Re: [RC] eazy boots and urethane shoes - Sisu West Ranch
"... day before he was shod, he
broke the left hind shoe in half, the other half was still securely attached,
and ½ of the front left was separating from the hoof with the nails
loosening. All of the shoes were far more worn than
usual...."
If the shoes were worn unevenly,
your farrier may need to make an adjustment or two. At some point in the
number of miles ridden the wear on shoes gets enough that they have to be
replaced before a trim is absolutely needed. I am assuming that these
shoes had NOT been reset. Even if they look fine to the farrier, I do not
allow resets during the ride season.
You can schedule your farrier
appointments closer together. This is a no brainer. It is probably a
good way to go. I go 6 weeks in the summer, but 8 weeks in the
winter.
As I posted last week, modern
horseshoes are made from "mild steel". This material does not harden when
heated and quenched. It is very soft, and will wear faster than 150 year
old hand made shoes. Most farriers who hand forge shoes, purchase rod that is
also mild steel. I have heard of a farrier who forges shoes from old dump
rake tines. These would harden and last much longer. Due to a
conformation issue, Ranger wears off his rear shoes in 4 weeks of
training. Because he has poor feet, I do not want to shoe any more often
than every 6 weeks. Years ago my farrier helped me with this
problem. My solution is to use St. Croix Eventers, and arc weld beads of
hard surfacing alloy on the toe and down both sides to the heal. Note this
is NOT borium, so it does not increase grip, just is more wear resistant.
It is available in various hardnesses. It is commonly used to rebuild
earth moving and digging equipment. One of the least hard ones has worked
fine.
I have not found that Urethane shoes
are the answer. My experience is that they last a fewer number of miles
than steel shoes. (I have not used them since 1990, so I will not be
insulted if someone says that modern ones last a very long
time.)
I also worry about the use of
boots. The weight and traction is changed with the boots. If you put
them on only sometimes, you are changing things faster than a horse can
adapt. I have no data, so again I will not be insulted if someone says
they have put boots on for competitions for 10K miles with no
problems.
Ed
Ed & Wendy Hauser 2994 Mittower
Road Victor, MT 59875
