Tag Archives: easy shoes

Shoes on my horses?

Yes, it’s true.  There are now front shoes on Mystique, Dakota, and King.  I know, I know.  You are thinking, “but Rob is a barefoot trimmer!”  So I guess now, I am a farrier, and not just a barefoot trimmer.  But before everyone gets all “I knew it wouldn’t work” let me explain.  Last year, I debated very heavily about getting into gluing on Easy Shoes.  I even got a whole delivery of inventory.  But I sent it back unused.

This year, Anna and I are planning to do a 30 mile endurance ride in October.  As a result, we have been spending more time trail riding than in year’s past.  Dakota in particular, is very hard on boots and tends to over-reach and tear up the gaiters.  So, after a lot of consideration, I decided to take the plunge and try out the Easy Shoes.

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This afternoon was my first gluing session, and I learned a lot.  For example, when it’s 85F, the glue doesn’t set in 5 minutes; it sets in about 90 seconds. Also, don’t work on Dakota alone in cross ties, because he might freak out, break the cross ties, almost trample me while trying to finish the glue, and take off out of the barn.

 

Of course, after putting some new shoes on, I had to take them for a ride.  So Mysti and I went for a trail ride, alone, starting at 7:30 in the evening. I’ve only ridden her alone a couple of times, and it’s something we have to work on in case Anna and Dakota couldn’t finish a ride.  So, we went out for a nice 4.4 miles as the sun set.

Mysti still needs some confidence; she gets nervous about things like rocks on the side, trees, changes in the color of the ground, wind in the trees, and basically anything else you encounter on the trails.  But she did go out alone.  And she trotted the whole time (when she wasn’t slamming on the brakes due to a puddle in the road).  I took her riding fly mask off and that actually helped her calm some.  And as it got dark, we headed on the last mile back towards home and Mysti was very confident, which really surprised me.  But my biggest surprise of the evening was, Mysti really liked the shoes.  She moved awesome and her front end was very light.  She definitely liked the shoes better than the boots.

So now, it’s just a matter of determining how long the glue ups last.  Easy Care says farriers are getting anywhere from 4-8 weeks.  One benefit of having a whole herd is there are plenty of test subjects.

Rob the farrier – now shoeing horses?

When someone sees the sign on the side of my car advertising “Natural Hoof Care” they ask me what that means.  For the average person, I explain “You know how a farrier puts shoes on a horse?  I am a barefoot trimmer and specialize in un-shoeing a horse.”  I guess it’s time to change my answer.

According to Wikipedia, a farrier is a specialist in equine hoof care, including the trimming and balancing of horses’ hooves and the placing of shoes on their hooves, if necessary. A farrier combines some blacksmith‘s skills (fabricating, adapting, and adjusting metal shoes) with some veterinarian‘s skills (knowledge of the anatomy and physiology of the lower limb) to care for horses’ feet.

Before anyone gets too upset, let me explain.  I firmly believe that horses should be barefoot.  I have also previously stated I would not turn to shoes unless I met a horse I was convinced couldn’t be helped without them.  Well, I’ve met that horse.  At the same time, I have been closely following the development and release of the Easy Shoe from Easy Care.  It is similar to the Epona that some of you may have heard of before.  This is essentially a plastic shoe that is designed to be glued or nailed on.  At this point, I am only planning to offer Easy Shoes as a glue on option.  Specifically, I plan to use the Easy Shoe Performance and the Easy Shoe Sport.   Here is a good article comparing Easy Shoes and Boots http://blog.easycareinc.com/blog/bootlegging/easyboots-or-easyshoes-yes

So why would I make this change?   There are a number of scenarios when people choose to shoe a horse instead of boot a horse.  In years past, I showed King in dressage at Falls Creek Farm.  Boots are not allowed in dressage and if I rode him on the gravel roads between the warm up arena and show ring, he would occasionally take those wincing steps.  His feet couldn’t handle the gravel, which is why he gets boots on the trails.  Easy shoes solve that issue.  Another example is the horse who needs 24/7 protection due to laminitis or founder  recovery, but destroys the boots out of boredom.

The initial reports are that these shoes last a full 6 weeks when glued on correctly and still allow a hoof to function as it should.  Because this isn’t a completely rigid metal shoe nailed to the hoof, it still allows the hoof to flex.  Since I will only be gluing the shoes, if you are interested, you must have a clean, dry area for me to work on the hooves.  At my farm, that means I will be shoeing in the garage since our barn floor is dirt.

As I have stated before, I won’t sell something I haven’t used.  So, as soon as my first order of shoes arrive, I’ll be gluing up the hooves of King and Calli. Glue on shoes will be $65 plus the cost of the trim.  If you are interested in having shoes glued on the next time I come out, please email me so I can make sure I will have shoes in the correct size and plan for the time required.