Basic farriery toolkit for an average barn/owner - what should be in it?

[anon55755751]

What tools should be kept on hand to handle basic issues, like pulling a shoe?

I can do it with just a shoe pull, but it can be an unpleasant ordeal if I can’t knock the clinches off well enough first. So? Clinch cutter or nippers (I can’t even always get clinches off with these)? How about a crease nail puller? If I have those, do I need the shoe pull?

Other tools? Rasp, hoof knife, hoof picks, hoof testers, obviously basics. Anything else? Any of you keep a pritchel around (and use it?)? Clinchers? My horse has really good hoof wall, so I don’t tend to worry about re-clinching between farrier visits, but may be a good idea for a multi-horse/shareable kit.

[Scribbler]

Depends on your skill level and strength.

I have a barefoot horse and have a rasp for between trims. I don’t feel I have the hand strength to learn how to use a knife or clippers properly. I would like a hoof stand but not sure I really need it

Shod horses shouldn’t be losing shoes on a regular basis if they are on a proper shoeing schedule. IiRC my old shod horse only lost shoes if they were worn right through at the toe, which could happen in summer in under 6 weeks.

But it might be good to have all that equipment if you know how to use it and have the strength to use it.

I think it is unusual for a barn owner to have this stuff. People just call up a farrier for an emergency call here. Especially people with shod horses, they give little attention to hoof maintenance other than hoof pick and topical treatment. Barefoot owners have the ability to get more involved though many don’t.

[JB]

I’d have the clincher cutters and shoe pullers.

No, shoes shouldn’t be lost on a regular basis, but, well, they’re horses, so… :winkgrin: Stuff happens. And it’s when you don’t have a decent set of tools that you’ll end up with a sprung shoe with the remaining nails tight as glue.

I’d always have at least a decent rasp and knife as well, so you can trim/rasp off anything that is cracked/chunked enough to be able to cut somebody.

IMHO, every barn with shod horses should have those tools.

[PNWjumper]

I have a pretty full farrier kit on hand. My farrier is a couple of hours away, and with 10 horses, I don’t want to waste his time coming out to pull a shoe or tack a shoe on if it’s something I can handle. I have one horse who I won’t touch, and so I “save” my emergency calls (and good will) for the one horse, and manage most of the other minor mishaps on my own.

So I’ve got nippers, rasp, clinch cutter, crease nail puller (which, IMO, is the easiest thing for me to get a sprung shoe off with), hammers, nails, shoe puller, hoof knife, hoof tester, clincher. I also recently got a stall jack (basically a mini-anvil on a stand), which has made life a million times easier because it allows me to straighten out the clips and straighten sprung shoes on my own. If my farrier has a piece of equipment that he’s getting ready to toss (like a used rasp), he gives it to me, which has helped my collection. Oh, I also have a hoof stand.

I also save the shoes my farrier pulls off of my horses and have them all bundled up and labeled with each horse’s name and which foot the shoe came from. That lets me pull from a used pile if a horse loses a shoe (which happens more often in the muddy winter and spring than summer/fall).

[EventerAJ]

If I’m stranded on a desert island with a shod horse, I want two things: crease nail pullers, and a rasp. I don’t know how I lives without nail pullers, they are the BEST when you have to remove a shoe. Pull the foot forward, use the rasp to file down the clinches until they basically disappear. Then hold foot between your knees, and pull each nail out with a sharp downward push.

I do have nippers, too, and on the very rare occasion (super tight, fresh racing plates with 8 nails on a new ottb) I’ll use the nippers to pull the branches of the shoe loose to pop the nails up (after rasping clinches).

I’ve also uses the nippers to cut off loose, popped up clinches at the end of a shoeing cycle, and used my clinchers to tighten the nails up to hang on a few more days until the farrier appointment. Clinchers are nice to have, but I wouldn’t consider them part of an “emergency” kit.

I take my rasp and nail pullers to shows with me, and I have had to use them. Last year my heart horse died tragically on xc, and I was able to quietly, privately take his shoes off by myself as I said my last goodbye. Shoes that I will keep forever.

[anon55755751]

@JB

No, shoes shouldn’t be lost on a regular basis, but, well, they’re horses, so… :winkgrin: Stuff happens. And it’s when you don’t have a decent set of tools that you’ll end up with a sprung shoe with the remaining nails tight as glue.

This was me about a month ago. Both shoes tight as the day they went on (also super tight side clips) and me with just a shoe pull at 8 pm trying to wrestle the shoe off. He’d had the shoes on for 4 weeks, and I thought, ugh silly me I should have definitely been using bell boots for turnout. Well, he pulled a shoe off this morning yahooing around the pasture, 3 weeks post farrier visit, WITH bells on. Fortunately, or unfortunately, the clinches this time were set by the apprentice, which made them easier to loosen when pulling the opposite shoe.

Anyway, he’s comfortable enough barefoot for it to not be an actual emergency. I am not skilled enough to put the shoes back on myself, so I will be calling a farrier tomorrow for that part.

@PNWjumper, not to derail my own thread or anything, but I’ve looked at all the threads I could find on shockwave for SI problems and seen you post a few times about your experiences. Have you noticed any increased tendency in your horses to pull the opposite front shoe from the side with the SI pain? My horse shouldn’t have a breakover problem in front, but does tend to forge (don’t know off-hand if it’s unilateral or bilateral), and does have some gait irregularity under saddle due to SI discomfort (working with the vet on this, about to pull the trigger on the shockwave).

