what xc boots?

liberty and tommy

liberty and tommy

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hi!

so im taking my two horses xc at the end of the month (tommy and Harry) harry is 11 and a dressage horse tb type, but not full hes 15.2hh and tommy who im hoping if he is any good at it i will be competing and combinded training and other xc based events :) hes a 17 year old 14.2hh jumping cob.
im just wondering what boots would suit them the best, when ridden tommy is always in brushing boots and harry in overreach boots although they are obviouslly going to need a little more protection. Also whenever jumped tommy wears the plastic jumping which i heard cannot be ridden in xc as they dig when galloping?
tommy has also had an accident with his legs (guessed) when he was younger, as he can become very agitated when having his back legs touched particually on the left. so if they have some soft type brushing boots which wouldnt be held to much and heavy, that would be great as otherwise he really would not stand still long enough for my to even attempt putting the boots on!
thankyou for all your help this will be my first time xc and the horses second.
i would also be gratefull for any help on anything else i should wear or take with me!
anybrands or types thanks we will be eventing in blue colours:) :confused:
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I don't do XC but I like to use those stretch and flex wraps (like a neoprene type material) - they cover the fetlock and are velcro fastening for a good snug fit but with enough give.

I was always told to be careful of the tendon boots as incorrect fitting can lead to problems. The only other boots I use are leather fetlock boots for a mare that had some surgery behind and the scar is still proud so these leather sheepskin lined boots (Tredstone I think) are great protection.
 
Search through pictures of XC and see what the general consensus is. I personally use Professionals Choice SMB's on the fronts only for my boy, but I know others recoil in horror at the thought of them, in particular for XC. Old mare hunted, jumped, XC'd, ODE'd in them (all legs booted) and she was rarely lame and never because of leg injuries so they can't be that bad.

Tendon boots are offer little or no protection to the front of the legs. Fine for SJ if you want a horse to feel when it has knocked a pole, but not on a solid XC fence.

If your horse if funky with back legs, if you can get away with it, try fetlock boots, or leave them without anything. Unless you are planning on doing a novice height course your horses should be fine. To be honest, using what you normally do for SJ will be fine.
 
YasandCrystal said:
I don't do XC but I like to use those stretch and flex wraps (like a neoprene type material) - they cover the fetlock and are velcro fastening for a good snug fit but with enough give.

I was always told to be careful of the tendon boots as incorrect fitting can lead to problems. The only other boots I use are leather fetlock boots for a mare that had some surgery behind and the scar is still proud so these leather sheepskin lined boots (Tredstone I think) are great protection.
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thankyou, i got a set of fetlock and tendon boots for tommy, but as you can obviouslly tell the fetlocks didnt go down so great! but i was always told never to use tendon boots on xc as the corners are hard and sharp which dig in. but too use them on showjumping which i do.
when doing dressage i put the wraps you were talking about on my dressage horse but they would not provide enough protection (i think)
but thanks for your help :)
 
Nugget La Poneh said:
Search through pictures of XC and see what the general consensus is. I personally use Professionals Choice SMB's on the fronts only for my boy, but I know others recoil in horror at the thought of them, in particular for XC. Old mare hunted, jumped, XC'd, ODE'd in them (all legs booted) and she was rarely lame and never because of leg injuries so they can't be that bad.

Tendon boots are offer little or no protection to the front of the legs. Fine for SJ if you want a horse to feel when it has knocked a pole, but not on a solid XC fence.

If your horse if funky with back legs, if you can get away with it, try fetlock boots, or leave them without anything. Unless you are planning on doing a novice height course your horses should be fine. To be honest, using what you normally do for SJ will be fine.
Click to expand...

thank you, thats probaly the most help ive had from anyone!
to showjump i use tendon boots, but was told to keep well away from these during xc?
i will look into the smb's ones.
but as for looking at other peoples photos which i have done people vary from having brushing boots to ones like the premier equine eventing ones (which will probaly be the ones i purchase) he will be doing xc some more after this so its not a once in a lifetime thing so wouldnt mind spending a bit more extra money to keep him safe, as he is older but a hardy cob! like as i mention he will be doing this on pony camp.
i will try and walk him about in some back brushing boots (if i get that far) and if he takes to it well ill get on him, but he probaly wont!
thanks again :)
 
Sorry, I mis-read what you put, I thought you said you used brushing boots - hence me saying use them :D

It all comes down to what you and your horses prefer. My old instructor swore by bandages with leather tendon boots over and petal over-reaches, another swore by Clarendon Eventers, now people swear by boots that look like Swiss cheese and made of some exotic fibre. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with any of these options, but you have to weigh up your horses needs and ability against what is available to you. If you are going to wind up your horse (and yourself) by making him wear boots on his backs then this will come back on you. Horses are hardier than we give them credit for :D
 
Nugget La Poneh said:
Sorry, I mis-read what you put, I thought you said you used brushing boots - hence me saying use them :D

It all comes down to what you and your horses prefer. My old instructor swore by bandages with leather tendon boots over and petal over-reaches, another swore by Clarendon Eventers, now people swear by boots that look like Swiss cheese and made of some exotic fibre. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with any of these options, but you have to weigh up your horses needs and ability against what is available to you. If you are going to wind up your horse (and yourself) by making him wear boots on his backs then this will come back on you. Horses are hardier than we give them credit for :D
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this is true...we all pamper our horses!! i will probaly just leave him without on the back and either put eventing or brushing boots on the front.
haha the swiss cheese is so right! people do they think just because the boot looks good means theres going to be no problem and they are the perfect ones for their horse! i used to just jump with no boots on until my friend told me to use her brushing boots, i never realised how much he did it until then! he was breed for jumping so hes got pretty high ability and we are gonna have some big refussals that day so i will need to put some good ones on him!
do you have anything towards the premier equine eventing boots? :)
 
We mostly use prolite boots on the event horses but they are expensive. part of their appeal for us is durability (several horses a day every weekend)
I recently got a nice pair of mark todd ones off equestrian clearance which were not expensive
NEW do very light back boots suitable for XC
You can use ordinary tendon boots (not sure what kind of plastic pointy ones you have I can't picture them!) but they won't help with hitting the front of their legs
 
I use premier equines BL1s my boy is sensitive and they do rub a little but they are only on for the XC phase and offer a huge amount of protection . For SJ he wears woofwears double locking boots ATM I may change to tendon boots on the front eventually though but impressed with the amount of protection the double locking offers
 
Mine goes xc in Premier equine event boots on all four leggies and their over reach boots. I really like the boots, they are tough, lightweight, protect in the right places and have airvents to keep tendons cool. Not cheap though! As far as other xc equipment goes,, I assume you have thought of things like body protector, medical armband and skull cap with flexible peak (cant go xc in a fixed peak).
 
Fun Times said:
Mine goes xc in Premier equine event boots on all four leggies and their over reach boots. I really like the boots, they are tough, lightweight, protect in the right places and have airvents to keep tendons cool. Not cheap though! As far as other xc equipment goes,, I assume you have thought of things like body protector, medical armband and skull cap with flexible peak (cant go xc in a fixed peak).
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yeah i will be wearing a non peaked hat at pony camp, but i will be going with a fixed one for the training day :)
i like the look of the premier equine ones i will probaly just get two for the front and thats it thanks for your help
 
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