Rachel Rheuby

1
When, How, and Why They Wear Shoes

• Rachel Rheuby

2
When did they start wearing shoes?

• Prehistoric drawings dated from the 2nd
  millennium BC show men and women on horseback.
  Early Asian horsemen used horse booties made from
  leather and plants. During the first century, the
  Romans made leather and metal shoes called
  "hipposandals". By the 6th and 7th centuries,
  European horsemen began nailing metal shoes to
  horses' hooves.

3

• The 13th and 14th centuries brought the
  manufacturing of iron horseshoes. Hot-shoeing,
  the process of heating the horseshoe during the
  shoeing of the horse, became common in the 16th
  century.
• Also, the term "farrier" has changed considerably
  over time from a horse doctor to a person who
  shoes horses.

4

• In 1835, the first U.S. patent for a horseshoe
  manufacturing machine was issued to Henry Burden
  of Troy, N.Y. Burden's machine made as many as
  sixty horseshoes per hour.
• Patented improvements have been on the rise ever
  since.

5
The How Steps of basic horseshoeing

• All farriers have knowledge of hoof anatomy and
  spend a lot of hours in a classroom and with
  professionals learning this particular art.

6

• Steps of shoeing horses
• 1. Trimming
• 2. Fitting the shoe
• 3. Applying the shoe
• 4. Scheduled up keep on your horses feet (regular
  trimming and re-shoeing).

7

• Tools needed for trimming and shoeing
• 14" Hoof Nippers
• Curved Jaw Clinchers
• Crease Nail Pullers
• Pull Offs
• Hoof Knife
• Driving Hammer
• Shoeing Apron
• 5/16" Farrier Tongs
• 1/4" Farrier Tongs
• Rounding Hammer
• Rasps and Handles
• Butcher Block Brush
• Tape Measurer
• Knife Sharpener
• Shoeing Box
• Safety Glasses
• Anvil Devils

8

• Shoes
• The farrier chooses the most compatible size and
  adjusts the shoes to fit the horse's hoofs.
  Commercially produced horse shoes are used to
  save the farrier time. An experienced farrier
  could make the entire shoe from a single piece of
  iron. All horses are different and the growth of
  their hoofs determined how often the horseshoes
  have to be removed and reset. Average reset is
  once every five to six weeks.

9
Why we Shoe?

• The main reason we shoe horses is for work, which
  determines the style and the type of shoes we
  choose for the individual working horse. When we
  are shoeing a horse, we try to shoe him in such
  way to improve his working capacity and make the
  work easier and safe. We also shoe horses to
  prevent wearing of the hoof.

10
Corrective Shoeing

• Many farriers will say that "corrective shoeing"
  is a term that horse owner overused. "Corrective
  shoeing" in the case of mature horses is simply
  shoeing treatments for conformation problems of
  the feet and legs, compensatory shoeing is a
  more accurate term. The problems are temporarily
  fixed by shoeing and trimming. When the shoes are
  removed the problem still exists the horse's
  conformation is unchanged.

11

• Older sound foot-sound horses will maintain when
  it is trying to overcome foot damage or leg
  injury. The horses poor conformation causes it to
  apply weight unevenly to his feet. In the case
  that is illustrated on the right, corrective
  shoeing will be used to rebuild strength and
  balance to the horse's feet and legs.
• These circumstances can be prevented and
  corrected. To leave them uncorrected can cause
  infection and the possibility of death!

12

• In the case of younger horse, conformation change
  is a primary importance. Correction of a faulty
  conformation is possible but only under certain
  circumstances. For permanent change to be
  possible in the young horse's conformation, the
  horse must be still growing at the location of
  the fault particularly the physical growth plates.

13

• Now that you have some basic knowledge of when
  horseshoeing got started, how we shoe, and why we
  shoe I hope that you understand why it is
  important that you pay attention to your horses
  feet. Make sure he shows correct conformation so
  he doesn't become his own enemy. Also you should
  know if you farrier is doing a professional job.
  If your horse doesnt have feet or legs then what
  else is left to ride?