How to Shoe a Horse

It is essential that you leave the trimming and shoeing of a horse’s hooves to a professional farrier. Farriers are experts in hoof care and can look after your horse correctly; you should have a regular farrier so they become familiar with your horse. They should come every six to eight weeks to look over the horse’s hooves to make sure they are in good health. If you need some additional advice on how to shoe your horse then you might find this article useful.

Shoeing a Horse – Top Tips

Ask your vet and farrier their opinion on your horse’s hoof condition. If you have a working horse then you will need to have his hooves shod so that they are protected. Hooves need trimming every six weeks so you will need to find a good farrier that will keep your horse’s hooves in good shape.

It is important that you talk with an expert on when your horse should start wearing shoes and decide on the type of shoes which will work best. You need to consider the sort of activities your horse does most and then choose horse shoes accordingly. Talk to your farrier and he will suggest the right shoes for your horse. This is so important to get right because you do not want your horse to be in pain or suffer discomfort.

Each month a horse’s hooves will grow approximately one inch. It is essential that you have a farrier trim the hooves to prevent breakage. The farrier will remove the shoes, trim the hooves and then replace the shoes. It is imperative that you have a farrier because if the shoes stay on too long then your horse will become lame.

If your horse is shod you will find its hooves pick up even more debris than normal. It is your responsibility to keep the hooves clean everyday so that your horse can live in comfort. Make sure you pick your horse’s hooves every day to remove any dirt and prevent infection.

Warnings

Never shoe a horse yourself it is important that you have a reliable farrier to change shoes and trim hooves. If you try to do this yourself you could seriously injure your horse.