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If you have a question,
Before we got her, an Amish farrier had done her feet. He used a regular shoe with barium tips. Our other TWH's are beginning to show signs of "shuffling" in the front. Answer: I would like to see this horse travel to really see what problem is. But I will try. Lower angles should help you because the higher you go quicker the breakover will be. If you go higher it will make her pick feet up higher but it wont have as much reach. You can make slight changes and try. But I would watch angles real close probably start with 55 in front 57 in back and use heeled shoes only this should give you something to start with.
Question: I recently graduated from the Midwest Horseshoeing School in Macomb, IL. And trying to set up my truck with some shoes I can use for my Tennessee Walker customers since I am not efficient enough for making all my own shoes yet. The St. Croix shoes you use, are they the regular weight shoes that are heeled and toed? Also what are the main sizes I would need to carry in my truck? I know all horses are different but what is the typical angles you use to make the horses perform and what toe length in front and back. I'm new to the walkers and would appreciate any help you would give me. Thank you for your time. Answer: Good, you have chosen a great field of work. Farriers are a dying breed. I carry all sizes of St. Croix heeled shoes and would say I use 0 size most. Shoeing walkers you might use 1 size most, foxtrotters that I shoe are just a tad bit smaller than walkers. You should carry plates of every size also. St Croix are hard to beat but I have been using Kerchart some and like their plates real well but they are a little higher in price. Angles, I try to put horses on natural angles as much as I can and toe lengths are different with size. Most foxtrotters go around 52 to 54 in front with 55 to 57 in back with 3 1/2 inch toes with shoe on from tip of shoe to hair line...this is just an example. You have to make adjustments as you go along to get the gait you want. When you shoe show horses, that is when you earn your money. Good luck and write anytime.
Question: Do Missouri Fox Trotters have a natural hoof angle that is different from other non gaited horses and must a farrier check that angle with a hoof gauge to be sure? We just got back from our week long trail ride and were told by the more experienced trail riders that our horses are not shod correctly. They told us the angle needs to be more steep and that extra traction is needed for the strenuous and rocky terrain. They told us gaited horses need to be shod differently from other breeds like quarter horses. We heard too different ideas; drilltech nails with a slick shoe, or heeled shoe with borium tipped nails on the front. Answer: No, foxtrotter angles are no different than other horses. We vary angles a lot to get certain gaits. My wife trail rides more than anybody alive and I put her horse on natural angles. Most gaited horses have a natural angle around 52 in front and 54 in back as a rule. Some might be steeper due to conformation. I like plates with drillteck put on toes and heels if we are riding a lot of steep rocky terrain. They are lot safer. I have been using some rim shoes and getting good results. St Croix forge makes a toe and heeled shoe that works real good for all around trail riding. I probably use that shoe most. It's all depends on what terrain you are riding. Pick the shoe that fits your needs the best.
Question: Do you know of any horse shoes which have spikes or other high-traction features on bottom...something that would help a horse negotiate snowy/icy mountain sides? Answer: Yes I
do. Mustard has come out with a drive-in stud made
out of tungsten. It is hard and works the best for ice
and snow. I have used them for some of
my buggy horse customers that drive a lot on pavement and
it has worked well.
Question: We have racking horses that have been barefoot for 6 months (we moved and hadn't found a new farrier). The mare's hooves look perfect, but I think the gelding had a slight founder before we got him. He grows long toes and his heels wear off. We have a new farrier coming, and he suggested "keg shoes". He says they are "short in the heels" and all his gaited clients use them. What are they, and would they be good for the gelding or is there something better? We have always used plain shoes in the past. We trail ride exclusively. Answer: Keg shoes are heeled shoes, meaning that they are built up in heels. Here in foxtrot country they are our standard shoe. A keg shoe heel is three degrees higher in the heel so you would lower your horse slightly when using kegs. Lets say for example, I have a customer that wants his horse put at 52 degrees in front. You trim the foot to 52, when you put your heeled shoe on he will be three degrees higher because of the heel. We use St Croix shoes only, some other manufactures shoes may very in size of heel. That's what we call a keg shoe, a plate is not a keg shoe. When you are shoeing performance foxtrotter, the angle is very important because we want all the reach we can get with the horse's feet traveling as close to ground as possible. A foxtrotter is not a high stepping horse like the walking horse but our foxtrotters have a lot of old time walking horse in them and we run into a lot of high steppers.
