Good Durability - Even with Large Hooves

Hello dear readers,

my big friend Lo is a Norman Cob with a height of 176 cm and a weight of 900 kg.

At the end of 2022, the horse was not running well. Since there was still no improvement after several weeks, we had photographs taken.

The problem turned out to be soles that were too thin. The advice was given to fit him with horseshoes. Because of the quality of his hooves, I preferred to look for an alternative: hoof boots.

Unfortunately, it turned out that these were not available in sizes over 200 mm. It was also very difficult to find a specialist who would take on this challenge with me and find a suitable solution for it.

Fortunately, I ended up with the Belgian Gary, who did not shy away from this challenge and was also willing to travel regularly to Noord-Brabant in the Netherlands.

He had already had good experiences with the Goodsmith base plates, and after some research it turned out that they were also available in 220 and 215 mm (necessary in our case).

In January 2023 we attached the first pair of base plates with Klebelaschen under the hooves.

We are still using this particular set of plates after 25 weeks. Due to the improved hooves, we had to adjust them several times. That takes comparatively a lot of effort, but at the same time gives you a great insight into the change process. Last time we were even able to reuse the Klebelaschen.

Several experts were of the opinion that these plates would not be suitable for a horse like Lo because of his weight and the forces involved.

Goodsmith, however, had full confidence when we knocked on their door with our doubts and the request for advice. I think we have now demonstrated that Goodsmith's materials can offer a very suitable solution to this particular challenge as well.

My horse lives outdoors around the clock, both on sand and on concrete/cobbled surfaces.

His hooves show a very nice improvement and he walks well on them. Next week we will probably start with the second pair. Because the toe side has worn down so much, the Klebelaschen can no longer be attached securely enough.

We would never have thought that a set could last 25 weeks, and we are curious to see what the next pair will bring us.

Best regards, Wendy & Lo