Trainer Todd Pletcher appears to have a formidable hand going into this year's Kentucky Derby. Or should we say foot?? If Pletcher wins his second Derby in four years, the man who takes care of his horse's feet will be one of the first people he thanks. Like everyone has said for years, no hoof, no horse, or no foot, no horse. That's really true at the end of the day, said Pletcher. I don't think you can even calculate how important having a good blacksmith is. By all accounts, Pletcher's blacksmith, Ray Amato Sr., is one of the best in the business. And you'd be hard-pressed to find a backstretch worker who relishes going to work more than Amato, even though he's been doing the same thing for 65 years.

A horse comes in from the pasture looking a little bit touchy on his front hooves, almost as though he's walking on eggshells. A common course of action for an owner would be to reach down and feel for unusual warmth in the hooves and coronary bands. Excessive heat was interpreted to indicate the possibility of laminitis. Time-honored practice? Yes. Completely accurate as a predictor? Most likely not, according to recent research.

Continuing a tradition started in 2001, each year SmartPak creates a top 10 horses' name list from among all the horses that receive their supplements each day. Custom packed to meet the needs of each individual horse, every daily dose is labeled with that horse's name not only making feeding mistakes virtually impossible, but also giving the Plymouth, Mass., company a unique insight into the most popular names among well-cared for horses.

When it comes to anvils, John Halko of Georgia Farrier Supply says he's actually calculated the cost of lifting one in and out of a rig all day long vs. having it mounted on a swing-out mechanism.

When lacing together quarter cracks, it's important to be consistent in the way you handle them.

Farriers share more thoughts on the good and bad of having backyard horses make up a major part of their shooing books. This is a continuation of the story that appeared in the March 2012 issue.

Farrier likes to decide how full to fit a horse based in part on how fast its feet grow.

Half-round shoes can benefit Grand Prix horses.

When he isn't busy shoeing, Jerry Mathews trains driving horses. He also participates in competitions, such as this one from 2008.