[PNWjumper]

@anon55755751

@PNWjumper, not to derail my own thread or anything, but I’ve looked at all the threads I could find on shockwave for SI problems and seen you post a few times about your experiences. Have you noticed any increased tendency in your horses to pull the opposite front shoe from the side with the SI pain? My horse shouldn’t have a breakover problem in front, but does tend to forge (don’t know off-hand if it’s unilateral or bilateral), and does have some gait irregularity under saddle due to SI discomfort (working with the vet on this, about to pull the trigger on the shockwave).

I think horses have a rule that “what can go wrong will go wrong” UNLESS that would create knowledge that might help another person :lol: IOW, no, I have not noticed that, but that certainly doesn’t mean that it couldn’t be true.

My mare that I post so often about regarding SI pain and shockwave has maybe pulled one shoe in the 15 or so years I’ve had her. My other “SI horse” is my TB who I mentioned I won’t touch if he pulls a shoe. He went through a period where he was pulled his right front shoe within the first few fences of every Grand Prix we rode in, but it was years after we had addressed his pelvic imbalance and unevenness that was related to his SI stuff. And I don’t think his SI discomfort was one side or the other…his whole pelvis was tilted forward and sheared to one side (to the right maybe?). It very well could be why he always tends to pull that RF, but he didn’t ever pull shoes in the first 3 or 4 years that I had him. Then we oh-so-kindly gave him pads that hang back over his heel that he can grab onto.

[EmilyM]

@strangewings

What tools should be kept on hand to handle basic issues, like pulling a shoe?

I can do it with just a shoe pull, but it can be an unpleasant ordeal if I can’t knock the clinches off well enough first. So? Clinch cutter or nippers (I can’t even always get clinches off with these)? How about a crease nail puller? If I have those, do I need the shoe pull?

Other tools? Rasp, hoof knife, hoof picks, hoof testers, obviously basics. Anything else? Any of you keep a pritchel around (and use it?)? Clinchers? My horse has really good hoof wall, so I don’t tend to worry about re-clinching between farrier visits, but may be a good idea for a multi-horse/shareable kit.

my farrier told me to get nail pullers and pull offs. that way you can pull out nails and pull off shoes. I’m too chicken to do anything else. I’m even chicken about emergency shoe removal, but it is sadly necessary at times.

[Guilherme]

Clinchers, nail puller, and rasp for sure. A hammer would be a good addition. And duct tape.

It’s not uncommon to find clinches working loose towards the end of a shoeing cycle. Have your farrier show you how to use them and you can prevent a lot of “late cycle” lost shoes. Losses from mud, stepping, or other hazards won’t generally be affected.

Know HOW to pull a shoe. Again, let your farrier show you how. They do it for a living and when I learned our farrier just let me pull the shoes on the first horse he was doing. This had two immediate results. By the fourth foot I was reasonably proficient. And I gained a low of respect for what farriers do!!!

As to that last item, that same farrier showed me how to make an emergency “shoe” of out of duct tape. Depending on your terrain, such a shoe will last from about a mile to as long as three before you have to re-do it. That will generally get you home.

G.

[Lord_Helpus]

The only thing you Must have are nail pullers. Everything else is optional. A rasp would be nice if you want to get one, though,

[Synthesis]

Crease nail pullers, in particular. If your horse steps on a shoe and twists it, they are an absolute godsend.

[Outyougo]

Crease pullers!!! Maybe a rasp and a shoers hammer

[ryansgirl]

Don’t forget a good pair of gloves - nothing worse than having the rasp slip and “slide” across your hand.

I always have a rasp and nippers on hand and I do use the rasp on a regular basis for my barefoot mare. I like to keep the hoof “clean” with no chips, etc. in between trims- both my vet and farrier recommend it.

[theresak]

I have a rasp and nippers (I can get a shoe off with just the nippers but it’s not fun). My farrier gave me a pair of nail pullers, which I haven’t had to use yet but expect pulling nails on sprung shoes will be a lot easier with those.

My horse shears off nail heads on his hinds and I sometimes have to pull his shoes then. The rasp is handy so if he’s barefoot behind for a week or so, I can try to keep control of the chipping that happens after he pulls his hind shoes. The nippers are for the big chunks that peel up. I use just my regular hammer if there’s a loose nail that I can tap back in.

My horse has rocker shoes and wedges in the front and I have a Easy Boot Trail with one of his old wedge pads in it so if he looses a front shoe, he’s not uneven up front until the farrier can come out.

[IPEsq]

Crease nail puller is definitely useful for the amateur trying to get off a spring shoe. Takes a lot of strength just to pry it off. A rasp is also very handy and needed to help with the nail pulling unless you happen to be good at a hammer and the block clinch straightener thingie (can you tell I’m not?). I haven’t had much luck with a cinch cutter—easier to rasp. And the rasp is of course useful for barefoot.

I also found the hard way that cutters will be needed if you have to remove pour in pad once the shoe is off. Mine sprung a shoe, was standing on the clip. With BM’s kit we got the nails pulled and shoe off eventually but big chunks of Equipak were well adhered and had to be nipped off. Sharp tool was necessary. OTOH, if the shoe was pretty fresh, the Equipak may stay entirely intact and shoe can be put back on around it (happened to a client’s horse who pulled the shoe in the first week).

Hoof jack is also very handy.

[SonnysMom]

Crease nail puller would be my first purchase. I have a rasp but rarely use it.