More than one hundred years ago farriers were confronted with the same problems as farriers are facing today. The “shoeless experiment” was then proposed as a one size fits all solution by “the barefoot people.” (See page 2 of William Hunting’s, The Art of Horseshoeing, published by W. R. Jenkins in New York, in 1898). […]
If you live in the vicinity of Lincoln, Nebraska, we invite you to attend Dr. Butler’s Nebraska Horse Expo program on “Humane Hoof Care,” at 2:00 p.m., Saturday, March 13, 2010! His 2:00 p.m. program is scheduled in the Nebraska Room of the Lancaster Event Center, Lincoln, Nebraska. And there’s more “March Gladness” to share, […]
Hoof wall thicknesses vary. There is a very small margin for error. The farrier must pay close attention to selecting and driving each nail. Not all nails are manufactured perfectly, and misshapen nails might not drive straight. However, nail quicking isn’t the only kind of quicking that can affect a horse – he can also […]
Answer: A hoof that is proportional to the horse’s body size allows for ideal distribution of body weight over the foot’s laminar surface. (Laminar surface refers to the area where the sensitive laminae, attached to the coffin bone, interlocks with the horny laminae at the hoof wall.) When the foot is proportional to body size, […]
Question: My mare is Twelve going on Thirteen. I have had her for two years and have always had problems with holding and trimming her rear feet. In an article I read recently on restraint training it is stated that if a horse is old or has problems with arthritis they should not have their legs […]
There are several ways of providing traction in the winter time. Traditionally horses were shod with sharp shoes. Shoes were calked (toes and heels) and these were sharpened periodically by the blacksmith. This was a difficult job as the shoes had to be removed and it had to be done more often than a normal […]
Horse hooves are 25 to 50 percent water. Water freezes. Frozen hooves may split when nails are driven into them, and pounding upon the feet may be painful. The coriums or sensitive structures under the hoof are often bruised when the horse stands on snow that “balls up” under the hooves. In the spring, the […]
Butler Professional Horseshoeing School
495 Table Road
Crawford, NE 69339
(800) 728-3826
jacob@dougbutler.com
If you think you want to become a farrier (or know someone who does), this book can help you make that decision. Horse owners will learn the importance of choosing a qualified farrier and how to select the “right” one.
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