“Applied Equine Podiatry is the conscientious study of the equine foot, always striving to expose it to proper environmental stimuli, making every effort to promote proper structure and function, as we attempt to achieve high performance. It is accepting the facts that the horse has the innate ability to heal itself and that man’s interference has caused imbalance and broken the golden rule of DO NO HARM.” KC La Pierre, “The Chosen Road”
I came to find KC LaPierre and study applied equine podiatry through Doug Stauffer (Pony Boy’s general manager). The farrier that had been trimming my horses no longer wanted to come out this far, and I couldn’t find anyone else who would. My horses are barefoot. It was going on six month with no trim and Comanche was starting to get significant cracks, Sundance’s hoof was looking twisted and they all had very long toes. I was becoming very concerned.
I signed up for a work shop and started reading “The Chosen Road”. The information in the book was like a foreign language to me. The applied equine podiatry workshop came and My daughter Autumn and I participated in one of the most exciting learning experience I have ever had. I finally gained some basic understanding of the equine foot. I was astounded by the quantity of information I received in a way that I could understand it, and take it home and use it. We learned to apply the trim, came home and began trimming our own horses. I was amazed at the improvement that began to occur in a very short time. I now have horses with feet that can carry me barefoot on rocky terrain.
I was so excited by this knowledge and what it means to the health of our horses that I decided to pursue my diploma of Applied Equine Podiatry. I have continued my education and have completed the advanced program. Through this work I will be able to help horses and their owners to establish a sound and healthy horse from the ground up. I am now practicing Applied Equine Podiatry in WV and surrounding areas.