Hoof Care Blog Posts

Maybe with our job the title should have been even more crazy than when we started.

I have never met a farrier who doesn't want to do the best for the horses we care for however, some of the owners unwittingly make it really hard. Here are some of that things that stop us doing our best.

Laminitis is another painful and chronic condition horses and owners can suffer from.

There are many types and causes for laminar damage so I am just going to stick with spring time for now.

One of the many chronic and painful conditions horses can suffer from yet hard to diagnose, treat and even decide on what it is.

To visualise where it sits I will list the bones involved and some of the different names that they have from the fetlock down or in human terms the middle finger or toe.

First phalanx or long pastern.

I have offered to check horses before they are purchased for as long as I have been shoeing horses. I offer this service for free as I am the one that will be stuck with dealing with conformational problems for the new owner.

I'm constantly amazed by the instructions that clients give.  They'll tell you that Pookie needs a trim, that Poopsie needs shoes all the way around, and that Popeye and Puddin' need shoes on the front and a trim behind.

A “reasonable schedule” is determined by rate of growth and is adjusted by rate of wear.  Both growth rate and wear rate are, of course, influenced by a number of variables:  the age and condition of the horse, the environment the horse lives in, the horse’s usage, the horse’s nutritional program and overall health, and the climate / season.  When all thes

I have noticed that most horses in the USA  are shod with  quarter clips instead of a single toe clip. Also, I have never seen toe clipped shoes for sale only quarter clipped.

As a relatively new farrier living in a semi-rural town, Chillicothe, OH, many people have asked me what I do for a living,  and if they do not own horses or have friends who do, it becomes difficult to explain the farrier or horseshoer's trade to them.  Usually, the second question is, "Are there enough horses around here to need a full time farrier?"  The answer t

I firmly believe that an educated client is a loyal client, so I love getting questions about my work.  I want my clients to ask about the choices I'm making wthen trimming or shoeing.  I want them to ask why I've chosen to position a shoe a particular way or why I've chosen to use a particular shoe or whatever.

I was asked by a client the other day about the difference between hot and cold shoeing. As a farrier I have been asked this question on a regular basis, clients have different ideas as to what hot or cold shoeing is. I use the following to explain.

Cold shoeing:- shaping the shoes cold and checking the fit on the hoof without burning the horn.