Gilchrist also says half-round shoe — long popular on Standardbred racetracks — also can benefit Grand Prix horses.
“I love a half-round shoe,” he says. “A lot of horses really love that shoe. It helps increase the breakover and it absorbs shock on some different types of footing. Where a flat shoe hits the ground and jars the horse, a half-round shoe will sink in. It’s good for horses with fetlock issues, carpal issues and any horse that’s got a bad ankle or is a little funny in the knee. Some of these upper-level horses will go really well with half-round shoes in the front.
We spent a day “Shoeing For A Living” with Gilchrist and the story appeared in the May/June 2010 issue of American Farriers Journal.
