Insist On Good Shoeing Conditions

Make sure that your shoeing clients understand the importance of providing you with a good safe working environment for shoeing their horses. “They’d quickly quit a job in town if the working conditions weren’t right, yet they expect us to work anyplace,” Kevin Keeler, a farrier from Star, Idaho, told International Hoof-Care Summit attendees. “Insist that they provide you with a level surface, good light and protection from the environment so that you can do the best possible shoeing work.”

No One Best Nail For Every Occasion

When it comes to selecting nails, Fred Cleveland has some distinct preferences, and reasons for using them. “My favorite nails are the Capewell Classic #5, the Mondial E head #4 and the Capewell Slim Blade #6,” the Marshall, Va., farrier told International Hoof-Care Summit attendees. “The Slim Blade #6 nail will reach above those bad places in the hoof wall where you have to drive a high nail over the damaged area. I use the two Capewell nails for the St. Croix wide web aluminum and Kerckhaert SX8 shoes. I use the Mondial E-head nail with the Werkman hind shoes.”

When driving a high nail into a damaged area in the hoof wall, Cleveland prefers to use a Capewell Slim Blade #6 nail to reach above the bad spot. If the nail head will not fit in the crease with a #0 shoe, he grinds the front of the nail head to let it slide right in. After…