There’s something satisfying about watching a cutting horse doing its job well. The speed, agility and balance of the horse to mirror a cut cow as it desperately tries to return to the safety of its herd is mesmerizing and thrilling all at once.

When a well-clipped shoe is applied correctly, it sure looks sharp on a horse’s hoof. Some farriers will even go so far as to call them sexy. Proclivities aside, they serve an important function. “Clips are mainly used to improve the security of the shoe on the foot and relieve stress on the nails,” says Tucumcari, N.M., farrier Jim Keith. “They can be applied anywhere around the wall perimeter, but usually only in the anterior half due to their ability to constrict wall movement. They may be used to contain wall flares.”

Doyle Blagg will tell you that shoeing cutting horses isn't rocket science. That's easy for the Collinsville, Texas, farrier to say - he's been on and worked under them for almost 60 years.

Loomis, Calif., farrier Donnie Karr shapes a shoe while working at a small ranch in Granite City, Calif. Karr has been shoeing full-time for just over 13 years. This particular ranch is home to a number of cutting horses, as well as other horses used in Western riding disciplines.