The steel full swedge shoe (Fig. 1) is one of the most popular in horse racing.

For many years, the standard pad for any shoeing application was leather. Shoeing options with pads these days are numerous. Leather still remains a viable choice for pads, but not as popular or in vogue as they used to be.

Sometimes farriers work as a two-person team in order to shorten the duration. One works the floor (horse); this is normally the farrier in charge of the shop. The other works the fire (shoe making). Both people do their part with the idea of doing as much work simultaneously as possible. (By the way, please don't ask the farrier's assistant to hold the horse as he is there to help with other task.)

The proverb has been around for a long time, and it is a fact that races have been lost for the want of a shoe. Horses lose shoes in races from time to time. That will always be a part of horse racing. However, racing, qualifying, or even training with a shoe that needed repair to begin with can easily be avoided. A paddock blacksmith is normally available for racing, but sometimes a farrier isn't around when needed. Racing at fairs, training at farms or other off-track facilities are some examples of places that might not have a farrier available when needed.

While it is true that increased weight exaggerates motion, the cost of that added motion is fatigue. Fatigue is due to the increased energy required to put that weight into motion. Horses with heavier shoeing packages work harder than those shod light; it is as simple as that. There is no better support to this point than the fact that so many trainers elect to race barefooted in big races, especially in second-heat races. A few special horses gait better with added weight and overcome the fatigue factor to win. Donato Hanover was a great example of this.

When a racehorse is going well, often that horse is racing well enough to ignore what appear to be minor problems. If a horse's performance is on par, often no changes are made to the shoeing in an attempt to maintain that current level of performance.