We had a few technical glitches with Round 5 of the “What’s This?” contest. But when everything was cleared up, we still got some great answers from interested farriers regarding an obviously badly damaged hoof.

Chris Gregory of the Heartland Horseshoeing School in Lamar, Mo., looked over the various entries and chose our winner. After you’ve read the winning answer and judge’s comments, why not take a shot at winning three horseshoeing videos yourself? Visit the “What’s This?” page in the Only Online section of our Web site at www.americanfarriers.com. You can also visit the “What’s This?” archive to see past photos and answers.

Good luck!

Judge’s Comments

There were some really good answers from farriers, especially because it would have been necessary to have other views included to get a complete answer on all the problems going on in this hoof.

The foot in question is the off-front of an aged broodmare that got it caught in a fence panel as a filly. She had been 100 percent non-weight bearing on this hoof before this picture was taken. 

The coronet is damaged to such an extent that there is very little wall in some areas, extremely uneven growth where there is wall and unusual growth in the sole. The sensitive structures within this hoof are not where they should be as a result of how it grows and the lack of use. Since the hoof was so little used, the hoof wall and bars had rolled over and…