The commonly observed condition where the heel of one front foot is higher than the other has ramifications that extend well beyond the effects on the foot itself. This condition is also observed in the hind feet, though less frequently. However, because of limitations and scope, this chapter will direct its attention primarily to high heel/low heels of the front feet.
Pat Thackery, a well known and very educated farrier from Idaho, has stated that 60% of the horses in his practice have asymmetrical heel heights. We need to decide what that means and whether it is normal—and thus an inconsequential finding. Do some need to be corrected while yet others do not need corrective procedures? Since nearly everyone I have ever known has grown up in a dysfunctional family, it must be “normal,” to be from such a family, but is it good or healthy in a mental or physical sense to be imbalanced? We cannot simply dismiss the syndrome that lightly.
