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Here we are on the Horseshoe’n Time in front of a crowd
of eager student farriers, professional farriers and
horse owners alike.
Let me remind you that farriers usually start out as
horse owners, which is what leads them to choose the
profession. Helping to educate "all" horse enthusiasts
is our goal and today our topic is probably…no wait… it
IS one of the most crucial elements in a horses’ life
that will lead it to grow into a healthy, sound and
athletic equine companion.
Our baby today is with his mom, owned by Randy Keene of
K & K Farms in Calhoun, Georgia. Randy owns and brings a
lot of horses to the research center on a regular basis
and starts his babies out with a trim right about a
month old. By handling it from birth makes our job a lot
easier and I must say this one was an excellent
candidate for our show. With Randy by mom’s side and our
assistant farrier, Kevin Cotton making baby feel
comfortable, we begin. |
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We demonstrated the
gentle rasping needed for the outside hoof wall
to match the inside. To remove too much hoof
wall will be detrimental. Healthy hoof wall is
precious material in the eyes of a farrier! The
opposite front foot needed the same. We
demonstrated the safest technique in handling
the hind feet in photo 4 as we moved
outside to complete the trim with his buddy and
owner, Randy Keene.
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Let’s evaluate
its’ little feet now ( photo 1 ).
Ralph Casey begins explaining that a normal
baby is born natural one day of it’s life,
on its’ birthday!! A normal baby will not
have one leg longer than the other, off
balance lateral and medial, one toe longer
than the other and so on. |
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Notice how both mares are calm awaiting their
trims. I must commend any and all horse owners
who work with their horses so that the farrier
can perform his or her job properly without
getting mangled, beaten and kicked and otherwise
thoroughly abused! |
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It is pretty close to being
perfect as God intended it to be. The farrier’s goal is
to keep the horse natural, just like he was the day he
was born. We are going to follow our same evaluation of
using the "6 Steps to Balancing the Hoof & Horse for
Sound Shoeing" as we do for mature horses.
As the hoof hardens and the frog toughens up and it’s
walking and running regularly, the conformation will
dictate how it’s foot will land. Most horses are
"cow-hocked" or "toed out" on the hind quarters, which
is normal. |
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In Photo 5,
it is always a good idea to let everyone take a "milk
break" on the set of Horseshoe’n Time and… we try to
accommodate all of our guests.
We want to thank Randy
Keene for spending the day with us and invite you to
join him with his horses, babies and family to our... |
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his little front
foot is wearing out on the inside (medial)
causing the wall to straighten as in
photo 2. This indicates that its’
conformation is causing the foot to bear
more weight towards the inside causing it to
flare out on the outside (lateral) wall. You
can also see that the foot is already
becoming unsymmetrical which in turn will
cause the foal to become unbalanced.
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Annual Spring Fling Clinic on May
17th
at the Farriers’ National Research
Center in Georgia. Come meet the crew and join us for a
"live" filming of Horseshoe’n Time. We will go into the
"6 Steps" into great detail using a variety of breeds
and sizes.
Join us for good family fun for all
ages !!!
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Balance is defined as equal
weight distributed all around the hoof. There are 6
steps to balancing the horse for sound shoeing: toe
length, leg length, lateral and medial balance,
symmetrical, natural angle and bone in the center of the
shoe. All of these steps help keep the bony column of
the leg in alignment, wherein where the foot strikes the
ground, the entire bony column, including the spine,
equally absorbs the concussion. |
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For more
information, contact the
Farriers’
National Research Center and School, Inc.
Attn:
Ralph Casey, Pres./Director
14013
East Hwy 136
LaFayette, GA 30728 |
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Although the foal is obviously barefoot at
this stage, it is detrimental to keep these
principles in mind. Ralph Casey has spent
many years designing the "6 Steps" program
to make it simple enough for horse owners to
understand.The tubulars running down the
hoof from the hairline down as in photo
3, will begin to grow incorrectly and in
this case they are already changing angles
in the heel area. If simple corrections are
not made early on in the foals’ life, it can
lead to permanent hoof growth abnormalities.
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FNRC & BWFA office (706)397-8047
Websites:
www.bwfa.net and
www.bwfa.net/fnrc/
Email:
farrierhdq@aol.com
Casey & Son Horseshoeing School and
shoeing appointment, call (706)397-8909
www.caseyhorseshoeing.com
our weekly television show Horseshoe’n Time is
now seen on RFD-TV
Dish channel 9409 and DirectTV channel 379
Go to
www.rfdtv.com or email
info@rfdtv.com
Also available on VHS & DVD:
"The 6 Steps to Balancing the Hoof and Horse for Sound
Shoeing"
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