 |
RE: [RC] [RC] Old Macs-just 2 in front or all 4? - terry banisterHello Kitty,If this is your "first extended trail ride" on this horse, before any advice could be given, I would ask: How long have you had this horse, and how long has it been barefoot? If your horse has always been barefoot, the advice would be different than if you are transitioning from shoes to barefoot. If you have never ridden the horse away from the barn, and you don't know how what the wear patterns are for that horse's feet, you would need to find out. You may not need boots at all (just for trail riding). For example, my horse's feet have never had shoes, so I knew they are already calloused and tough. After riding him barefoot for months, we began to see that his front feet barely wear at all in his five week trimming cycle. He has never had a stone bruise on his front feet either. However, his back feet wear on the outside wall. The inside wall of his hind feet keep growing and, you get the picture: His hind feet become uneven/unbalanced. And he wears his hind heels a little too low because we do a lot of hills here. So I only need to put boots on his HIND feet to keep the hoof wear level and preserve enough heel. Your horse may have different wear patterns/needs. And if you are not doing endurance miles, your horse may not wear the hooves down enough to need boots at all. Check out Pete Ramey's book, which can be found on the Tribe Equus website. His string of rental horses are on rocky mountainous trails in Georgia, and they don't need boots. Also, what kind of living conditions does your horse have? If he/she is kept in a 12x12 or 12x24 pipe corral, it is too small of an area for the horse to get enough movement to stimulate the hooves. And the footing is frequently too soft, because they are forced to pee in an area where they also stand, and the drainage is frequently not good in barns and pipe corrals. All these things affect the sturdiness of your horse's hooves. Once YOU KNOW your horse's needs (by reading books and observing your horse and talking to your hoof trimmer), you just start training with boots and getting comfortable with how far you can ride in them without rubbing or collecting debris. Old Macs must have at least one finger of space under that inside strap, or they will rub the hair off the pastern (or worse), especially on the hind feet, because of the angles. However, I have successfully ridden 25-50 miles with them - BUT always check them at the lunch or halfway vet check. I was just at Hog Wild this past weekend and saw Don Huston complete two days (50s) with Old Macs on all four. He has been competing in them for more than a year. He also knows how to modify them in front to make them last longer (the cordura eventually wears out). donhuston@xxxxxxx So, bottom line, you need to do your homework and understand your horse's feet enough to make your own decisions. If you aren't confident yet, put the boots on all four feet. <html><P><IMG height=12 src="http://graphics.hotmail.com/emsmiled.gif"; width=12> Happy Trails!</P> <P>Terry</P> <DIV></DIV></html> >From: Kitty Bo Wilson <wrenacres2002@xxxxxxxxx> >To: ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx >Subject: [RC] Old Macs-just 2 in front or all 4? >Date: Tue, 20 Apr 2004 05:59:56 -0700 (PDT) > >I will be going on my horse's first extended trail ride soon. Shoes are recommended. I will be using Old Macs. Someone said I'll need them only in front, but what is best? I do have 2 pairs, front and back. He was pretty antsy our first trail ride away from the property, so I don't look forward to piaffe in Old Macs. > > >--------------------------------- >Do you Yahoo!? >Yahoo! Photos: High-quality 4x6 digital prints for 25¢ _________________________________________________________________ Stop worrying about overloading your inbox - get MSN Hotmail Extra Storage! http://join.msn.com/?pgmarket=en-us&page=hotmail/es2&ST=1/go/onm00200362ave/direct/01/ ============================================================ for a wet, tired female Endurance Rider! A good crew person has patience, a sense of humor, and knows that sometimes it's best to say nothing at all! ~ Jim Holland ridecamp.net information: http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/ ============================================================
|
![http://graphics.hotmail.com/emsmiled.gif"](http://graphics.hotmail.com/emsmiled.gif"){kind=link}