Señor Coco, a 6-year-old Thoroughbred gelding no longer being used on racetracks, sustained a basilar sesamoid fracture.

The old cliché about the basic qualifications for a farrier being a strong back and a weak mind certainly took a beating from the presenters at the fifth annual International Hoof-Care Summit. A high degree of expertise and sophisticated thinking was evident and in abundance.

Is it really important for a farrier to know how to read and interpret a radiograph (X-ray) of a horse’s foot? Absolutely so, especially if he or she is dealing with laminitis or other pathological problems, says Ric Redden, — farrier, member of the International Equine Veterinarians Hall of Fame and founder of the International Equine Podiatry Center in Versailles, Ky.

When dealing with excessive stress on the deep digital flexor tendon (DDFT), H.H. Florian Buchner has found that farriers can sharply reduce the amount of tendon force and navicular compression by applying heel wedges to horses with these concerns.