The Ego, Destroyer of Customer Service

As a school whose mission is to produce graduates that place the welfare of the horse above all else, it is only logical that developing communication skills has become a priority. 

I learned a long time ago that customer service did not end when my tools were back in my vehicle. I learned that there is more to it than being on time, or doing a pretty trim or shoe job. If I truly had the welfare of the horse in mind, I needed to learn how to communicate with all involved in the care of that horse, including the owner, and veterinarian. 

Below is a exert from the AFJ blog that illustrates the importance of developing communication skills. I respect the farrier for understanding the importance of listening. "When an owner asks him a question at the barn, He takes his apron off, makes eye contact and listens to what they have to say. He addresses their concerns by answering in a thorough, understandable manner." Communication. Our program promotes the use of a Spectrum of Usability, a form which documents the current state of health of the hooves and horse being worked on. This form keeps the owner engaged and the hoof care provider connected. While it does take time to fill out, it gives the owner time to ask questions. 

For the Applied Equine Podiatrist it is important to develop these communication skills, skills that promote team work. For the Applied Equine Podiatrist a team may include owner, vet, farrier, or a host of other care providers. Customer service is all about communication and team work. When it comes to the welfare of the horses in our care, there is little room for ego. That being said, we all need to be very careful not to mistake confidence and good communication skills for ego. 

From the AFJ Blog: 

El Paso, Texas, farrier Doug Hogue conducts 90% of his work at the clinic of Dr. Paul Jenson in Sunland Park, N.M. Hogue in a conversation with Jeremy McGovern, Executive Editor of the American Farriers journal, explained that he sometimes finds local farriers who are angered because another farrier has temporarily taken over the horse at the clinic. He states; I disagree with the opinion, but I understand why that reaction sometimes occurs. Those farriers react as such when they mistake a farrier carrying out a vet’s script as an unwarranted critique. That’s vanity and pride manifested in unprofessional reactions. Furthermore, it is a missed opportunity to learn and a failure to recognize a deficiency may exist in one’s own work that may have caused or contributed to the problem. Not to mention, what’s more important… the health of the horse or your pride?

A more curious reaction Hogue also told McGovern about is when another farrier is mad because the client didn’t tell him or her that the horse went to the clinic. Obviously this is a case of misdirected anger. And it is a reaction that misses the point entirely. Hogue sums it up best that the other farrier should, “take a step back and realize that there is a problem is in the relationship with that client … they don’t feel there was a need to let that farrier know there was a problem.”

Hogue says the farrier as the cause of this problem is avoidable by staying engaged with the owner. He lets the client know he wants to know as soon as they believe there is an issue with the horse. When an owner asks him a question at the barn, Hogue takes his apron off, makes eye contact and listens to what they have to say. He addresses their concerns by answering in a thorough, understandable manner.

All of this is quality customer service. More importantly, this level of engagement lets the owners know you care about the horse and their business. And it makes finding out about visits to the clinic after the fact a rarity.

What is Applied Equine Podiatry?

What is it about change that is so hard? In my post "Solving Hoof Problems, Laterally?"  I talk about labels and why when something comes along that is different our thought patterns immediately attempt to apply familiar patterns to it. The example I gave was: You have two boxes one is labeled white ping pong balls, the other black ping pong balls. As long as you are handed a white or black ping pong ball you have no difficulty placing it into the appropriate box, you are comfortable, you have established thought patterns that solve the problem. Then you are handed a gray ping pong ball, which box to put it in? Your mind will struggle to choose, though experience may sway you to put it in the black box because you see gray as closer to black, or you may decide that because black is the absence of all color that it needs to be in the white box.  But, what if you chose to break your pattern of thinking, what then? When do you decide that there needs to be a third box?  Hmmm a third box.

Along comes someone calling themselves an Applied Equine Podiatrist, you have two boxes one labeled "Farrier" the other "Barefooter", which box should I put this person into? Like the ping pong ball, you will use an established pattern of thought assigning one of these labels to this person. I'll ask again, what if you choose to break your pattern of thinking?

It is only fair that if I am going to ask you to change your pattern of thinking that I provide you with information about this third choice. So, What is Applied Equine Podiatry?

I get asked that question all the time, at horse expos, lectures and conferences, and in class by the first time student. In class it is a simpler task, offering information that allows a student to practice lateral thinking and thus accept the need for a third box. The question "What is Applied Equine Podiatry?" is an exercise in lateral thinking, and after being challenged hundreds of times by this question I was able to pen a simple definition. I think at the very least the following definition will allow the open minded individual to entertain breaking fixed patterns of thought.

