How to Trim the Rear Hoof of a Horse
Trimming a horse's feet takes a lot of time, education and practice to do properly. The best ways to learn are farrier schools, apprenticing with an experienced farrier and doing continuing education seminars. Every horse's feet are different, and it is the most important part of shoeing a horse. In general the front feet should be symmetrical and circular with a lower angle. The hind feet have a slightly higher angle, a more oval shape, which creates more toe and a more concave sole. The front feet were designed for weight bearing, and the hind feet were designed for maneuvering.
Other People Are Reading
Instructions
-
-
1
Remove the shoe from your horse's foot. Do this by pulling with nippers from the back of the shoe near the heel, towards the front where the toe is. Do this very gingerly, and slowly work out the nails from the foot.
-
2
Clean out the hoof once you have removed the shoe using your sharpened hoof knife. Then begin to pare out the top surface of the sole of the foot. This will remove any extra or dead growth. You should only remove about 1/16 to 1/8 of an inch of sole.
-
-
3
Measure your horse's hoof angle. The rear feet should have a higher degree than the front feet. The average hind foot angle should be 52 to 56 degrees. Depending on where your horse is with these measurements, it should tell you where to trim.
-
4
Lower your angle by taking off more heel than toe, and raise your angle by taking off more toe than heel. If your angle is fine, then trim an even amount of foot off all the way around. Remember, horses only grow about a quarter-inch of foot in a month, so that should be the maximum you take off during a normal trimming.
-
5
Rasp your horse's feet after you have trimmed them to give them a good clean finish. Some horses just need to be trimmed using a rasp because they wear their feet down as they grow. Horses that wear shoes, though, generally need to have nippers to take off excess hoof growth.
-
6
Balance your horse's hind feet. Make sure they mirror each other. Both hind feet should have the same angle, same oval shape, same toe length and same concavity in the sole. The fiber in your horse's foot should be in the same direction as the pastern.
-
7
Trim all four of your horse's feet every five to six weeks. Notice between each trimming how your horse's gait is. If he starts to forge at the trot or trip a lot behind, these can be classic signs that you need to trim your horse again or that his hind feet need to be trimmed more precisely for his gait.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
Start trimming front feet first and then graduate to hind feet. Horses tend to be more patient with front feet.
Have someone there to help you when you trim your horse's hind feet.
References
- Photo Credit BananaStock/BananaStock/Getty Images
