by Doug Workman, CJF This is a show Hunter that has just finished a long show season. He has come into my life for a little light training and to let mind, body and feet have a much needed break. The life of a show horse being what it is, the farriers that work on them during the show season really have their hands full keeping these horses showing and sound. The fact that the horses have limited turnout, two to three baths a day and a variety of footing to deal with makes keeping them sound a tough job. My hat is off to these farriers. I was very fortunate on this day to have my good friend ..read more

By Austin Edens, CJF Shoeing with frog support has gained traction in the past few years with its primary benefit for caudal support of the hoof capsule. We have many tools at our disposal to combat caudal failure in the hoof capsule, such as heart bars, frog-support pads, DIM, pour-ins, etc. Anecdotally, I often observe an extra amount of hoof growth after applying these measures. This accelerated growth can be explained by the additional frog support increasing engagement of the venous plexus in the caudal region of the hoof. Horses evolved with the frog as a weight-bearing structure. On a b ..read more

by Sammy L. Williams, Mexico, MO I have shod horses professionally for over 55 years! I am primarily a Saddlebred farrier but have filled in with Morgans, Arabians, and various other breeds and disciplines in order to keep a full work schedule close to home. I have appreciated reading The Natural Angle, which provides good information, techniques, and processes that are important for my profession. However, I do not recall reading the detail of equipment a full-service professional farrier needs to bring to every job he/she does. To be successful it is essential to be well equipped. First, I ..read more

We have all heard the sayings “time is money” and “wasted time is wasted money.” The use of grinders to modify shoes and buffers to dress hooves not only improves time efficiency; it also reduces wear and tear on the body by eliminating the need for additional forging, hot rasping or the use of a finish file. Using grinders and buffers becomes inefficient when one does not care for them properly, causing a premature end to their usefulness. Using grinders and buffers becomes inefficient when one does not care for them properly. Improvements in abrasive component technology have greatly enhan ..read more

by Michael Wildenstein, CJF, FWCF (hons) “Conformation of an owner’s horse can be a very sensitive subject.” – Ted S. Stashak In my experience that statement is very true and includes individual horse owners that I felt were open-minded. Study the equine conformation; learn what is normal for a breed, discipline and environment. Use that information to modify shoes to enable the horse to do the best of its ability, in comfort, with the conformation it has. The study of equine conformation and the effect of modifications to the horseshoes on the hoof and limb can be overwhelming, yet interes ..read more

Dave Farley visited the FootPro Shop and did a variety of shoe modifications using the Kerckhaert SX-10 unclipped shoes. The SX-10 is a 3/8” thick shoe that allows you to do various modifications without sacrificing the strength of the shoe. You can find videos of these modifications on the FPD YouTube channel. HEEL CLEAN OUT MODIFICATION The heel clean out modification is used to promote the sole to naturally clean out or unload the material that collects or packs into the foot and sometimes snowballs. Open the heels by hammering the inside of each heel, or grinding bevels on each heel. Taper ..read more

THERE ARE ANY NUMBER OF TRACTION DEVICES ON THE MARKET TODAY but a few of the most useful and least likely to create problems with the upper limb are the Tungsten pins, drive-in studs and nails with hard facing. All three are easily applied and provide significant security for horses that have to spend any time on blacktop, concrete or slippery rocks. One word of caution – always wear safety glasses when you are applying traction devices, as there is always a danger of your tool or the material chipping. The V-Trak nails are simply applied by choosing the position where you wish to establish t ..read more

By Roy Bloom, CJF APF-I The following is a method for knife sharpening that I have been using for some years. You may be able to use this method to improve your knife’s cutting ability. It is important that you maintain a thin blade. The thicker the blade, the larger the bevel at the cutting edge. If the blade is thick, you have to use too much pressure to pull the blade through the cut; the thinner the better. A fine bevel is easier to maintain and offers less resistance, allowing the knife to cut easily. Pay attention to the size of the bevel on a brand new knife and try to maintain that siz ..read more

Volume 3, Issue 1 of The Natural Angle featured a story on clipping shoes using the edge of the anvil. In the step by step discussion in that article we used a clipping hammer, which is similar to a ball pein. In this article, the photos show the clipping process with the clipping, rounding and cross pein hammers as well as a handled bob punch. As you can see from the photos, the three hammers are used in an identical manner. The starting of the bubble using the bob punch is different but the drawing of the clip is the same. The point of this article is to illustrate the fact that the clips yo ..read more

By Dave Farley, CF APF-I and Roy Bloom, CJF APF-I The 12 Points of Reference article previously printed in the Natural Angle Volume 12, Issue 1, combined with the 12 points DVD “is a winning combination.” We both use these steps on every horse we trim. Each of the 12 points can be linked to each other. We have all heard the statement, “Every action has a reaction.” This is a very important statement when compared to the bones and joints in the lower limb of every animal we trim. Each digit of the lower limb could be normal for that particular equine. Likewise, there are several abnormal confor ..read more