Welcome again folks. Yesterday I covered the differences between shoeing 'short' and shoeing 'long'. That is short and long in reference to the size of the shoe used, not whether the horse is trimmed short or long. That, in a way, is what I'll be writing on today.
Okay so let's look at how the farrier prepares the foot, and the differences that can occur. First off let me illustrate one difference. Some farrier's believe that the application of the shoe is the most important part of shoeing a horse. How it is shaped, what type of shoe is used,etc. While other farrier's believe that the preparing of the foot, that is the trimming and balancing of the hoof pre-shoe is the most important. Those who are behind the importance of shoe application argue the following points. The shoe needs to be shaped correctly so as not to injure the horse, the type of shoe must be appropriate to the horse's use, the size of the shoe must be correct so as to support the leg without risking pulling of the shoe. Alright all valid points. Now let my bias reign. The preparation of the foot is the first step and by far the most important. First off balancing the horses hoof is very, very important to the horses welfare. By correctly balancing the hoof you minimize all sorts of damage to tendons, bones and the hoof capsule itself. The toe and heel must be taken back to as sound horn, or foot, as possible with hoof-compromising flares rasped off. A shoe nailed onto a foot not correctly taken back to straight horn will only make the hoof condition worse and worse.
Now let me just quickly explain what it is when I refer to 'straight or sound horn/foot'. Now the horn or 'foot'(I should say horn of the foot-what would constitute the nail on your fingers) is made up of millions and millions of microscopic tubes called tubules. As a foot becomes overgrown and unbalanced, the tubules begin to bend. Now this bending becomes a major weakness in the hoof. We can base it on this model-say you have a bunch of straws all bundled together. When the straws in the bundle are straight and you apply pressure to both the top and bottom, the bundle is fairly resistant to these forces and will remain straight. Now bend the straws slightly in the middle and then reapply pressure to the bundle. It just collapses in a compromised mess. The same thing applies to the hoof. As soon as you notice irregularities in the hoof such as flares, which are bent tubules, you will notice the situation will only get worse and worse, faster and faster. You can really see this on collapsed heels. On some horse, the heels are fine until they get to a certain length where the stress is too great on them and they start to bend. If you look closely you will actually see the spot where all the tubules, which you can see as faint lines, will go from straight to bent. The heels will quickly deteriorate from here and often cause abscessing if left.
So the foot should be taken as much as possible back to straight horn. Let's use reason here though, you can only take the foot back so far in one shoeing, but it is usually a bit further than most go.
In this explanation of straight and bent(compromised) horn, you can see another reason correct preparation of the foot is vital-for all the effort into applying a correct shoe is all for naught if it is not mated to a correct hoof. Lets delve further into another part of foot preparation here-the importance of frog pressure. When the foot is taken back to where it should be, the frog will be in good contact with the ground and will be weight-bearing, thus alleviating some weight-bearing from the wall, thus providing the hoof with additional support. Too much foot left on the horse compromises this frog support, putting more pressure on the wall of the hoof and only aggravating irregularities. Also the frog acts as a pump under pressure, and actually helps maintain healthy circulation in the hoof. If the frog does not have adequate pressure with the ground, this function is minimized, the hoof suffers as a result and the frog withers as it atrophies away.
When the hoof is properly prepared the fitting of the shoe correctly is a breeze and becomes the easiest part of the equation. You may sometimes think that a farrier charges a lot for a trim where as a competitor is significantly cheaper. But lets take this a step further and ask whether this farrier truly recognises the value of laying the correct foundation. Most often those who charge accordingly do the job accordingly. Generalisation I know, but a strong point to consider. Truly the preparing of the foot literally lays the foundation, and once you have a strong foundation everything is easy.
Okay so let's look at how the farrier prepares the foot, and the differences that can occur. First off let me illustrate one difference. Some farrier's believe that the application of the shoe is the most important part of shoeing a horse. How it is shaped, what type of shoe is used,etc. While other farrier's believe that the preparing of the foot, that is the trimming and balancing of the hoof pre-shoe is the most important. Those who are behind the importance of shoe application argue the following points. The shoe needs to be shaped correctly so as not to injure the horse, the type of shoe must be appropriate to the horse's use, the size of the shoe must be correct so as to support the leg without risking pulling of the shoe. Alright all valid points. Now let my bias reign. The preparation of the foot is the first step and by far the most important. First off balancing the horses hoof is very, very important to the horses welfare. By correctly balancing the hoof you minimize all sorts of damage to tendons, bones and the hoof capsule itself. The toe and heel must be taken back to as sound horn, or foot, as possible with hoof-compromising flares rasped off. A shoe nailed onto a foot not correctly taken back to straight horn will only make the hoof condition worse and worse.
Now let me just quickly explain what it is when I refer to 'straight or sound horn/foot'. Now the horn or 'foot'(I should say horn of the foot-what would constitute the nail on your fingers) is made up of millions and millions of microscopic tubes called tubules. As a foot becomes overgrown and unbalanced, the tubules begin to bend. Now this bending becomes a major weakness in the hoof. We can base it on this model-say you have a bunch of straws all bundled together. When the straws in the bundle are straight and you apply pressure to both the top and bottom, the bundle is fairly resistant to these forces and will remain straight. Now bend the straws slightly in the middle and then reapply pressure to the bundle. It just collapses in a compromised mess. The same thing applies to the hoof. As soon as you notice irregularities in the hoof such as flares, which are bent tubules, you will notice the situation will only get worse and worse, faster and faster. You can really see this on collapsed heels. On some horse, the heels are fine until they get to a certain length where the stress is too great on them and they start to bend. If you look closely you will actually see the spot where all the tubules, which you can see as faint lines, will go from straight to bent. The heels will quickly deteriorate from here and often cause abscessing if left.
So the foot should be taken as much as possible back to straight horn. Let's use reason here though, you can only take the foot back so far in one shoeing, but it is usually a bit further than most go.
In this explanation of straight and bent(compromised) horn, you can see another reason correct preparation of the foot is vital-for all the effort into applying a correct shoe is all for naught if it is not mated to a correct hoof. Lets delve further into another part of foot preparation here-the importance of frog pressure. When the foot is taken back to where it should be, the frog will be in good contact with the ground and will be weight-bearing, thus alleviating some weight-bearing from the wall, thus providing the hoof with additional support. Too much foot left on the horse compromises this frog support, putting more pressure on the wall of the hoof and only aggravating irregularities. Also the frog acts as a pump under pressure, and actually helps maintain healthy circulation in the hoof. If the frog does not have adequate pressure with the ground, this function is minimized, the hoof suffers as a result and the frog withers as it atrophies away.
When the hoof is properly prepared the fitting of the shoe correctly is a breeze and becomes the easiest part of the equation. You may sometimes think that a farrier charges a lot for a trim where as a competitor is significantly cheaper. But lets take this a step further and ask whether this farrier truly recognises the value of laying the correct foundation. Most often those who charge accordingly do the job accordingly. Generalisation I know, but a strong point to consider. Truly the preparing of the foot literally lays the foundation, and once you have a strong foundation everything is easy.
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