You're
encouraging heels to contract, corns to form, imbalance in the foot that, when
you're done with the horse, will take as long as a year to correct.
'
I have had many a shoer, try and curl the ends of the shoes under the
heels, rather than shape and clip the shoe properly. Shoes placed
improperly, such as bending the ends of the shoes under the heel, or improperly
placing the shoe, will result in contracted heels. Some
shoers hate to fire up the forge, some hate to haul around a forge.
The foot of the horse is not supposed to be round...the shape of the hoof is
such as to engender the proper dissipation of the impact forces of locomotion,
particularly locomotion bearing forward weight. Visualize a round
hoof loading during weight-bearing locomotion...where does the forward-loading
of weight dissipate in a round hoof? A round hoof actually
serves to impede the forward flow of locomotion when each hoof is
loaded. Whereas, a hoof properly shaped and properly shod, will
impede the dynamic flow of forward energy much less, allowing for the
dissipation of that energy in a manner which impacts the horse less.
If the hoof can not serve to immediately dissipate the impact forces of forward
locomotion, the pastern, the fetlock, the sesamoids, the navicular bone,
somewhere in the leg, shoulder, back, stifle, hocks....somewhere there will be a
compromise in function, i.e., the horse's ability to do what it's supposed to do
without undue degradation to the "platform".
On a horse who routinely pulls a shoe, I'd venture to say that for
some reason the loading and unloading moments of forward locomotion are
being affected. I always start at the feet...even before saddle fit, rider
weight, etc.
The hoof angles of a horse in motion should be so similar to the pastern
and shoulder angles as to be considered the "same".
I'm no "expert," but the above opinions are observations I've made
over the years.
