Prevent lameness on a pack trip by picking up and checking every hoof each morning and each evening, keeping loads within the animal’s limits, pre-fitting shoes before the trip and carrying spare shoes and nails or a hoof boot, a hoof pick and a farrier’s rasp. An overloaded or unchecked animal goes lame, and a lame pack animal ends the trip for the whole string.
Part of Pack Animal Management
Keeping pack animals’ feet sound on a trip: prevention, inspection and the supplies to carry.
On The Trail, Feet Fail Because Of Load, Ground And Neglect
Rough ground bruises soles, loosens shoes and cracks walls. Overload multiplies the strain on every foot. A daily inspection catches the stone, the crack or the heat before it becomes a limp. The three articles under this heading cover the routine and the repair.
What You Need
- Loads within the animal’s limits — see Weight Limits by Animal.
- Shoes pre-fitted before the trip, with spare shoes and nails, or a hoof boot.
- A hoof pick and a farrier’s rasp.
- Time morning and evening — for the inspection.
Method: Prevent, Inspect, Repair
Step 1: Prepare before the trip. Fit shoes before departure. Trim if due; see Hoof & Foot Care.
Step 2: Keep loads within limits and reduce for steep or hot conditions. Overload is a cause of lameness.
Step 3: Inspect every foot morning and evening. See Daily Hoof Inspection.
Step 4: Act on the first sign. Reduce load, change terrain and apply repairs; see Emergency Hoof Repair.
Step 5: Plan for loss. Decide in advance what happens to the load of an animal that cannot go on.
Worked Example
How many hoof checks does the routine mean?
- Per animal: 4 hooves x 2 checks a day = 8 checks.
- A string of 5 animals: 5 x 8 = 40 checks a day; a string of 8: 8 x 8 = 64 checks a day.
At an assumed 1 minute per hoof, that is 40 to 64 minutes of daily inspection time, to be built into the day.
Common Mistakes
- Skipping the morning check — the evening look does not see what happened overnight.
- Shoeing on the trail for the first time — fit before leaving.
- Overloading — see the weight article.
- Carrying no spare — a lost shoe on rock lames an animal in a day.
Safety
Handling feet near a loaded string
A lifted hoof can come down or kick, and a pack animal tied in a string cannot step away. Unload or at least stop the string and tie the animal being checked with a quick-release knot. Stand beside the shoulder, facing the tail, and never kneel or crouch behind a hind leg.
What’s Next
- Learn next: Daily Hoof Inspection — the four checks
- Combine with: Hoof and Foot Disease — foot conditions of cattle and small ruminants in more depth