"The essence of 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 progress in achieving high performance. It is accepting the fact that the horse has the innate ability to heal itself, and that domestication of the horse has caused imbalance and broken the golden rule of "Do No Harm." 

Over the next few weeks I will post a question or statement taken directly from a past final written exam of our Entry On-Line AEP Program.

The exam is a list of questions and statements that I have been presented with over the past several years. Students are instructed to read each carefully and respond to each as if it were directed to them and as to how Applied Equine Podiatry would or would not apply. Tip: “Whole Health Hoof Care.” The goal of the Applied Equine Podiatrist is to aid the horse owner in achieving a healthy foot.

Here's a question or rather statement presented to our Entry Level AEP students.

  

My horse wears his hind outside heel down much faster than the inside; the shoe prevents the wear and my farrier wedges it to balance him. 

Tip: When a statement is presented, often the answer is a question. 

Perhaps with added insight you to will see the need for a third box. 

Prolapse in the Hoof

One of the very first things taught at our school is the functions of the hoof capsule. We talk in terms of protection, support, suspension, and resistance, the hoof capsule has a multitude functions. One of the most important is to provide resistance to distortions induced by the stride. As an example, the wall of the toe must provide much more resistance to flexing than that of the wall at the heels. The primary reason is the task that it must complete during the stride, function is directly related to a structures foundation. The foundation at the heels is cartilage and at the toe bone.

The wall also helps in protecting the corium (sensitive, vascular tissue) that produces it, protecting against blunt trauma, infiltration of toxins, and prolapse (displacement) of the corium itself.

The most common form of corium prolapse associated with the hoof of the horse is a solar corium prolapse; where by the corium of the sole protrudes from the solar epidermis (horn). This sometimes happens when the horn of the sole is removed to expose an abscess, or following a puncture wound. Other areas of the hoof capsule that have been seen to host a prolapse, though not as common are the frog, and coronary band groove.  

Why does the prolapse occur? As stated above, one function of the hoof capsule is to provide resistance. When this resistance is removed, either by injury or intentionally the risk of prolapse exist. Inflammation and instability are major contributors to the process of prolapse.

How can prolapse be prevented? First and foremost, anytime that corium or living tissue is involved, so to should the vet be involved. As a hoof care provider our work begins and ends with the hoof. Working with an attending veterinarian to prevent infection and reduce inflammation the hoof care provider can help in preventing the prolapse from occurring, by creating resistance where resistance has been compromised.

Resistance does not mean support; it means mild pressure that does not result in pressure necrosis (death of tissue). 

I have attached photos of a case that involved a coronary band prolapse. This type of prolapse is not very common, but can occur when a large area of the coronary groove of the hoof capsule is lost. 

This particular horse suffered an abscess which resulted in substantial loss of resistance at the coronary band. This foot was also very upright, and as a result a higher level of distortion occurred at the sight of the prolapse.

This was treated by providing resistance in the form of a Sole Mate Therapeutic Pad insert. The area was washed with Silvetrasol Hoof and Wound Wash, and the pad was fashioned to mirror the stratum internum (inner wall). 

I then applied a Perfect Hoof Wear Poly Wrap to the foot, paying close attention to the amount of tension applied over the Sole Mate insert. The PHW Poly Wrap provided the resistance needed to prevent further prolapse, while the pad insert provided the stimulus needed for the development of healthy structure. The final picture was taken at four months from the onset of the condition. This package was applied four times. 

Horse Toes?

Throughout history and still today some horses are born with vestigial toes.

Take a look at Alexander the Great’s horse, he was one such animal.  His name was Bucephalus which translates as Oxhead. Some accounts say that he was so named because he had the image of a bull's head on his shoulder. The name conjures up mental images of a warhorse with a massive head and chest, that carried brazen young conqueror. Quite the picture, but did you know that Bucephalus had vestigial toes (extra, non-functioning).

Toes on a horse are an evolutionary legacy akin to human tailbones and gills in womb. Embryos of modern horses develop the rudiments for three toes in utero. Ordinarily, the middle toe will eventually outgrow the outer ones which then become splint bones. This central toe is then the one which will support the horse through contact with the ground, ie the hoof. Bucephalus’was a polydactyl, which means having more than one toe; his toes  did not develop in the normal manner during gestation. 

The legend of Bucephalus’ mutation was nurtured, imbuing the horse and his owner with mythical properties. The toes, in some way, embodied the outstanding nature of his master’s life, as if everything he touched was extraordinary. Centuries later Julius Caesar hung on the coattails of this myth by sourcing a three-toed horse and protesting that it would let none other than the man himself ride it.