Things You'll Need
- Halter
- Lead rope
- Hoof pick
- Nippers
- Hoof knife
- Rasp
- Farrier's apron
Instructions
Halter the horse and have someone hold it for you. The person holding the horse should always be on the same side of the horse that you are working on for your safety.
Balance the hoof according to the horse's body and hoof conformation. This is slightly different for every horse. A balanced hoof maintains the proper alignment of the pastern with the hoof wall, provides adequate breakover at the toe to take stress off the heel and should be roughly a 45-degree angle from the toe up the pastern to the fetlock joint on the top.
Trim collapsed heels by removing as much wall at the heel as is necessary to encourage the heel to extend back.
Trim the bars of the affected hoof as well. Trimming the bars, which is the ridge of the sole that runs parallel to the frog, strengthens them and adds support to the heel wall.
Trim every six weeks, and reset if shoeing, until the heel is corrected.