Please share your recommendations for a hoof boot that is suitable for turnout and MUST stay on while keeping the hoof dry and sand free. I have 2 horses that need to be " booted " due to severe thrush and hoof wall seperation from all the rain we’ve had in Florida. I’m going broke buying Vet wrap and duct tape! Alos, anyone have experience with Equilox Hoof Adhesive? Please share. Thanks
I have a horse with really crappy feet. His latest escapade involved losing a shoe and lots of crappy hoof wall along with it. This happened on a club foot, so regrowth is slow and the horse is sore. I tried Easyboot NewMacs on him, which made him feel much better and they kept his feet relatively dry on nighttime turnout. However, he tore one up within 10 days - of course the one on his club foot. Since I needed something right away I bought a set of Cavallo Sport boots. So far, so good.
I tried the Cavallo boots because they got lots of good reviews when I checked this forum. I was skeptical, because they seem kind of clunky and old school. However, I like them so much I’ve since bought a pair for my other horse for riding on rocky surfaces. They are reasonably priced and super easy to put on and take off. The Easyboots were much more of a production to put on and off - not terrible but not nearly as simple and easy as the Cavallos.
Apparently with the Cavallos the simple boot is for round shaped hooves and the Sport boot is for more oval hooves. I did also put the Cavallo gel pads in my boots. Hope this helps.
Boots, well good boots have drainage holes so that the horse isn’t sloshing around in their boots after going through water. Sand can get in that way as well as through the top.
However, you can wrap or diaper the hoof before putting the boot on which will keep much of the sand out as well as wick moisture away. The diaper will also provide a little protection from boot rubs. You can also put some treatment on the foot before booting.
I have used Cavallo Simple boots and Cavallo Trek boots for turnout. I have used Boa boots as well, but I don’t think they are available any more. Be aware that the manufacturers stress that their hoof boots are not intended for turnout. That’s to put the responsibility on you should you chose to use the boots for turnout. Also be aware that hoof boots hold heat, and horses do sweat through their soles. Too much heat on a hoof is not a good thing.
The only way you have a chance of the boot staying on is to find a boot that fits your horse. Ones that don’t quite fit do come off.
BIG THANKS FOR THIS INFO! Google search on this topic was overwhelming and reviews were even worse as some people loved one type and others couldn’t say enough negative things. Interesting that the Cavallo’s offer different shapes to accomodate the hooves. Good idea Cavallo! Thanks again
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RedHorses - Thanks yes for stressing the importance of a good fit and I did wonder about the heat build up especially since I live in hot humid Florida.
I really like the Easyboot Clouds. I pull their pad out and replace it with a pad I make from HappyHoof pad material because my horse does not need a wedge pad. From my experience, it is a good idea to get the boots off and and the horse in dry footing for at least several hours a day and to put a sole toughener on during those times because hot, humid, wet grass is going to lead to some degree of sogginess inside the boots. I also found that my horse’s feet did way worse on sand footing VS hard clay footing. He was turned out on a pasture with a nice soft surface which allowed excellent sole development but his walls went to crap. All except one hoof is almost back to normal now that he is back on the hard surface.
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I just returned a pair of Easyboot Clouds. I had a pair of Easyboot Rx’s that completely fell apart (bottom dropped out of one of them) so decided to go with the Clouds. By the measurement chart the same size should have fit in either model. The Clouds were positively tiny. Cost me $16 to send them back to ValleyVet.
Interesting about the sizing glitch. I find the clouds fit much better on my giant footed horse than the RX. I had Soft Rides for him for trailering but they just seemed too big and awkward for him. The clouds seem much more streamlined. I totally agree about the RX’s - my other horse destroyed a pair pretty quickly.
My horses have destroyed RX’s too – found horses wearing brand new ones around their ankles because the bottoms had separated from the upper part – horse then stepped right through – boots held on by velcro tabs.
But I did find a trick to make the RX’s last and not fall apart. The trick is to use a SoftRide PAD in them.
Since the RX material is prone to break through/come apart in the toe area first (then rip the rest of the way around) the molded toe cups on the Soft Ride pads prevents this. Acts as a barrier.
Luckily I had kept all the pads from my wrecked SoftRides and found one that fit in the only RX I had left – an emergency jerry rig that turned out to be a great combo! Now my newly purchased RX’s aren’t ripping apart.
Best to go one size up with the RX in order for it to accommodate the thick SoftRide pad.
Now if I could just find a way to expertly carve off the frog wedge on the Soft Rdes (for horses who don’t need the lift) I’d be really happy! You’d think that this far into the ‘boot’ game SoftRide would be offering a non-wedge pad and/or Easy Care would be making a pad with a molded toe cup!
Which ever boot you choose, you might want to sprinkle a copius amount of medicated powder (Gold Bond for example) in the bottom of the boots. Helps A LOT to keep feet from getting funky.
My horses have also destroyed a number of EasyBoot Rxs. I have mentioned that on this forum several times and have been “poopooed” by many, so I have to say, I’m glad to see more folks have experienced their design flaws.
When my horse had an open coffin bone fracture and it was imperative her foot stayed 100% clean and dry, I used Soft Rides. BUT, I still bandaged the hoof, because no boot is completely impermeable to debris. The Soft Ride/bandage combo worked surprisingly well. Hooves do “sweat,” so you need to keep that in mind if your goal is to keep the foot dry. A boot alone can build up condensation.
I used Equilox slow setting adhesive when she graduated beyond the bandage/boot/shoe and we began casting her hoof in transition. Which product do you want to know about?
I’m curious about the Equilox Hoof Support Impression Material. Once ‘cured’, does it stay softish and cushion-like? If so, I wonder if you can use it to make re-useable boot pads that are individual to each horse.
