Do farriers use different shoeing approaches to the different disciplines horses have? Like, how would a farrier shoe a dressage horse vs. a barrel racer vs a jumper, etc. Shoes? Angles? Specific needs based on what they do rather than confirmation? Bonus question: How would one go about shoeing Totilas?
I always use the same approach - the individual horse approach where I do a needs analysis and select shoe type, fit, trim for dynamic balance with the shoe (or no shoes) according to the horse's performance requirements, expected footing, comfort and way of going. I never have two the same.
You are obviously going to use a slightly different approach depending on what you want the horse to do. I don't shoe barrel racers or any speed horses unless you consider a jumper a speed horse. My basic approach is usually the same. Trim the foot and apply a shoe which maximizes the integrity of the foot. The difference comes when the trainer tells me what's going on. They need a horse to do this or that. The problem is generally they are just repeating what somebody else said. There is also things that certain people and/or disciplines expect.
for sure Iexpect my eventers to be shod differently to my driving horses and different again to point-to-pointers
the vast majority feet are trimmed the to the same protocol , my preferred parameters are the "golden divide ratio " but i do use a " farmillo " gauge a lot as well . the difference between the 2 is not worth bothering about . the big difference when it comes to the shoeing is the choice or style of shoe to be used '. my dressage horses are normally shod with 3/4 fullered allround , section of steel depends on size of feet , showjumpers have concave in front ,3/4 fullered behind , eventers concave allround , driving ponies on the road have flat shoes , scurry ponies are in concave , all the big hairy things have flat shoes a couple have bevels on . hunters concave and racehorses are all in concave . chris
It Depends...... To misquote Karl Marx, "For each according to his ability/needs, to each according to his conformation" Well, Rob Renerie seemed to have a good handle on what to do............ Right now, its not even possible to speculate on how to shoe him. You need to be there in person, watch him go both at liberty and under saddle, and then with radiographs in hand, take your best SWAG.
Chris, wait till Bruce sees the reference to "big hairy things", LOL So am I understanding that the shoeing is where the corrections or needed changes are made, and not within the trim? The goal of the trim is actually towards getting the hoof back to it's natural /correct angles and such, then the shoeing corrects what the trim can't correct ? Generally , with different disciplines, it's aided by which type of shoe and the placement of that shoe? Does that include chronic problems?
If the trim is not correct then what follows may or may not be correct. Philosophically, can you build a proper house on an improper foundation?
Karen as the good uns keep saying ,"its all in the trim " , the basics HAVE to be in place first , thats why i do not believe a lot of the fancy gimmick shoeing we keep seeing is not up to scratch , its about BSing the owner into parting with money . sound horses win because they are good , a lot would do better if shod in a more straight forward manner (less gimmicks ) your question on Tortilas is a perfect example IMO , Rob kept to the basic practice and principals , then a good team took over , the rest is history chris
You will see more corrections in trim on the hind end. There is less weight on the hind feet compared to front feet. Hind end lameness is generally higher up in the limb. You can trim the hind feet a little low here or there and the feet generally won't get too out of wack and you don't have to worry about coffin joint issues behind. The front feet, bearing much more weight and the majority of lameness happening in and around the coffin joint, you have less wiggle room in trimming. 1. if you trim a front foot out of "balance" you can cause coffin joint issues. 2. the coffin bone will push down into the hoof capsule until it is balanced according to what the horse says quickly because of the extra weight. As the coffin bone pushes down to balance itself the hoof capsule has to go somewhere. As a rule you see more Farriers adding "support" to the hind end because it can have a positive effect higher up the limb and not cause hoof capsule issues as much. Support, as people like to call it, is generally adding leverage to the hoof capsule. With the added weight on the front feet, the hoof capsule generally doesn't respond to much leverage.
