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I'm not sure what has been going on with your horse as far as shoeing is
concerned. So I will share some differences in the way he is shod against
the way I shod him.
1] THE TRIM
He is pigeon toed, he will always be pigeon toed. But just because he
grows that way , we don't want to trim him that way. It is the dynamics of
being p/toed that cause him to grow high on inside and not much on the
outside. I would trim him as much as I could , safely, on
the inside [both feet] while just a conservative trim on the outside.
Maybe, just rasping till the foot is flat after trimming the inside. That
would depend how much growth there is overall. Making sure both toe
lengths are the same. After the trim, I would then address any "flares" on
the inside wall that were excessive and try to make the foot as
symmetrical as possible without compromising the nail able wall.
2] SHOE SELECTION
I don't know how long it has been since he has been done, but in my
opinion the shoe is at least a half or maybe a full size to small. As of
today , the shoes do not cover his heels and support is an important issue
for this horse. Expansion of the foot should be planned for when making a
shoe selection. As the "Toe" grows out [ the toe typically, grows 2 to 1
what the rest of the foot does] a shoe with clips MUST go forward with the
toe's growth, limiting the support for the heel area. The heel area
actually bares more weight than the toe area and support for that area is
critical whether you are experiencing "tripping" or not. In this horses
case the shoe should fit a little fuller [wider] on the outside [from the
outside clip back] and be a little longer, as well, on the out side to
combat the effects of being P/toed. Using a St. Croix "Eventer" shoe with
clips then eliminates the need to address "break over" as that shoe will
allow him to break over where he is most comfortable.
While he does not need a square toe on his shoe, the shoe should be just
a little more "blunt" at the toe. More so than the symmetry of the actual
toe its-self [ between the start of the creases on the shoe] and after
fit , you should have between a1/16th to no more than an 1/8th hanging
over the blunt toe of the shoe. That will ease his break over and
allow him to be a little free' er in his movement discouraging his
tripping.
3] LOSING SHOES
A LOT OF SHOEING TECHNIQUES ARE PREDICATED ON THE FACT THAT HORSESHOERS
HATE "LOSING SHOES"!!
Because of the special requirements for this horse , the risk of losing a
shoe is slightly increased. Depending on conditions, weather, mud, "play"
, an awkward step , he is a little more likely to lose a shoe. Having said
that, I have found the better they move , usually, the less likely they
are to lose a shoe. As a rule and I use that term loosely as horses are
wizards at defeating things we do that are good for them and/or
are necessary evils.
David Hesseltine CJF
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