With four legs, four hooves, and the possibility of four shoes, a horse’s limbs may bump, twist, knock, and thump one another at even the slowest gaits. Best-case farriery and protective boots keep injuries to a minimum, but a working vocabulary of the interference problems demonstrated by horses will serve horse owners well.
On occasion almost any horse will experience the loss of a shoe catching it on a gate or fence while pawing and jerking it off, or scrambling in deep mud and stepping it off, or some other abnormal situation. Some horses, however, routinely pull their shoes off due to the way they travel and overreach. In these cases, careful measures must be taken to eliminate foot contact.
Dale Lee twiddles with the lead rope attached to the halter on his wife’s barrel horse. "This horse started real well," Lee explains. "In his first rodeo, he was fourth out of 40, so he definitely shows a lot of promise."
When a horse doesn’t “go” properly, it’s usually up to a farrier to find the problem and fix it. Easier said then done. Because many factors influence the gait of a horse, the true cause of a gait fault can be difficult to determine.
Q: Does anyone have any experience shoeing small donkeys and the trouble they seem to have with deformities (Such as ripples and bending sideways)? How long should they be?
Greg Martin, CJF, of Boerne, Texas, takes the unique approach of marketing his hoof-care practice with a Christmas parade float in Boerne and Comfort, Texas. The award-winning float boasts a variety of surprising features.
Life Data Labs Inc. is a dedicated product manufacturer committed to producing premium quality animal nutrition and health products through continuous product improvement and new product development. First-class ingredients, fresh products, consistent high quality and scientifically proven effectiveness are the principal features of Life Data Labs animal health products. And that's why they've produced the #1 recommended hoof supplement by farriers for 12 consecutive years.
Kawell develops and produces copper alloy horseshoes and inserts, giving horses the care that they need to fight issues associated with white line disease, seedy toe and thrush.
From the feed room to the tack room, SmartPak offers innovative solutions to help riders take great care of their horses. SmartPak was founded in 1999 with the introduction of the patented SmartPak™ supplement feeding system. The revolutionary, daily dose SmartPaks are custom-made for your horse, individually labeled and sealed for freshness.