Heart & Sole - Equine Podiatry by Laura Evans

Heart & Sole - Equine Podiatry by Laura Evans I am a fully qualified and insured Equine Podiatrist with a Level 5 Diploma in Equine Podiatry - the highest standard in the UK.

This lovely lady, like many UK donkeys, has been struggling with white line disease which has affected one side of her f...
25/09/2025

This lovely lady, like many UK donkeys, has been struggling with white line disease which has affected one side of her foot more than the other.

This has caused her to compensate by walking slightly imbalanced.

I've recently taken her on as a client and have worked with her amazing owners to firstly look at any nutritional imbalances and support her from the inside out. Any nutritional deficiencies are where most hoof issues originate from.

We then cleaned the cavity with Red Horse Products Sole Cleanse and packed it with Hoof Stuff.

The next step was to get her some comfortable Equine Fusion boots and foam pads from The Hoof Boot Shop and she is loving them!

Diet. Environment. Trim. Movement.

🐴 Let's talk about movement! 🐎Movement is key for any animal to help promote general health πŸ₯. For their hooves, it stim...
24/09/2025

🐴 Let's talk about movement! 🐎

Movement is key for any animal to help promote general health πŸ₯.

For their hooves, it stimulates the cells that produce new sole, healthier walls, sole, frogs and more!

The movement helps the lymphatic system pump wasteπŸ—‘products through the body and assists the circulation πŸ’—πŸ©Ί and respiratory systems.

However, asking for increased movement if your horse isn't entirely comfortable on their feet isn't the answer and can create compensatory issues in muscles and bruising in their feet which may lead to abcsesses. This is where correctly fitting hoof boots and appropriate pads can help.

The use of hoof boots isn't "cheating". Boots can help your horse be more comfortable when walking across varied terrain and promote that slightly heel first landing that makes the full use of the external and internal structures that help shock absorb and stimulate tissues.

I fitted hoof boots recently for 2 horses who found the stoney Argyll forest tracks a little too much, and received the below from their owner today πŸ₯°.

Happy Horses. Happy Laura.

It's just a lovely functional foot.I've recently started trimming this lovely mare, and her feet are improving already. ...
23/09/2025

It's just a lovely functional foot.

I've recently started trimming this lovely mare, and her feet are improving already. Pretty solid walls, a nice sole with some improvements to be seen in her frogs and digital cushion to give her the full package!

Her owner is looking at getting her a nice, comfortable pair of Flex Boots to get her out more.

By increasing her movement over more varied terrain, I feel her feet will continue to improve 😍

The colder nights, rain, sunshine and warmer days mean the grass can be just as harmful (if not more so!) Than it is in ...
21/09/2025

The colder nights, rain, sunshine and warmer days mean the grass can be just as harmful (if not more so!) Than it is in spring.

Please be cautious if you have a laminits prone horse, pony or donkey. Consider limiting grass and keep forage always available through hay.

My own big boys had a lovely massage session last night with Catriona from EqWest Equine Sports Massage Therapy.For Tont...
20/09/2025

My own big boys had a lovely massage session last night with Catriona from EqWest Equine Sports Massage Therapy.

For Tonto, this meant some sleepy time as he lives with sleep deprivation and therefore has tight muscles that don't get their needed rest when horses sleep lying down. Check out his bottom lip!

For Ronnie, this helped relax some tight muscles as he tends to really pull himself like a tight coiled spring!

Bodywork is so important and can help not only relax tired muscles but also help the horses stay balanced through their entire body.

https://www.facebook.com/share/16nGyYoKHa/

On Friday I travelled via Oban to the Isle of Mull to cover trimming appointments for the amazing Sarah Leggett. Since t...
14/09/2025

On Friday I travelled via Oban to the Isle of Mull to cover trimming appointments for the amazing Sarah Leggett.

Since then I've trimmed 18 horses, ponies and donkeys of all shapes and sizes and fitted some hoof boots as well.

🫏 4 donkeys aged between 1 and 30 years old.
🐎 14 horses and ponies aged between 3 and 29 years old.
🐴 Breeds from across the UK including Shetlands, Cobs, Highlands, Eriskays and Welshies.

I've seen lots of healthy feet as well as others needing support with Laminitis, seedy toe, white line disease, recovering sub solar & heel abscesses, and hoof cracks.

Phew, I'm looking forward to a good rest tonight!

11/09/2025

Some lovely feedback from a recent hoof boot fitting for 2 very different horses.

