Shyboy has shiny new boots !

Shysmum

Shysmum

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Shy's always been barefoot, but recently he's been heading for the verges a bit too often. He's had a bout of thrush, now under control with Thrushbuster, but his hooves seem to have been affected by the wet weather, sooooooo introducing his new shiny Cavallo Simples (not the best pic, sorry) :

shysboots8Jan2013008_zpsf59ce6f5.jpg


This was his first trial with them, and he still has the pastern wraps on in this pic, but we gave up on them about ten minutes into our walk (they slipped up).

I rode him for 20 minutes today, and the difference was amazing - striding out like a trooper, didn't even think about the booties, and he stayed on the road quite happily :D The boots did not move, and have not rubbed. They are SO EASY to put on. They are largely leather, and I've been Neatsfooting them to get them soft. My farrier recommended these, and even measured him for me ! Shy's fronts are very round, so they may not suit every horse, but they are a perfect fit for the boy.

I am so chuffed (atm) - got them cheap from ebay too. Will keep you posted with updates. :D
 
Did they help with grip?
I want something similar but that will help with grip as the fantastically smart council have tarmaced a small but steep hill that is the only access to the main bridle path :rolleyes:
 
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close up !!! I am so proud of this lad, he's just taken these in his stride :)

Thrushbuster came from amazon. Not cheap, but it's working.


One question I have already is, he's ridden for 1 + hours daily. How long do the boots last for ?
 
He looks good in them!

My mare wears the same kind occasionally but they look really clumpy on her spindly legs. I will tell her to grow some feather :D

Agree they are dead easy to use and I was surprised at what a non event it was wearing them for the first time as well!
 
I couldn't get socks to fit over his hooves, so gave up on that. These are a size 4, the pastern wraps were medium, but I've heard they are rubbish anyway, so am not bothered about that.

His feathers just seem to fall over the top of them, without any problem at all. I trim them so that I can see the hoof, and around the pastern area, but honestly with full feather I'm sure they won't be a problem. I am surprised myself tbh.

We are literally going to breaking them in very gently, but the difference today was amazing. I am texting my farrier too, as he has other clients who may be interested too. Bless him, who'd have thought a farrier would be sooo interested in barefoot ;)
 
He looks very smart!:)
I have these too - I chose them because they are easy to put on. i don't get on with the pastern wraps either.
 
Shysmum said:
Thrushbuster came from amazon. Not cheap, but it's working.

One question I have already is, he's ridden for 1 + hours daily. How long do the boots last for ?
Click to expand...

Thanks will look into it.

So will you need to use the boots every ride? Or will using every other, save his feet enough so growth keeps up with wear???
 
Sorry forgot to mention, we haven't trialled grip yet, but as soon as we do, I'll let you know :)

I am planning on using them for every ride on tarmac for now, and just seeing how we get on. I am very aware that it may be the grass coming though as he's been nuts for the last 2 weeks, , it could be the thrush (last week he was literally hopping), or it could be anything (sigh). But if he's happy, he'll keep them on. Just see how we go.

The thrushbuster was 56 ml for £15 or something.

I'll get more pics as we go along.

I got a good book called The Barefoot Horse (Lucy ...) who explains about hoof boots, and this gave me the courage to go for it. Also the Cavallo website. I've looked at all the boots, and agreed with my farrier that this was the way to go at first.
 
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The reason they are called Simple is because they are - LOL!

They are fab aren't they? My first pair lasted 2yrs before the back fell out of them, that was pretty hard wear though to be honest and the pony that had them often over reached so the backs took a pounding.

Rather than mens socks, go for the soft fluffy cheap Primark socks, they stretch right out round the cuff, much easier to get on and off.
 
haha, he is cute ! He's (another) very special HHO horse. I went to call him in from the field tonight - right over the other side - and he galloped full blast up to me like he was in Black Beauty saying "who me ??? it's time to come in ?? Oh WOW !!". ;)

ps TWO YEARS !!! Blimey, I'll have to keep oiling them then..
 
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I've found the grip on concrete and tarmac to be great, even frosty tarmac. Much better than shoes, even with road nails. Not great on mud or grass though.
 
Lovely pics :-)

I liek the Cavallo's too, although my horse seems to have changed sizes, so I need to put some on ebay...
 
My Cavallos have stood up to the best part of a years full use and are still going strong (although his feet are now so good that *touchwood* we dont need them any more). I dont even bother neatsfooting them - I just give them a blast with the hose when I finish riding and hang them up to dry off a bit.
 
God, Amber is gorgeous !! What a cracking horse.

I tend not to ride out when it's icy (it's a bit lethal round here), but that has sure made me think twice. All a huge learning curve for us.
 
Shysmum said:
God, Amber is gorgeous !! What a cracking horse.

I tend not to ride out when it's icy (it's a bit lethal round here), but that has sure made me think twice. All a huge learning curve for us.
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Thanks :D. She is only 4 so a long way to go. I hack out in all conditions, but that's the only time I had the boots on and I regretted it and ended up leading her down the road as it was so slippy and steep. The other pony didn't slip once as she didn't have hoof boots on. I think for the money (I got them BNIB second hand on eBay at a great price) they are handy to have. They didn't even budge on really sucky mud (which she hates crossing and snatches her feet up like an idiot).

If she still needs boots once her new feet have grown in (they are much smaller and tighter growing down) I am going to go for something else and as luck would have it the other pony has exactly the same sized feet so she will inherit them :)
 
There are just so many types of boots, it's hard to know which to go for. A friend's barefoot trimmer suggested easy/equiboots for her horse, but these needed to be banged in place with a hammer :confused: No way would I go thru that hassle.

Amber looks a very calm 4 year old, like Shyboy was - all in their stride :)
 
Boots confuse me, do they really last 1-2 years? Is that using them every time you hack or is it just when the horse is going somewhere stony etc. Do you have to buy new boots every time?
 
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