A few weeks ago, I asked about my new horse coming to me with size 3 steels on front. New farrier had trimmed and replaced with size 2s.That seems to be going ok. My other horse’s front hooves were recently taken down from 3s to size 2s and pads (with v wedge & some gel stuff ) also added -telling me it would be better for him This one has always worn 3s (for 7 yrs) with previous farrier. These are 16.3 & 17.1 1500 lb WBs .Farrier said size of horse does not indicate size of shoe. I can’t get this old thought out of my head- big bodied QHs with smallish feet ( i owned one decades ago.) Not a good combo.
i am not convinced- give me some more questions to ask. FWIW- my old farrier retired
We can’t really comment without seeing before and after hoof pictures. Hooves could be taken too short. Or hooves could have been overgrown and run forward
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There’s no standard of shoe size, so a 3 in one brand can be a 2 or 4 in another.
And, your farrier is right that size of horse doesn’t dictate size of feet. Your experience with your QHs bears that out. So from that perspective, your farrier doesn’t have any dings against him LOL
As for the rest, no way can anyone tell anything about anything without currenct pictures (old pictures almost don’t matter).
I am wondering why Farrier thinks smaller is better? Does he/she do a lot of big horses like yours? Seven years in 3’s is a long time, horse stayed sound, usable over that time I presume? Does new farrier even carry bigger size shoes? Saw a couple poor horses shod too small because those were the biggest shoes he carried! Told the owner hooves were too big, NEEDED to be shod shorter and smaller!! Farriers who do not work on a quantity of large hoofed horses ALWAYS seem to want those big hooves made smaller!
As a horse owner of similar sized horses with large hooves, using them in various clinical and competition setting, you would be amazed at the “helpful” folks recommending “farriers who could fix those big feet!” I bit my tongue, thanked them, said I liked the way they were shod. But those folks were USED to seeing horses with short toes, smaller hooves. Had no idea of “proportionate size hoof to size of big horse above them” because they seldom ever saw such horses. Mine are similar size and weight to your horses. They wear St. Croix in front, Kerkart Eventer Plus behind, in 5s and 4s. The “littler 16,1-2h horses wear 4s in front and 3s behind.”
No one is small.here! Ha ha We like big hooves under big horses!!
Good luck with your horses.
I would be looking really hard at my horses and how they move, wearing these new shoes and pads. I might check around locally to find a “Warmblood Farrier” to talk too.
No way to tell without pics. Seriously don’t focus on the numbers. As someone else said, a size 5 could be a size 3 in another shoe brand!
If you’re concerned, take some good pics of the feet and post them. No one here can do better than a good farrier IRL - but if things are wildly incorrect you can at least get a heads up.
Assuming this farrier is competent, it sounds like he’s trying to fix some long feet and imbalance (wedges and pads usually go along with NPA and trying to realign the bony column). You’d be surprised how many years horses can tolerate poor trimming before it catches up with them. That said, wedges and pads and small shoes on horses that don’t need them can cause issues as well.
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Because that’s what was in the truck?
I agree pictures are necessary. A horse who had not been trimmed properly in the past could easily go down in shoe size for good reasons. So it could be for the best. But impossible to tell from an internet post.
OP were you there during the trim? Or just found out afterwards.
I was there - this horse has to be held and can be disagreeable.
New farrier so I gingerly asked a question or two and was told horse’s angles were sloped and needed to be brought up. Feet were not in good shape (long story) so I went with it and was happy to have them look so much better albeit it smaller. Asked about pads and was told he will go better. Was tender after. However, horse has back issue/ hind end issue that we have been trying to pinpoint. We have some info on that but might alot of it stem from shoeing in the past? Where is my crystal ball?
Your crystal ball lies within farrier films. I’d be headed to the most hoof-knowledgeable vet around for rads and preferably with my farrier in tow.
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Oh yeah that would potentially line up with crappy hoof angles.
Get some rads. And pics. Guessing isn’t gonna do much in this case
Edit: spelling 
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This is the way.
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It’s amazing how many people don’t know their horse is bilaterally unsound though. NOT saying this of the OP, just putting it out there that just because a horse has been doing his job without obvious lameness, doesn’t mean he’s actually sound. And, it’s also amazing how long some minor imbalances can take to cause problems, especially if feet are otherwise genetically awesome with strong thick walls, and growth that just gets taller, not splat.
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And how long it can take to correct the consequences, especially as you start peeling back the layers of compensatory things that develop higher up.
OP, a full set of farrier films all around might be the best investment you could make here. Best case scenario, your new farrier is on the right track and you’ll start to see improvement in the hind end. Worst case, you’ll have an accurate picture of what you’re dealing with as far as hoof structure and trim quality are concerned. This can either inform new farrier or be the foundation of your search for someone new.
Is the horse comfortable? That’s what matters.
OP mentioned earlier in the thread that horse has been having back/hind end issues, so probably not.
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Also, if the feet are in bad shape, they may have needed a more aggressive trim to remove the punky hoof. Necessitating a smaller shoe for a shoeing or two. I’d give it one more cycle with the new farrier and see how the horses are going.
From what I remember a size 2 wouldn’t be called a small foot. Pictures as mentioned would go a long way.
What is considered a full set of farrier films? I was just thinking of getting a side shot of each foot just to confirm angles for my farrier, since it’s been a while (and I think the last xrays were with my old farrier who retired).
My horse is going well and I have no concerns about the farrier job, but horse has had some previous hind end issues (SI ligament injury and some arthritis) so I’m just trying to stay on top of everything. Vet will be out at the end of the week for a proactive “end-of-show-season” checkup and lameness eval so I could get xrays done at the same time.
Each vet and farrier might have a slightly different definition of full depending on what they want to see, but in my experience minimally two images of each foot have been taken. A lateral shot to get a sense of angle and toe length, and a straight on view from the heel side forward (DP) to assess medial/lateral balance of the foot.
Hopefully this makes sense - some of the jargon doesn’t entirely translate for me.
I wish farriers would themselves ask for vet exam and x-rays before making changes, especially large changes.
You can’t tell just by looking and guessing at what is going on in there, can be right or wrong, either way.
Diagnostics are important and easy to get today, why not use them?
We acquired a horse from a bad situation, had been turned out in a weedy patch and forgotten for over a year, was about a 3 skinny, sore footed and had terrible feet someone had chopped the flares out with tree trimmer loppers and his hooves looked badly club footed.
Vet looked at him and said oh, my, but was hoping it was not congenital.
X-rays helped determine how to proceed, vet’s amazing farrier had horse’s feet looking normal in two shoeings.
Horse has been sound since with no hint of club foot.
If nothing else but peace of mind, ask your vet for some basic current x-rays.
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Thank you - yes, your explanation makes sense 
