What Causes Palmar Foot Pain?
Palmar foot pain, which in the past has been known as navicular, is a common malady that develops toward the back and bottom of a horse’s legs and foot. According to Dr. Britt Conklin of Reata Equine Hospital and Podiatry Center in Weatherford, Texas, these are some of the primary causes of the disorder: – – Genetics “From what we know, it can be genetic,” Conklin says. “In other words, a horse can have a predisposition for it. This doesn’t mean they’re born with the foot pain. It means that if a parent had some weakness in the navicular bone, it can get passed on. Then, when the horse gets old enough to have a job, you can see some problems develop.” – Conformation “If your horse is badly conformed, say, with a long toe, low heal and very thin digital cushion [a structure in the back of the hoof that protects the region around the navicular bone], then he can’t absorb the amount of concussion that a horse with an upright hoof structure, a lot of frog and a lot of digital cushion can,”
