Buying a Horse? Then check out it's feet!!- Tom Knox DWCF

No foot, no horse. This is the old saying that everybody knows but rarely takes notice of. It is one of the most important areas to check out, not just because the Farrier might take one look, throw his hands up in horror and make up any excuse not to come back, but primarily for the future soundness of the horse. If the feet are clearly weak, all broken up or cracked from top to bottom, then there is clearly going to be a problem.

During spring and summer when the feet are brittle this could possibly be exaggerated, also the shoeing could be overdue or poor quality work. Not easy for the average owner to quantify, even the vet probably won't have the practical experience required to assess whether these sorts of problems can be overcome.

So it might be an idea to take your Farrier along, if at all practical and he or she is willing, just so he can guide you with regards to this all-important area. Some vendors will let you have the horse on trial, take advantage of this and get your Farrier over to have a look or better still to shoe it, this way he will be able to tell whether he can rectify any problems which have been encountered. Behavioural problems are a very common source of Farrier to owner relations problems.

If you buy a horse from the local market you are buying a very unknown quantity. Clearly some might have the luck of the Gods on their side, and buy the best mannered horse with the best of feet. Believe me when I say this doesn't happen often! When you get your new steed home and decide to have it shod, and his nostrils are flared and he's snorting at the sight of your Farrier, beware, because the Farrier has already sussed the situation and has also thought of ten good reasons why he is having to give up your work!! At least if you buy from someone directly you can tell whether they are just dealing or if they are quite genuine. If the worst happens there is always a possible way of retreat. You might think the Farrier is being a bit soft in not tackling these dangerous horses, after all you pay him good money to come and do what seems easy, quick work. But what you have to remember is the years he has worked and learned before he or she got to that point of their career.

Have you ever tried holding your body in some of the contorted positions we Farriers have to?, after a few years you learn how to do the job quickly to lessen the strain. The point I am trying to make is don't expect anyone to get themselves hurt shoeing a difficult horse, they have commitments and a future to look after. So make sure it is good to shoe, When you see a horse with egg bar shoes, bar shoes or some kind of remedial shoe, don't be hoodwinked into being told the horse seems to go better in them or my Farrier decided he would try them. There is probably a reason why they are being used. That reason would probably be the horse has or had a lameness problem.

An owner won't put expensive shoes on just for the sake of it, they will have been advised by somebody, hopefully the vet. The Farrier won't fit remedial shoes unless he has a very good reason, I hope. The point here is look very carefully at the conformation of the horse, and the history behind the remedial work. Which brings me to my last point, conformation. I have seen many types of poor conformation on many horses, which I have advised clients about when they have bought them. Very few take any notice of me, some have regretted that, and some I have been completely wrong about. But some have taken my comments on board and have either left the animal well alone, or have not been deeply disappointed when their shoeing bill escalates because we have had to carry on with remedial work.

People don't, in general realise that conformation plays a huge part a horses future, either that or they don't know what to look at. Intermittent lameness can be caused by many types of conformational faults, toe in, toe out, low heels long toe syndrome, broken back or forward hoof to pastern axis, base wide or base narrow, nearly all types of conformational faults can cause lameness. Of course this mostly happens as soon as a work regime of some degree starts.

There will be an article coming shortly on types of conformation. Some people will insist on, or have a preference to a specific size of foot or type of foot. A bit picky, I hear you say, well not really. The Household Cavalry uses a particular type of horse with a particular type of foot. In the shoe racks in their Forge there are very few sizes of shoe mostly the same type of shoe and section of shoe. This is not by accident but they have found that type of foot and horse suites their needs better. Some owners I know who are very experienced, always go for a nice round foot about five and three quarters of an inch at the widest point, with good limb conformation, and find that whether eventing or hunting they have little or no lameness problems. This is because they have gone out to buy a horse with a specific type in mind. A summery of this is clearly to take a good look at feet and conformation before making any binding deals. If you are not sure, get a professional to give you some guidance.