A Pastern Joint Injury Left him with Arthritis…

Gunner is a 10 year old Quarter horse, and he’s the sweetest-natured animal I’ve ever had.  A pastern joint injury left him with arthritis…  Here is his story:

Unfortunately, he had a previous owner who didn’t care for him very much.  I knew Gunner before and after the injury that changed the course of his life.  He got tangled in loose barbed wire that never should have been left laying around.  It gashed his pastern open and he received no vet care of any kind. I didn’t own him then and did what I could to help him but he needed a vet badly.  The poor horse’s leg swelled up like a stove pipe. When the swelling went down he was left with a large scar and a large hard lump on his pastern. He was three-legged lame, hobbling around a massive pasture for months, getting beaten up by other horses.

A Neighbor Cares Enough to Save Him

I was finally able to convince his owners to sell him and I loaded him on my trailer 10 seconds after they agreed!  I drove him the hour and a half to my vet.  He was examined and X-rayed.  It turns out the barbed wire had damaged his pastern joint.  Because he was left without any medical care, he had developed arthritis. The large hard lump on his pastern had calcified into bone and it will always be there.  The prognosis wasn’t great.  We just didn’t know if he’d ever be sound enough to ride, or even sound enough to be a “pasture puff”.

A Wise Farrier Steps In…

So I began a course of injections that had little effect.  He was then put on another medication and the improvement was rapid and dramatic.  By the third day he was galloping!  It was amazing to watch him gallop across the field after seeing him struggle to walk for 8 months.  We slowly began riding.  But if we encountered any kind of rocks at all he immediately went lame. Pavement was another trouble area for him.  My first inclination was to shoe him, but bless my farrier’s heart for caring more about the horse than his pocketbook.  He suggested that I try hoof boots first, as he believed the steel shoes would irritate his arthritis and do more harm than good.  So we searched and searched and I ordered a pair of Cavallos. 

Cavallos to the Rescue!

The day they arrived I raced out to try them on him and they fit perfectly.  We headed out for a ride and he cruised over pavement and the rockiest terrain like it was nothing!  He was like a brand new horse.  He’s now had his Cavallos for a year and he never goes out on the trail without them.  I’m going to order another pair so he has a backup.  And during the winter when the ground gets very hard, he wears his boots during turnout and they keep him comfortable and provide better traction. Cavallo boots gave my horse a second chance at doing what he loves to do – go riding.

Recommended by THIS Horse Owner

I recommend them to everyone and most of my friends have switched to Cavallo Boots for their horses after seeing what they’ve done for mine.  They’re easy to put on and take off, and I’ve never had problems with rubs or coming off during a ride.  Even in rough terrain and deep mud the boots stay put. I also use the Cavallo Pastern Wraps, I love how they kind of mold to the horses heel bulbs and pastern to provide an exact fit.  They keep them comfortable and protected from any potential cuts or scrapes. As long as I have horses I will have Cavallo Boots!  Thank you for making such an amazing product for our beloved horses!

– Ashley Peake