Farriers, files and horseshoes – a quick guide

When Des the beautiful bay gelding came to live with us he was scared of everything, and that definitely included our wonderful farrier Charlie. This photograph captures a touching moment of connection between the two and shows just how far their relationship has come.

It’s time we introduced Charlie and the crucial role of the farrier.

Our 10 point quick guide:

1. Hooves are cleverly designed by nature to balance the horse’s weight and protect the foot with natural shock absorbers. How neat is that?

2. To keep the feet in good condition a horse needs to see a farrier every 4-6 weeks.

3. Farriers don’t just apply horseshoes. Their most important task is to trim the hooves to ensure both the horse’s comfort, and to maintain his balance, as well as checking that the foot is healthy.

4. Not all horses need shoes. Some have softer soles than others, and it also depends on the work they do. Lots of roadwork or stony surfaces usually require the protection of shoes or the soles become bruised and painful.

5. Many horses, even competition horses, are kept barefoot (without shoes) if their feet are in good condition and not tender, and if they spend very little time on hard or stony surfaces.

6. Barefoot horses need their feet regularly trimming by a farrier too!

7.  Horses carry around 60% of their bodyweight in the front feet. For this reason, many horses wear shoes only on the front where the soles are otherwise more likely to become sore.

8. Hooves grow continuously and become very painful if they’re not worn down naturally or trimmed regularly by a farrier. You may have seen terrible photographs of horses left neglected in fields, almost unable to walk because of grotesquely overgrown hooves.

9. Horses in the wild rarely have hoof problems as they’re worn down naturally through exercise and terrain.

10.  As our picture of Des and Charlie makes clear, a horse needs to trust the farrier if they’re to give their feet to be trimmed and perhaps shod, with all the attendant noise and smell. This is why a good, sensitive farrier is such an important team member at any Stables, ours included. Thank you Charlie!