It was like the Twilight Zone...

I have a client that has been in the habit of putting horses out after they pull a shoe. I have made a few curt comments lately about how bad of an idea that is and how it hurts her pocket book and mine, but this time she assured me that the horse hadn't been let out.

Putting horses out after they pull a shoe is a bad idea because they typically tear up their hooves all the more while they are outside and then when I finally get there; there is nothing left to work with. Many of my more seasoned owners will wrap the horse's hooves and leave the horses in their stalls until I can get there.

So, here the thing...

I had no reason to not believe her, unless maybe she was just confused or had forgotten, but I was absolutely convinced of two things:

1. The horse had absolutely been out since the shoe had come off. As someone that has been shoeing horses for going on 30 years now, I know what a horse's hoof looks like when it has been out.
2. There were no nail holes! I was also completely convinced that this horse hadn't had shoes on in a considerable amount of time.

I still don't know what the reality is. One of both of us is just crazy.