Shoe Came Loose Again!

Today I was at the barn and when I picked up Jubilee's front hoof I noticed her shoe was gone. Again! This is the second time its come off in less than a month! And its the same hoof as last time. I don't think its the farrier doing improper shoeing. Is she just playing around and being goofy? Is this something I should worry about??

A lot of times, once a shoe has come off prematurely, the wall is torn or otherwise compromised just enough it's harder to place the nails, as there isn't much growth as normal. Unfortunately, this makes it even easier for the shoe to come off again. Even worse, is that each subsequent time it falls off, there's less for the farrier to work with. Horses with thin walls have the problem the most (horses that people are told MUST have shoes, because they are so thin walled, ironically). As the wall keeps getting more nail holes and chunks ripped off, it's more prone to infections and soreness.

Sometimes it's just because a horse likes to paw with that foot, or has figured out how to pop them off by hooking the heels over a strand of fence wire/board and catch the heels. I've had people call and tell me they HAD to go barefoot cause the horse would promptly walk over to the fence and pop the shoes off. It was too expensive to keep putting them on.

Ask the farrier to make sure to use the smallest possible nails when replacing the shoe and make extra sure that the heels don't extend too far and get caught by the hind foot. Also, making sure the hinds are trimmed so that they don't overreach could help. Glue on shoes are available. You could let her go barefoot and ride with boots for a while to regrow the hoof enough to have a secure section to nail to.

But of course...me being me, I'd say just forget the shoes, if she keeps popping it off it's doing much more damage than going barefoot intentionally would ever do. Horses that "HAVE to have shoes" usually suprise the owners and switch over to barefoot quicker than some of the more average horses, and never miss a beat.

Thanks for the info. She does have thin walls on her hooves, and her previous owner told me she needs shoes all the time. Do you think she has an infection, or her shoe just won't stay on because of a thin wall? I was also thinking getting the shoes off. I rarely ride on the road. Where I ride the ground is soft (grassy, soft dirt or sand). Will she be okay without them? Should I be worried about this?

Hey (it's "The Illusionist")

I'm having the same trouble with Indy, his shoes keep coming loose! After a few weeks they'll be hanging on my one nail and we have to pull them before the farrier comes.

My farrier recommended that I try "Farrier's Formula Double Concentrate" Smart Paks. They will re-grow the hoof from the coronet down in approx. Six to ten weeks and after ten months, a completely new hoof will have grown. He thinks that if I put Indy on this supplement, he may be able to go barefoot in about two months. If you think this sounds like something that would be beneficial to Jubilee's feet, I would highly recommend this supplement, I've used it with other horses before and it works wonderfully!

Your best bet would be to talk to your farrier about whether or not she can go barefoot & if any supplements would help. Good luck and keep us updated!

Hey (it's "The Illusionist")

I'm having the same trouble with Indy, his shoes keep coming loose! After a few weeks they'll be hanging on my one nail and we have to pull them before the farrier comes.

My farrier recommended that I try "Farrier's Formula Double Concentrate" Smart Paks. They will re-grow the hoof from the coronet down in approx. Six to ten weeks and after ten months, a completely new hoof will have grown. He thinks that if I put Indy on this supplement, he may be able to go barefoot in about two months. If you think this sounds like something that would be beneficial to Jubilee's feet, I would highly recommend this supplement, I've used it with other horses before and it works wonderfully!

Your best bet would be to talk to your farrier about whether or not she can go barefoot & if any supplements would help. Good luck and keep us updated!

I doubt she has an infection, after only loosing a shoe twice. It's more likely there just wasn't a good place to put the nails and combined with thin walls, it just popped off.

If you want to go barefoot, talk to your farrier about it, look around for a barefoot trimmer as well and get them to look at your mare. It's not that I don't think she can't go barefoot,just that you want to have someone that knows how to trim it right or it will be all for naught. Also, a barefoot trimmer can tell you how quickly they think she can go comfortable and help you get some boots for the ineterim. The boots will cost about $120-$145 for a pair, but they will last a looooong time, and pay for themselves in saved shoeing bills. But I digress...

Going barefoot-when her shoe comes off, does she show ANY tenderness at all? If she can toss a shoe and a good piece of hoof with it and not miss a beat, that's a GREAT sign that going barefoot would take minimum adjusting for her. Thin walled horses just tend to need more frequent trims (4-6 weeks rather than 6-8) depending on the footing, amount of riding, etc as they will be the first to chip at the first sign of overgrowth. In a way, it's a blessing for them because they tend to break off in such a way to that is only cosmetically ugly, while tougher walled horses tend to get angles all off and then REALLY break off in dramatic ways if you let them go too long.

A supplement may/may not help. If it's because she's getting a poor diet, then yes, it probably will. Most of the time, though, the supps. Don't really help. Ultimately genetics determine the thickness of the hoof wall, just as people have diff. Fingernails (if I were a horse, I'd be a TB, cause my nails are thin and breakable, but my hubby would be a mustang-I swear he needs my nippers to cut his. LOL and I take vitamins, he doesn't). Also, once shoes come off, some horses will actually grow better hoof quality just from the improved circulation, but without added supplements.
However, if you want to try one, a hoof supplement won't hurt anything but your pocketbook .

I bet your mare could do fine barefoot and if nothing else, get some boots for back up in case you want to go down some rougher terrain. The hooves get conditioned to what they work on most, so if you always work on grass/dirt, that's about how tough her feet will be. But if you work her on rocks frequently, her feet many never need boots.

Thanks again. Yes, she's a TB and thin-walled. She went without shoes for the winter and she was perfectly fine. She doesn't seem to show any tenderness. I think she'll be ok. I talked to my farrier today over the phone and asked him if it would be ok to have her go barefoot and he also thinks she'll be okay. The next time he comes out for a trim, he'll check her again as well.

Just got back from the barn, it was kind of funny.. Indy has lost three shoes since Thursday (one on Thursday, one yesterday, and one this morning). Funny because I had just replied to this topic I mean. The flies are soo bad.

It could be because she is stomping so much from the flies.

That's what my BM is telling me is happening to Indy.. but we are having the farrier out tomorrow anyway.

My tb loses his shoes all the time too, but I found that if I put bell boots on him he can't reach up with his hind and rip them off. So far it's been doing really well and i've had the same pair on for 6 weeks now that makes me so happy. So that's an idea you can try. Bc if ur going to b jumping or riding ur horse pretty hard esp since it's a TB you may not want to go barefoot, bc TB's do have thin walls they are prone to abcesses and tenderness if ridden a lot without shoes.

Just my input, hope it helps.

Well I don't ride her that hard right now. I'm going to keep them off until her next trimming and see how she does. I can always put them back on if I find she's tender. Bell boots sound like a good idea though, thanks. :)