At last winter’s fifth annual International Hoof-Care Summit in Cincinnati, two veteran farriers tackled a number of frequently asked questions about the footcare industry. For the second straight year, this “Point/Counterpoint” discussion proved to be among the highlights of this annual event.

A client has obtained a rescue horse, which I trimmed about 10 weeks ago. At that time, the frog was gone from three hooves. I didn’t think anything about it since most horses were shedding frogs at that time.

Q. What would you suggest for dropping the angle of a patten bar shoe? How much time do you allow between adjustments and how many degrees at a time? This is a 10-degree bar on a mare who has had a lot of damage to the deep digital flexor tendon and surrounding tissue.