wizard stressrelief

Instructions

Important! The Hoof Wizard is designed to help you identify uneven hoof wall lengths that imbalance the equine hoof and lower limb. The Hoof Wizard is not for use as and should not be used as a trim gauge! Warning! Only people qualified to trim horses’ hooves can determine the proper amount of hoof to remove. Working with horses can result in serious injury. Please use caution when applying and interpreting the Hoof Wizard. DO NOT attempt to use this product unless experienced in handling horses and their feet.

Warning! Only people qualified to trim horses’ hooves can determine the proper amount of hoof to remove. Working with horses can result in serious injury. Please use caution when applying and interpreting the Hoof Wizard. DO NOT attempt to use this product unless experienced in handling horses and their feet.

parts

Section 1: Applying the Hoof Wizard

Section 2: Understanding Hairlines

Section 3: Making Corrections


SECTION 1

APPLYING THE HOOF WIZARD AND DRAWING BALANCE LINES

This section shows an easy way to apply the Wizard to the hoof and secure it in place.

Correct placement of the Hoof Wizard is essential for the accurate assessment of your horse’s balance.

We show one method of securing the Hoof Wizard in place. With practice you may develop your own method – or you may simply opt to hold it in place with one hand while drawing the lines with the other.

Step 1
1-1
Identify the centrail cleft of frog. This valley-like feature extends from an area midway between the bulbs of the heels and continues the length of the frog. It is the true center of the foot.		Step 2
1-2
Find and mark the toe of the hoof by aligning a pencil with the hoof's central cleft. Then, using the pencil, mark the toe of the hoof, shown here at the tip of the index finger.		Step 3
1-3
Choose a rubber band (provided) that fits snugly but not tightly around your horse's hoof. Slip the rubber band over the hoof and onto the pastern.
Step 4
1-4
Complete the following steps with the horse's foot on the ground or on a hoof stand. Place the Hoof Wizard on the hoof and secure it by sliding the rubber band onto the area just above the botton line on the Wizard. Use the Wizard labeled 54 on less upright feet or the one labeled 60 on more upright feet.		Step 5
1-5
The rubber band will pass around the foot and across the heels as shown above.		Step 6
1-6
Position the Wizard so that the top edge (labeled Hairline) is parallel to the horse's hairline and the toe alignment mark on the Wizard is in line with the toe mark that was drawn in step 2.
Step 7
1-7
Draw the balance line from heel to heel along the lower edge of the Wizard. (Shown here as a dotted line and without a rubber band for clarity.)		Step 8
1-8
On a longer foot, draw a second, optional balance line by placing the bottom line (See parts of your Wizard) over the first balance line from step 7 and drawing the second balance line along lower edge of Wizard.		Step 9
1-9
The second balance line is optional. Use of the second balance line is appropriate if the first balance line is one inch or more from the ground surface of the hoof. Moving the balance line closer to the ground surface helps identify the sections of the hoof wall that are an inappropriate length and the cause of imbalance.
Step 10
1-10
To evaluate the heels, hold the horse's cannon bone and sight the foot as shown above. NOTE: In this case the first balance line is so far from the ground surface that at least one additional balance line must be added before evaluating the heels.		Step 11
1-11
If the heels are very long, a second balance line may still be too far from the ground surface to allow accurate evaluation. A third line may be required. (Relocate the Wizard to add second and third balance lines as described in step 8 )		Step 12
1-12
If needed, draw a third balance line. Now the imbalance is obvious. Clearly, the heel on the left is longer than the heel on the right. The distance from the ground surface to the balance line should be the same for both heels.


A QUICK REVIEW

At this point you should be able to:

1) Identify the parts of the Hoof Wizard.
2) Apply the Wizard parralel to the hairline.
3) Draw the balance line along the bottom edge of the Hoof Wizard.
4) Draw a second balance line by aligning the bottom line on the Hoof Wizard with the first balance line you drew.