Question: This question probably sounds very ignorant, but I live in Kansas where if it isn't a quarter horse, it isn't a horse. However, I know differently. Almost two years ago I bought a foxtrotter who was foxtrotting. He still tries, but can't maintain it. The seller told me he was shod at 55 degrees in front and 52 behind which is what I have been doing. Now I am reading about hoof flight patterns and wondering if that formula should be reversed. Please send some advice. I'm dying to show these quarter horse folks a thing or two. Answer: Yes, he is probably to low in back. Reverse this, put him 55 in back and about 53 in front. This should make your horse more trotty. Remember, you go higher for more trot and if you have to much trot, flatten them out. I have sometimes went to 48 in back with plates, only on one that trots to hard. And use heeled shoes only on this horse. I recommend St. Corix shoes. Thanks for your note. Hope this helps, Wendell Toler
Question: I have a Toddys Perfection mare with a good stride. A new farrier recently shod her and he normally shoes quarter horses. She seems to step higher and is not as smooth. What angle should her front and back be set on the next time she is shod? Answer: Sounds like she is too high in front, without looking at your horse. If your mare is on ground good and doesn't break at the knees, I would put her around 52 degrees all the way around with St Croix keg shoes. If she has a lot of trot, you might want to put a plate on back. If your mare is up around 55 or higher she will smooth out the lower you go. If a horse is on ground good and has a lot of stride, I usually start around 52 degrees. If it climbs any in front, I will raise it up some but you loose some stride when you go up as a rule of thumb. Some horses you can raise up above 55 and still maintain reach, it depends on horse. I hope this helps, Wendell
Question: I have just adopted a rescue MFT, he is 20 months old. The farrier says his feet are in great shape and I would like to keep them that way. I would also like to keep him barefoot since most of his riding will be pasture and dirt. Is there a special way of trimming his hooves (compared to my other grade horse and mule) and is it realistic to try to keep him barefooted? Thank you for your time. Obviously this is my first fox trotter. Lee Answer: Yes, you can keep this horse barefoot but if I rode this horse much at all I would sure put shoes on him. Regular visits from your farrier is a must if you keep him barefoot. Just trim with normal angles and don't trim real short, bevel toes so they won't start cracks. Wendell
Question: I have a friend with a walker/morgan mix that does a fairly good fox trot, Problem is that it trots a lot. Would it be good to put heeled shoes on front and either light or no shoe on back to correct this? Do you know of any training techniques too? Answer: Check the
angles in back, they sound like they may be too high and
if they are, lower the angle to 50 degrees with
plates. Lower front to 52 or 50 with heeled
shoes. This should smooth this horse out .
Question: I have a 3 yr. old filly foxtrotter, that I am training for a client to show. This filly has a super long stride in the fox trot, she constantly clicks. Of course this is a no no for the judges. My farrier is well experienced in gaited horses. He has tried everything he knows to solve this problem. Such as, Increased angle on front feet up to 59. Lower the rear feet to 49. Tried trailers on rear shoes, tied spikes on rear shoes. Squared rear foot and shoe, rolled the rear shoes ,tried weighted shoes on the front, tried no shoes in the rear, Lowered front feet back down to 49. After many tries trying to help this filly , my farrier has run out of ideas. And suggest I seek help else where. This is an exceptional long gaited filly with great show potential . I am hoping you can help us solve this problem, otherwise she will never be in the top three places. Answer: I run into this a lot. Without seeing the horse, the first thing I would do is put the front feet at a 52 degrees angle with 3 1/2 inch toes - if he is on the ground good. If the horse breaks at the knees or climbs any, I will raise him above 52 but no higher than 55 or it will take away some of his reach in front. In back is where you fix the clicking, I would probably start somewhere around 57 degrees if that didn’t work then go higher but no higher than 60 degrees. I would shorten his toes to about 3 3/8 if I could. What we are trying to do is slow the back end down without taking away stride. Also use heeled shoes no toes on all four feet. Hope some of these tips help.
