From the category archives:

Horse Foot Care

FAQ #13 Why does a horse get nail-quicked?

January 22, 2010 0 comments

Hoof wall thicknesses vary. There is a very small margin for error. The farrier must pay close attention to selecting and driving each nail.  Not all nails are manufactured perfectly, and misshapen nails might not drive straight. However, nail quicking isn’t the only kind of quicking that can affect a horse – he can also [...]

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Trustworthy Farriers Horse Owners Can Depend Upon

January 15, 2010 3 comments

Farriers perform a valuable service for people who care about their horses. It’s important to be trustworthy and do the job right. Let me share a true story. A stone mason was laying very large stones for the walls of a large church building. One of the stones had a crack on the very inside [...]

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5 Tips to Select a Sound Horse

December 9, 2009 2 comments

We all value our animals — both in terms of money and our emotional attachment to them. Although there are fewer horses today than a hundred years ago, there are more people who own horses, and individual animals have a much higher value. Many well-meaning people buy a horse just because they become emotionally attached [...]

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FAQ #9 What’s normal hoof size?

December 7, 2009 0 comments

Answer: A hoof that is proportional to the horse’s body size allows for ideal distribution of body weight over the foot’s laminar surface. (Laminar surface refers to the area where the sensitive laminae, attached to the coffin bone, interlocks with the horny laminae at the hoof wall.) When the foot is proportional to body size, [...]

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Basic Farrier Skill Training Is Necessary

December 3, 2009 0 comments

To be successful, you have to do the right things.  Education is required to learn the right things.  When you are a teacher, the greatest pay you can receive is to see your students succeed. Basic farrier skill training is still in great demand.  It appears that many today have gotten away from perfecting basic skills [...]

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FAQ #8: At what age should we shoe a horse?

November 24, 2009 0 comments

A young horse does not usually have to be shod unless it’s necessary to maintain the foot in a healthy, balanced state. Soundness is the key.  If the wear of the hoof capsule is greater than its growth,  it should be shod. The average hoof growth rate is three-eighths of an inch (about one centimeter) [...]

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FAQ 6: Foot Care for Older Horses with Arthritis

November 16, 2009

Question: My mare is Twelve going on Thirteen. I have had her for two years and have always had problems with holding and trimming her rear feet. In an article I read recently on restraint training it is stated that if a horse is old or has problems with arthritis they should not have their legs [...]

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Providing Traction for Winter Equine Foot Care

November 13, 2009 1 comment

There are several ways of providing traction in the winter time. Traditionally horses were shod with sharp shoes. Shoes were calked (toes and heels) and these were sharpened periodically by the blacksmith. This was a difficult job as the shoes had to be removed and it had to be done more often than a normal [...]

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Winter Equine Foot Care Tips

November 11, 2009 0 comments

Horse hooves are 25 to 50 percent water. Water freezes. Frozen hooves may split when nails are driven into them, and pounding upon the feet may be painful. The coriums or sensitive structures under the hoof are often bruised when the horse stands on snow that “balls up” under the hooves. In the spring, the [...]

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6 Components of Cold Weather Horse Care

November 5, 2009

Cold Weather Horse Care by Doug Butler Phd, CJF, FWCF Horses have different needs than people do. Here are a few of a horse’s winter needs – from its point of view. 1. Shelter Horses have a thick skin insulated by fat and thick winter hair. The horse’s integument (its hooves and skin) has an [...]

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