The Hoof Wizard should be used routinely to evaluate all feet. However, badly imbalanced feet create the greatest risk to your horse and require urgent care. See Section 2: Understanding Hairlines for more information.

SECTION 2

UNDERSTANDING HAIRLINES

Hairline deformation, or “Push”, is early evidence of hoof deformation. The hoof deforms because of uneven concussion at the time of impact during movement. Uneven concussion is caused by an imbalanced hoof. The only proof that the equine hoof and limb are in balance is a hoof that does not deform.

Only the Hoof Wizard can analyze this cause-and-effect relationship because of it’s “Top Down” approach.

Illustrated in Section 2 are the most commonly encountered hairline deformations and how to apply the Hoof Wizard to them.

2-1
The hairline illustrated here is normal. Compare it to the deformed hairlines shown next.		2-2
Here, the hairline is "pushed" at the pillar (for pillar locations see Parts of Your Wizard). This deformity indicated that the pillar region of the hoof wall is too long.		2-3
The pushed quarter is caused by an imbalanced pillar coupled with an imbalanced sidewall (both are too long). This deformity begins near the toe, continues around the hoof, and often involves the heel.
2-4
To apply the Wizard to hooves with hairline deformities, bridge the area of the push by aligning the upper edge of the Wizard with the hairline it comfortably parallels. Do not force the Wizard to fit into the pushed area. Draw a line at the top of the Wizard across the area of the push as shown above. Then draw balance line(s) as described earlier in Section 1.		2-5
To clearly identify the area of the hoof that is causing the imbalance, add a second balance line (see step 8 of Section 1) by aligning bottom line on Wizard with first balance line on hoof. Do not add second line at top.		2-6
Pushed hairlines are caused by hoof wall that is too long under and just forward of the push. With the Wizard removed as shown above, the imbalance is indicated by the uneven distances from the ground surface to the balance line. See Section 3 for instructions on rebalancing these problem hooves.


SECTION 3

MAKING CORRECTIONS

This last section shows how to correct the common imbalances described in Section 2.

Side-to-side (medial-lateral) and front-to-back (anterior-posterior) balance are described.

3-1
Compare the balanced hoof above with the other drawings in this section. NOTE: The ground surface is parralel to the hairline, which shows no push. The slope of the front of the hoof should be similar to the slope of the pastern.		3-2
For this foot to be in balance, the ground surface must be parralel to the balance line. (A) shows the area where the hoof is too long. Always keep the slope of the pastern and hoof the same. (This very important hoof-pastern axis can only be achieved with proper toe and heel lengths.)		3-3
With proper correction, the distances from the ground surface to the balance line at points A, B, C, D will be equal to the distances at corresponding points on the opposite side of the hoof. This foot is still not balanced because the hairline is still pushed.
3-4
To relieve the hairline and successfully balance this hoof, the hairline must have room to settle. The hairline can settle into the space at (A), which should be slightly forward of and be equal to the length of the hairline push.		3-5
With routine evaluation and maintenance using the Hoof Wizard as a guide, the hairline will begin to match the hairline on the Wizard, and the distance from the balance line to the ground will be equal at identical locations on each side of the hoof. This is a balanced hoof.		3-6
The wry hoof is common and difficult imbalance to correct. Here the distance from the ground surface to the balance line is greater at (A) than (B) and the toe is off-center. When balanced, the distances at (A) and (B) will be equal and the toe will be centered.
3-7
No matter the problem, all hooves balance the same. To correct the wry hoof and allow the pushed pillar to relax, the ground surface must be parallel to the balance line (the first or second line) with additional space provided under the push for hairline settling.		3-8
With just one correction, the ground surface is nearly parallel to the balance line (A) and the hairline (B) is beginning to settle. The toe is better than before but is not yet centered.		3-9
With routine evaluation and maintenance using the Hoof Wizard as a guide, the wry foot is balanced, remodeled,and looks normal. The toe is centered and the hairline is no longer pushed.