Manufacturers of hoof-care products are blessed. Although they often create products with specific intended uses and applications, the farriers they serve will likely come up with innovations on how to improve a product or use it differently.

Foundered horses climb the road to recovery one step at a time in heart bar shoes, according to farrier Esco Buff. The key, he believes, is to apply those shoes exactly as needed according to detailed radiographs and meticulous records of the horse’s progress.