08/14/08

Hoof Castings

Hoof Castings have been around a while in the farrier industry but are recently making waves in the Natural Hoof Care realm. Many horses are reaping the benefits of them when their shoes are first pulled and booting is not an option due to a boarding facility unable to properly apply & remove boots or very weak tender hooves. We all tend to think of a cast as being very stiff, hard & brittle. the cast is made of a fiberglass & resin blend which will harden to the shape of your horses foot while it is WEIGHT BEARING. IN other words it will not constrict your horses foot. We have many ways to apply it; we can use just the cast if your horse has pretty "good" feet, we can use one of the many hoof packing materials under the cast or use the pads we would normally use in the hoof boots under the cast. Either way the hoof casting would act as a "permanent boot"; it would stay on for 3-5 weeks at which point your horse would be re-trimmed and re-casted or fitted for hoof boots for riding. The cast material is fine for light riding on soft ground but is not yet wear resistant enough for abrasive conditions.

If you are interested in learning more feel free to contact Amy Contact Information

There is a great article about hoof castings by Pete Ramey Click Here to read it.

Equicast website - manufacturer of hoof casts.

Case Studies

Winston- Severely contracted heels. Quite tender in heels, soles and walls not built up at all. Broken angles (pastern angle and dorsal hoof wall angles do not match) Long toe under run heels and lack of digital cushion and flare made for a very sore and unhappy horse. His stride was short & choppy landing in toes. Photos of right front. ( I forgot to take Before photos of shoes and post trim before applying the cast)

Right Front after applying cast.	Right front lateral shot notice the broken angles of his pastern and dorsal hoof wall.
Right front after cast removal. Cast had been on for approximately 3 weeks before wearing out and falling off. Winston was very much improved in the strength and thickness of his soles. He is moving much better.	Right front lateral after cast removal. still has a long way to go but we were all pleased with his progress in a mere 3 weeks. We chose to boot him with

We chose to boot him with Easyboot Grips and the soft (green) Frog Pressure pads and sole pads so he could begin to be ridden.