It’s a simple operation with a lot to discuss: the hind driving position. Farriers assume this position to trim hind feet and to pull and nail hind shoes.

In the traditional stance, we place the horse’s hind cannon bone over our inside thigh and prop the toe against our outside knee. When we use a hoof stand, the hind cannon bone still comes over our inside thigh, but now the toe is propped up in the cradle of the hoof stand. Despite the seeming simplicity of the maneuver, many farriers struggle with efficiently getting into the hind driving position. After years of teaching farrier students and mentoring other experienced farriers through ride-alongs, I have learned some techniques that I have found to be helpful; taking into consideration both farrier and horse conformation. In this article, I am presenting the traditional, as well as the hoof stand method, to successfully pick up…