will see the horse 10 days after this shoeing as there will inevitably be body changes happening - TEAMWORK!

17/08/2025

Just a wee shout out to one of the most helpful and reliable U.K. equestrian companies I have the pleasure of interacting with

I knew Urban Horse well before even it’s initial concept as in many years now gone by I had the pleasure of providing some hoofcare on behalf of Carolyn it’s founder and owner

Situated in a beautiful part of northern England, Urban Horse has continued to expand its range of equestrian products including that which causes me the most interaction - hoof boots

Over many years now Carolyn has developed a remote sizing service for boots, allowing owners to send photos and measurements and gain a recommendation for the appropriate boot make and size

A service I’ve found extremely helpful to be able to recommend, knowing full well that while I’m heavily engaged with Scoot Boots, no one style can possibly address all needs and I have no intention atm with so much development of our Scoot Boot work of trying to learn every boot

There are many companies around who I recommend for a variety of services BUT! I have always remained completely impartial and not connected to any actual or implied financial affiliation or reward for recommending (my personal choice)

But I would like to be able to promote Urban Horses latest across the board offer of a 5% reduction at checkout via the use of the code HOLISTIC5, this code is in no way attached to me but gives my clients and others the chance to make some savings 👍

Hope it helps 🙏

Urban Horse - Bringing A Natural Balance Back To Horse And Rider. Urban Horse supplies a complete range of natural products for the barefoot and bitless horse and rider, including hoof boots, hoof trimming tools, bitless bridles, ba****ck pads, horsemanship equipment, slow feeders for horses and alt...

10/08/2025

Can we listen?

To me this is the power of the “coffee break “
So literally grabbing a coffee between horses (thank you client! 😁👍)as I put the tools down and picked up the coffee, I saw the horse next on the list backing up onto my mini stand as in the first photo

Just to explain, I’m in a good sized barn area and the horse is at liberty so this was its choice, at first I thought it must be after scratching itself but watching it, it backed up onto the stand and placed one foot up on it, needless to say by the time I had a camera things had changed a little

Still drinking coffee and very curious now, I continued to watch and next, there was a very deliberate repositioning to the second photo, this horse was seeking a different body alignment and a relieving of its posture

At best I’d say without an X-ray this pedal bone was in a neutral position if not negative

As there are no demands upon this horse other than being in the barn and out in the field I won’t intervene with permanent protection, knowing the environment with it’s natural undulations will most likely give this horse relief, but were it to come back into work it would be a different conversation

They are highly communicative creatures when given the chance