"π‘†β„Žπ‘’ π‘€π‘Žπ‘  π‘”π‘Ÿπ‘’π‘Žπ‘‘, 𝐼 π‘Ÿπ‘œπ‘‘π‘’ β„Žπ‘’π‘Ÿ 𝑖𝑛 π‘‘β„Žπ‘’π‘š π‘Žπ‘›π‘‘ 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑛 β„Žπ‘Žπ‘‘ π‘Ž 𝑀𝑒𝑒 π‘—π‘’π‘šπ‘ . π‘‡β„Žπ‘’π‘¦ 𝑑𝑖𝑑𝑛’𝑑 π‘ π‘’π‘’π‘š π‘‘π‘œ π‘šπ‘œπ‘£π‘’ π‘Žπ‘‘ π‘Žπ‘™π‘™. π‘‡β„Žπ‘Žπ‘›π‘˜π‘  π‘ π‘œ π‘šπ‘’π‘β„Ž π‘“π‘œπ‘Ÿ π‘Žπ‘™π‘™ π‘¦π‘œπ‘’π‘Ÿ β„Žπ‘’π‘™π‘ , 𝐼 π‘π‘Žπ‘›β€™π‘‘ π‘Ÿπ‘’π‘π‘œπ‘šπ‘šπ‘’π‘›π‘‘ π‘¦π‘œπ‘’ β„Žπ‘–π‘”β„Žπ‘™π‘¦ π‘’π‘›π‘œπ‘’π‘”β„Ž. 𝐼 π‘€π‘–π‘ β„Ž π‘¦π‘œπ‘’ π‘ π‘‘π‘Žπ‘¦π‘’π‘‘ π‘›π‘’π‘Žπ‘Ÿπ‘’π‘Ÿ π‘šπ‘’!"

This was for a lovely mare getting ready for a trekking holiday where they plan on hacking for many hours and miles each day where we opted for some of my favourite Flex Boots.

Then for an elderly gent who has been shod for a very long time and has earned his semi retirement..he has very thin soles and quite weak hoof structure so we opted for a nice wool pad inside his Equine Fusion boots. Look at him in his comfy boots like Lord of the Manor and quite right too!

The principles of trimming sound easy enough. I often see posts where people say, "Trim the heels until they're level wi...
07/09/2025

The principles of trimming sound easy enough.

I often see posts where people say,
"Trim the heels until they're level with the frog or the sole."

But the foot is not standalone.

It is connected through a complex network of incredible tendons, ligaments, blood vessels, nerves, bone and other tissue. Whilst that trimming concept of lowering heels may work, there are times it won't. There are times dropping the heels too quickly may cause damage.

This is where your Equine Podiatrist will carry out a simple test to make sure the tendons can cope with the adjustment they're going to make.

This elderly pony found it quite uncomfortable during this test, telling me to lower his heels little and often and not all in one go.

His toes have come back, which will help his movement, and his heels have been lowered to a comfortable height. Next trim, we will lower them a little more until we get them to an appropriate height.

There are rules....then there are individual horses, ponies and donkeys.....our job is to listen and adapt πŸ₯°

All of my clients know I'm good at giving advice about your horses diet, management, workload, body worker and so on.......
03/09/2025

All of my clients know I'm good at giving advice about your horses diet, management, workload, body worker and so on......

However, like many owners, I'm not so good at taking this advice myself! Regularly missing meals, rushing from client to client, fitting in 2 jobs, very little relaxation, no body worker and questionable nutrition!

So this week and next week, I'm taking my own advice and having some time to focus on myself, my body and my mind! Daily physio, walking, swimming, running, chilling out, mindfulness πŸ₯° I may take longer to respond to messages, but I'm still here for you πŸ’—

A full day of Hoof Boot fittings today in Kilmelford. This was a great day with lots of lovely hooves to fit for. Scoot ...
31/08/2025

A full day of Hoof Boot fittings today in Kilmelford. This was a great day with lots of lovely hooves to fit for.

Scoot boots were the winner today with regular Scoots and Scoot Adjust/Enduro fitting a range of feet. Some of which have endurance rides coming up, so that will put them through their paces!

I also had a range of fittings for horses with existing Renegade boots which fitted really well.

Right Boot. Right Hoof.

Even when there isn't a lot of growth, you can still affect the angle of the hoof through some minor corrections. This m...
26/08/2025

Even when there isn't a lot of growth, you can still affect the angle of the hoof through some minor corrections.

This mare has lovely feet which have been used to shoes. Her heels still need to relax and expand as they're still quite contracted however the heel purchase and angle have improved after her first trim. She will also benefit from having the outer wall bevelled and rolled to assist when she lifts her foot off the ground as she moves.

The owner is going to use Red Horse Products hoof stuff in the deep central sulcus that's developed to encourage the heels to open up.

I'm looking forward to see how these changes look after the next visit.

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Glenramskill Farm
Campbeltown
PA286RD

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Monday 9am - 5pm
Saturday 9am - 5pm
Sunday 9am - 5pm

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+447974949778

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