My new horse has some angling in the fetlocks the vet suggested we have addressed via shoeing. The farrier (recommended to me) told me he put some borium on her hind shoes to encourage work off the back foot and relieving any stifle stress.
I’ve never seen this suggested application for borium/ have heard that the added traction could possibly stress the legs? I trust the farrier but wanted to know if anyone has heard of this before.
I don’t understand the shoer’s reasoning but borium spots on shoes in rocky country will give more grip on slippery rocks
I would not put borium on any horse I am using for arena work. I use it for trail riding, because we are on a lot of large, solid rock. It is used to keep a horse from sliding and give them “stick”. My farrier does a lot of high end arena horses- hunters, jumpers, dressage- and I am one of his few trail riding clients. He has to stock borium just for me because he uses it so infrequently.
“Blacksmith” is considered an insult by many farriers. I would consider this one a blacksmith.
^^^Hah, I’ve heard the opposite. I’ll use farrier going forward.
I’m certainly confused by the idea. This farrier truly comes highly recommended from several people who are reputable pros, but I’d feel better about the move if it was something I’d ever heard of before. I think I’ll ask my vet…
Just out of curiosity, is the borium on the toes of the shoes or the heels or both?
I have no idea what he meant, but maybe something to do with the placement of the hind foot and the break over. As I said, I have no idea.
That is interesting! Where did/does he place the Borium on the shoes and how much? I’d love to hear his explanation on how it works.
Like mentioned previously, we only used borium for traction in the ice and snow in the winter.
I’ll take pics of the shoes tomorrow and update. He reviewed her PPE x-rays and told me beforehand about his plans to address the slight differences in her fetlocks that the vet suggested we correct with shoeing. I assume this is related but don’t know. I might ask him to explain further.
This is my horse (from her sales video) - she moves well, so not sure of the reasoning other than something on the x-rays maybe?
It might be helpful to ask the farrier about his reasoning. Speculation is fun but, at the end of the day, just that.
G.
Yes, I’ll ask my coach/trainer tomorrow if she’s heard of the farrier using this method before (she’s the one who suggested strongly I use him for the corrective shoeing).
If not, I’ll ask him to elaborate as to whether the pushing off the hind/helping the stifles idea he mentioned is something he specifically thinks is right for the mare and to explain more about the borium use. Now that I see it’s not a super common thing.
What had your vet said about the horse having shoes with borium?
The vet said nothing about borium, just that corrective shoeing was needed in general. I will ask the vet about the borium.
Your farrier needs to consult with your vet before this becomes a mess with you in the middle. Farriers can of course review radiographs but it is illegal for them to interpret them.
As a lawyer, I wouldn’t use the word “illegal” per se - implies some law has been broken. If something bad happens, worst case scenario this would be professional negligence.
In any case, I’ll double-check with both farrier and vet - was really wondering if this was somehow a common practice but I hadn’t heard of it. Apparently not, which warrants further inquiry. :ambivalence:
Perhaps he’s using the borium to lift the heel? IIRC, some think that a little wedge can ease pressure on the stifles? But dunno why he’s use borium instead of a wedge shoe or a pad or a some other way to lift the heel 
Don’t think I’d want that extra grip without a reason though!
Yeah with borium be careful doing any tight turns (like turning around in an aisle or wash stall) on concrete/asphalt as their feet will stick rather than slide and put torque on their legs until they figure it out.
My understanding (back in my driving days) is that borium is hard on the horse’s legs/joints because of the extra “grab” effect. I would definitely check in w/ vet and fully understand what you are getting into. I used a bit of borium in the summer months when we drove on roads; Rest of the year horse worked and trail rode in her regular shoes.
As cutter said above and others it has a place and a use but weigh the pro’s and con’s.
I’m really curious about the suggestion regarding borium as well. After watching your mare’s video (lovely rider, btw!) she has a tendency to move with her hind end out behind, so perhaps that is something that your vet/farrier are trying to address. ?? However, I don’t understand how borium would help, correcting angles might, but I’d be very leery of trying to correct much on a mature horse.
If what the farrier does would be considered diagnosis of disease and prescription of therapy, rather than routine animal husbandry or consultation with a licensed veterinarian with a valid doctor-client-patient relationship, it would absolutely be illegal in all states I’m familiar with, as it would violate the Veterinary Practice Act. Unless the farrier happens to also be a licensed veterinarian, of course. Farrier work is one of those areas where the line between practice of medicine without a license and working within the normal scope of that field can be a little fuzzy, though.
I think it’d be hard to convincingly argue this is diagnosis of disease and prescription of therapy, but it’s academic. Hardly seems to rise to the occasion of what anyone would chase as a regulatory act violation. 
You can always try to sue for negligence if there’s damages for something like this.
I’ll investigate more and update when I speak more to the farrier/vet - I wanted to know if this was weird to anyone else and I have my answer.
(Re - the sales video - that’s the prior trainer, Jhesika Wells. Indeed a lovely rider).
By submitting your email, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. You may also receive promotional emails from The Chronicle of the Horse. You can opt out at any time.
For Customers
Company
Terms of Use
