The vet was called and will come today to do x rays.
After observing Vegas for longer...I would venture a guess of heel pain/navicular over founder...but perhaps both. We shall see. He is always in 'pain pose 101'. Generally it is with the RF forward but sometimes he shifts to the LF forward but spends less time there. His back and hips and loins and neck are all super tight to the touch and he reacts to pressure with aggressive looks with his ears and eyes. After feeling the muscles and seeing the stance...I don't blame him.
The vet arrived and seemed interested in what I was proposing to do with Vegas. He looked at him all over and said he was handsome (nice color) and that he has genetically small feet like many QH's.
Before taking x rays he requested that I cut out the bottom of the foot a bit (sole and frog) to 'clean it up' to get a better reading. I declined. We went ahead and did x rays of both fronts from the side...standing on blocks. I got pics of where the x ray machine was positioned so that we can super impose the pics on one another.
Vet comments: Said his feet were very long in the toe. His hinds needed a good trim but other than that they looked very normal. He did venture a guess that Vegas would never be sound on those fronts. He did the dreaded hoof testers on the fronts. Vegas responded lightly on the RF and not at all on the LF...so the vet went back to the RF and there was no response.
He joked and said "oh, he's not sore now...he's better". ;)
I said that the 'squeeze' must have produced an endorphin rush...he didn't say anything.
He was a bit surprised that this horse was treated at the well recognized veterinary training school in QC and he couldn't believe that they didn't look at the poor shape of his feet and take that into account. He said it's a case of neglect in his eyes...but of course Vegas was not neglected in conventional terms. It's just that this traditional wisdom failed him, on so many levels.
Here are some pics of the x rays poses.
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