Harald Blaßnig - orthopaedic hoof technician

1. About our Goodsmith partner

Harald came to horses later in life, but is now all the more intensely involved.

The orthopaedic hoof technician, who hails from southern Austria, served more than 20 years in the Austrian Armed Forces.

In 2016 he bought a 3-year-old Noriker mare. A bold venture, because Harald already knew the mare and was aware that the farrier appointments involved more luck than judgement. After the purchase it was clear that they had to practise before the next trimming appointment. In the end the shoes came off, because the mare was not ridden by Harald, so iron shoeing was not necessary according to the farrier.

"At first I was completely thrown. To me it was clear and the most normal thing in the world that a horse always wears iron shoes for protection. I then read up on the subject and did training."

And since one horse wasn't enough, an 11-year-old Haflinger mare joined as well ;)

"Working with my mares, I became more and more aware that you can deal with any problem somehow, as long as you treat the horses individually. There's no one-size-fits-all if you want to work with them in a goal-oriented way.

And in the end I adopted that approach in hoof care too."

Besides his own horses, the Carinthia-based hoof care practitioner also began working on horses belonging to acquaintances.

"Then it gradually became clear to me that I should register a trade if things continued to go this well here, and a year later I took it up full-time."

2. The path to glue-on shoes and to Goodsmith

When he came across the possibility of glue-on hoof protection, he initially started with other systems. But on the one hand, the two-component glue turned out to be rather inadequate, and on the other hand, during the COVID period there were supply difficulties with the plates from EasyCare, which were ordered from America. The original Velcro variant from Goodsmith was not convincing, but when the Perma glue-on came onto the market, Harald found an optimal solution.

3. Goodsmith in Harald's work

The hoof technician works on many Noriker horses, which usually only start at 150 mm hoof width. His largest client is a Lithuanian cold-blood with 210 mm hooves.

For his heavy clients he reinforces the tabs in the heel area with an rbCarbon or Goodsmith training tab each. He reinforces the glue-on with caps (Aufzüge).

Furthermore, Harald also enjoys dealing with the broad field of diseases such as arthrosis, spavin, laminitis or abscesses.

Last September he took on a fascinating, albeit catastrophic, case. A 13-year-old horse with a huge hoof abscess. Since foal age there has been a severe misalignment in the front left. As a result, arthrosis developed in the carpal joint already at a young age. To avoid abscesses, the horse was shod. Three quarters of a year ago, an egg-sized growth was discovered on the coronet of the rear left, which was surgically removed. At the same time, a mega-abscess developed across the entire toe width (approx. 6-7 cm). At that spot, a hole formed - "you could see through the hoof" - causing the coffin bone to rotate, with the risk of the horse losing the hoof capsule. After an iron shoe was applied by the farrier at the time, the horse could not stand up anymore.

That was when Harald came into play. "The good news was that the abscess was not its main problem. The bad news: the horse couldn't stand because it had been nail-pricked."

The hoof technician removed the shoes; except one hoof that the horse could not lift.

"I then put a glue-on with padding on. After a few failed attempts I found the solution thanks to a cast bandage. I used a rubber plate for sole damping. To prevent him from pulling off the bandage, I placed Renegade bulb holders over it and then wrapped the cast bandage. It took almost four months until the hoof had regrown and the pure glue-on shoe held again. I renewed it every few weeks. After 5 years my client's horse was ridden again for the first time - that was my personal highlight so far."

Not only for treatment purposes, but also for trail riding, Harald recommends cast bandages. It is the best alternative if a glue-on comes off and there is no replacement available. It can be applied easily and quickly by moistening the plastic cast with your water bottle or at the stream, applying it to the hoof, and then continuing the distance. The hard plastic shell is air-permeable and the bandage usually only wears through after 2 to 3 days, Harald reports from his experience.

4. Experience with the quality of the glue-on

"A glue-on, just like an iron shoe, can't always hold in all cases. Because of the "assembly" process, several factors have to work well together. With iron shoeing I can't do that much wrong with the fixation. With a glue-on I simply have to pay attention to more things during application - temperature when welding, working dust- and grease-free, gluing with enough moisture etc.

With iron shoeing you have other pitfalls. If the shoe tears off, the risk of injury is many times greater. If the horse pulls off an iron shoe, it can result in a nail prick or broken hoof walls. Broken hooves or hooves with poor horn quality I can hardly nail on at all, or not at all. Gluing works in almost any condition."

5. Duration of application, price and durability of a glue-on

"In my experience, it always depends a bit on whether the horse already has glue-on experience. He has to be able to stand still and get used to the application procedure. By the third gluing at the latest, however, they are very relaxed and cooperative. Then I need about 1 1/5 hours for two hooves. Four hooves I like to do together with a colleague, that brings me to the same time, because the process flows very smoothly with two people." Prices vary depending on the area of use and the corresponding add-ons.

"I give a four-week guarantee on the glue-on. If something comes loose during that time, I repair it free of charge. Between four and six weeks I then trim and re-glue."

The orthopaedic hoof technician, Goodsmith partner and workshop leader is very passionate about raising more awareness for hoof care in his home country. Because "hoof care in Austria is an unregulated trade, there is no longer a state examination. In theory, anyone can do what they want; but that doesn't mean they shouldn't be skilled". "It is important to exchange regularly and review one's work", says Harald Blaßnig.