Yes, I know, It’s still only September! However, you
can never be too prepared when it comes to the weather.
So, the question is What will you do with your horses
feet this year?
You have luckily a number of choices to suit your
personal situation. Many remove their horses shoes for the winter. An excellent
choice if you will not be riding much when the weather is bad. A few months
without shoes can be beneficial for your horses feet. There is also less chance
that the feet will fill up with snow causing discomfort and possibly a
dangerous situation.
If you will be riding a lot during the winter or your
horse just doesn’t quite like the feeling of going barefoot, what are the
options?
Standard Shoes or Concaves
Of course you
can stick to the same setup as for the summer. Greasing in the soles before
riding is believed to help against snowballing to a certain extent. I would
however recommend the use of a concave or self-cleaning shoe. The inside of the
shoe is tapered to a point against the foot, this vastly reduces the chance of
mud or snow sticking in the foot.
Standard Shoe Concave Shoe
Pins, Studs & Pads
Another option available when Shoeing in the winter is
to use Tungsten anti-slip pins or nails, for use on ice and hard ground. Studs
with tungsten tips are a little more extreme for use in hard snow and ice.
Application of a full pad also helps reduce the snowballing effect within the
sole.
Snowpads
Personally,
I use and recommend Snow pads. The shape of the pads help to stop snowballing,
but dosen’t cover the whole sole. This allows cleaning of the frog and sole. I
use these pads in combination with Pins or Studs, depending on the weather
conditions and riding schedule.
Your farrier will be able to
advise you on which combination best is for your personally situation.
Also feel free to email me any questions to info@hoefsmederijclark.nl
With the right shoeing you
will be able to continue riding right throughout the winter.
Just don’t forget to wear warm socks!!!
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