nora10•1mo ago

Just hit 500 shoes pulled in a single month

I always thought a busy month was maybe 300, tops. But this April, between the track work and a big ranch job, my log book shows 504. What got me was seeing the wear patterns on that many hooves back to back. It made me spot a common issue with quarter cracks in our clay soil that I was missing before. Now I'm adjusting my trim for it on every horse from that area. Anyone else notice a local soil type changing how you work?

2 comments

2 Comments

piper_green1mo ago

Read an article in The Horse last year about farriers in the Gulf Coast dealing with sand. It said the constant abrasion from sandy soil was causing a specific type of heel wear they had to account for in their shoeing. Your note about the clay and quarter cracks lines up with that idea completely. It’s wild how much the ground itself can be a silent partner in the job.

ryan_carr591mo ago

Yeah, that "silent partner" idea is spot on. With our heavy clay, I started leaving a bit more heel support and rolling the toe more aggressively on the breakover. It seems to take some of the twist stress off that inside quarter during the stride.