Question: I have a 6 yr. old MFT that has come up with a mild case of grass founder. He has been on butte for approx. 1 week and is doing great. I would say that he is about 90% recovered. Is there anything I need to look out for or do with his feet? As you can guess I'm concerned about when I can work him again and how I can tell when he is 100% recovered. Answer: About founder, I see a lot of horses with this. I would start riding this horse just as soon as he is not lame any more, keep him trimmed and don’t let his feet get long and cracked. Regular visits with your farrier is a must with this horse. You can go ahead and put shoes on this horse and shouldn’t have any trouble.
Question: I have an 8 year old mare that has new been ridden for about three years. I am presently doing western pleasure and equitation with her, our first show is Sunday. New shoes were put on three days ago with heel caulks and a small bar up front she seems to really stick to the dirt and maybe its making it a little more difficult for her. My farrier recommended putting these shoes on because she wore out the other in only 7 weeks. Any suggestions, is this the right type of shoe for the work we are doing. Answer: I would change shoes to plates and your horse should work fine for you with normal angles. I haven’t had a lot of experience in western pleasure horses but sounds like you have wrong shoes . On the western pleasure horses that I have worked on, St. Croix plates have worked fine.
Question: Hi, could you tell me if shoeing a Missouri Fox Trotter is different than shoeing any other horse? My horses knocks his shoes of when turning in small circles. He is 5 years old and I think he is still a babe. Answer: Their are some differences in the fox trotter than other horses, some fox trotters have a lot of stride and need to be shod different. Here at Toler farms we try to shoe a horse as close to normal as we can. Getting back to your problem. It sounds like this horse has a lot reach in back, you might need to stand him up in back to slow the back end down without taking reach away. I would shoe him normal in front somewhere around 52 degrees hope this helps.
Question: Trained Farriers are scarce here. I have purchased a two year old foxtrotter filly who is toed out. Her left is nearly normal, and the right is pretty bad. It points out 10 to 20 degrees. She is narrow chested. Her feet seem normal-oval and not deformed. She does not wing or paddle badly at the "hard" trot. Her parents did not have this problem; they looked normal (pretty good confirmation both of them). What do I instruct (or watch to make sure of) the
farrier to try? Would Answer: I would have to see this horse to really help you, but I will try. If toed out on back like you say, I would put on a slight trailer, sometimes called a mule heel, on the outside heel. This should solve problem. Sometimes trimming the inside a little lower will also help.
Question: My horse is a hunter that shows about every other weekend in the 3 foot divisions. He has had pads on his feet since I bought him 8 months ago. My farrier just removed the pads cause he had thrush and also a corn and two bruises. He put my horse in the egg bar show and we are soaking his feet in Epsom salts once a day. How long should a horse have this shoe, and aren't these shoes usually used for navicular horses (which my horse isn't)? Also, does it hurt a horse to wear pads the rest of his life? Thank you for your help because I am totally confused, and these new shoes look horrible. By the way, my horse was sound before he put these new shoes on. He still is sound, but it doesn't look as if he a whole lot of heel. Answer: First thing you need to do is get this horse over his thrush and bruises. I would not put pads on him unless I had a problem. I would shoe him normal and you should not have any trouble with him. Back to: Toler Horseshoeing |
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Toler
Horseshoeing 
