Instructions for Fitting and Driving the Shoe
The first thing to be done is to carefully examine the horse’s feet all around, to see that they are of a natural shape, taking care to abstain from any action that will tend to excite the horse.
The shoes should be removed one at a time, and the nails carefully drawn after the clinches are cut, one at a time; anything like tearing off the shoe by main force should by all means be avoided.
The shoe being removed, the rasp should then be used on the edge of the foot where the shoe has been, removing all dirt and gravel which may have accumulated there, and thus prevent injury to the shoeing knife.
If the foot is healthy and of a natural shape, and has been shod regularly, no alteration is required, but simply to pare out the sole of the foot, removing the bors entirely, and opening out the heels back. The surface of the frog should be trimmed off a very little, but the sides should never be cut.
By reference to Plate No. 12 the exact idea of the system of paring the foot may be gained. It has been practiced successfully, and is recommended for the simple reason that by the system of removing the bors and opening out the heels, contraction is prevented, and the frog retains its natural shape, because all pressure is removed from each side.
The foot should not be scooped out so as to leave the wall projecting without any support; for the wall of the hoof is the base upon which the horse travels, and this should be supported by a sufficiency of the sole as a “ground surface.” The shoes should be removed and the feet prepared one at a time.
In fitting a shoe to the foot, after it has been thoroughly prepared, the farrier should take hold of the foot and see that the shoe is perfectly easy on the heels, and that he has sufficient room all around in the manner illustrated on Plate No. 11. If the shoe is found to fit well everywhere, he will take the foot between his knees, and placing the shoe properly, drive the nails with great care, so that the shoe cannot get out of its proper place. When the nails are started he should hammer them home lightly, or according to the foot he is working on. The three nails on the inside and outside, toward the toe, should always be driven a little tighter than the heel nails, so as to prevent pressure on the heels. No man should be in a hurry in shoeing a horse, but should always be careful in fitting and driving the shoe as instructed.
A shoe should never be fitted tightly, unless the coffin-bone has too much play; then it should be fitted tight around the toe and each quarter, as far as the nail-holes extend back, in order to contract the foot, and bring the coffin-bone to its proper place. Such cases are, however, very rare.
The heels of the shoe should never be allowed to curve inward toward the frog, and the foot should be prepared so as to prevent any pressure from the shoe on the heel, in the manner shown by Plate No. 14, at the same time allowing the bearing of the shoe to be perfectly equal.
If the horse has a long foot it should be shortened on the toe as much as possible—the more the better—for the hoof grows out more quickly at the toe; and it is necessary, because in a case of this kind the coffin-bone is necessarily out of its proper position, and the operation of shortening the toe must be continued until it resumes its natural shape; but a close operation, and working the horse at the same time, is not recommended, because the foot can be brought to its proper shape by cutting gradually in time.
After the cutting has been performed, a shoe should be fitted so as to have the pressure on each quarter, and with heels, if the horse’s heels are naturally low, in order to prevent a sudden change.
A horse should be re-shod at least once a month.
Plate No. 3—Paring out the Foot.—By reference to this plate it will be seen what a difference there exists between the system recommended and practiced by Mr. Dunbar, and the old style practiced and recommended by all authorities on the subject heretofore.
The bors should be cut away entirely, removing the pressure from the frog, and cutting out the heel. By this system of paring the foot a ground surface will always be left, commencing at the heel and expanding gradually, as illustrated by the plates “A” to “C;” the sides of the frog should never be cut, but the top should be cut down sufficiently to allow it to be clear of the ground after the shoe is fitted. The cleft of the frog should always be cleaned out thoroughly every time the shoe is renewed.
Plates Nos. 4. and 5—Long Feet before and after Cutting.—A horse with a long foot, as will be easily seen, will suffer from an undue pressure on the heels (see article on Corns), causing corns, and in addition to that, if the foot is not shortened in time, it will cause the coffin-bone to lose its proper shape, but this can be remedied by shortening the toe every time the horse is shod, thus keeping the foot in its proper shape.
The common practice of fitting a shoe tight on the heels, to prevent interfering, is entirely wrong; an interfering horse does not strike with his heel, but with the inner side of the toe, not further back than the heel-nails, both hind and forward. To prevent this, the shoe should be fitted wider on the inner than on the outer heel. A horse that interferes should be carefully examined by the farrier before shoeing, who will notice particularly the shape of his feet. If the animal stands inward and interferes, the outside quarter should be cut down, and thus throw the foot level; and if he stands outward and interferes, the inside quarter should be cut down for the same reason. After this a shoe should be fitted with no nails on the inner quarter, which should be thickest.
To prevent a horse traveling pigeon-toed is simply to pare off the inner quarter of the toe, and have the shoe fitted as above. By this operation the bearing will be level. This will apply also to a horse for light riding, and for a horse traveling between the shafts; but for the latter a good block heel on the outer, and a small one on the inner quarter of the shoe should be made; the toe also to be made thick in proportion, to make the bearing level.
Plate No. 10 is a representation of a perfectly healthy coffin-bone, with the upper and lower pastern and navicular bones front, and reverse sides. The system recommended by the author is intended to prevent any pressure whatever on the wings of the coffin-bone. Anything that prevents the perfectly free action of the coffin-bone will cause “navicular disease,” and “ossified cartilages.” After a foot is pared, as recommended in this, so as to be easily expanded, the wings of the coffin-bone, which are the widest part, should be protected by a wide shoe, and there should be no pressure whatever on the heels.