Resetting shoes with worn toes

[horsdoeuvres]

Looking for some opinions. I’m new to the area and don’t know the farriers here well. My horse is done every 5 weeks and the farrier has reset his heartbars twice. I was surprised the first time, but very surprised the second time. This is a jumper with corrective shoeing for underslung heels/Palmer angles, though he is sound and going well. His shoes show wear on the toes after one cycle.

Since we can look at his angles, and the wear on his shoes, and conclude he lands a bit toe-first, I’m concerned what effect having these shoes with worn toes reset again may have. Thoughts?

Also - is it normal to charge the same rate for reset shoes vs. new shoes?

[fivestrideline]

@horsdoeuvres

is it normal to charge the same rate for reset shoes vs. new shoes?

Yes. They’re not taking you to town on the new shoes, I’ll assure you on that. It balances out.

That said, two resets has never happened to me even on regular steels.

[DiamondJubilee]

I’m not a farrier or a pro with shoeing at all, nor do I have a horse with underslung heels, but my ponies do wear steel shoes (one in front aluminums right now). I usually get a season (about 5 months) out of a set of steel shoes. I too came from the hunter/jumper world where my old farrier always used new shoes, steel or aluminum, didn’t matter, they used new shoes each time.

I moved and had a new farrier and he reused steel shoes and I would get about 5 months out of a steel set, but they are not a special shoe and my guys don’t have any unusual wear on them. I do have a young one that wear a corrective shoe for a club foot, and the original specialty shoe lasted about 6 weeks, then the toe started to crack so a new shoe was made for him of course.

My farrier has one set price for trim/shoeing. It doesn’t matter if I need new shoes or not, its a set price. Its actually really nice for me as I have one pony in aluminums so he gets new shoes much more often. Usually every reset he gets a new set as they don’t last like the steels of course, but I don’t pay for new shoes each time as its already in his price (I’m in Ontario and it costs me $150 for fronts/trim each time as an idea - steels or aluminum. Or $50 for just a trim all the way around as I have a few barefoot as well).

[JB]

1 reset is often typical.

2 is pretty unusual, but you really need to know how thin the toe material really is. If it’s so thin it’s likely going to break mid-way into that cycle then no, don’t use those shoes again. If it’s worn, but still plenty of metal, why not? As long as the trim is correct, and the shoe placement is correct, that bit of extra breakover at the toe may actually be beneficial, especially if you’re working with an NPA situation.

As for the cost of a reset vs new - probably 99% of farriers charge the same. The cost difference of the shoe isn’t that much, and by keeping the cost the same, you’re more likely to get a farrier willing to come out on a Friday night to reset a ripped off shoe. In other words, it helps cover his costs of extras that never/rarely get charged for

[Scribbler]

The last time I had a shod horse I was in my teens and yeehawed all over our area up many rocky trails and on asphalt. Except maybe in winter, my mare would be through the toes of her front shoes after 5 or 6 weeks. At least it kept us on a regular trim cycle! Those shoes would often twist and fall apart as the farrier removed them.

[trubandloki]

@horsdoeuvres

Also - is it normal to charge the same rate for reset shoes vs. new shoes?

It certainly is not abnormal to do it this way.

Some farriers charge a different price for a reset than they do for new shoes. Some farriers charge the same price.

My farrier used to say that he charged the same price no matter what because he did not feel like having to fight with the owner who wanted to save a few bucks and reset a pair of shoes that were too worn to be reset.

I also do not find resetting the same shoes twice to be weird, depending on the amount of wear.

[Rel6]

I would ask your farrier, but come at it from a way where you’re trying to learn/understand and not necessarily assuming its an issue. I would front it with saying that you like how the horse is going but noticed he was reset twice and the toe had a bit of wear, and you were wondering if that has any impact on his angles. Some farriers are certainly pricklier than others, but generally I’ve found most to be happy to explain why they’ve made a choice when the question isn’t accusatory or implying the choice was wrong.

And to your last question, my farrier charges the same for resets vs. new shoes. If he’s resetting a horse who has caulk holes, it does end up slightly cheaper because he doesn’t have to drill and tap new holes.

[candyappy]

I pay the same amount wether they get resets or new shoes. In the past some farriers i’ve used would take $5 off for resets.

My older mare gets multiple resets but she is just walking around in the pasture and even the walking is slow so she has no wear.

[joiedevie99]

Just ask! My farrier rarely resets twice, but I can see scenarios where you could. Maybe he thinks the wear pattern on the shoe is helpful to the horse, and there is still plenty of metal left.

Both of my farriers charge the same price for new v reset. However, the one that charges separately for add-ons bills for those things only when he uses new (i.e. borium, studs, pads, etc.).

[cnd8]

@horsdoeuvres

Also - is it normal to charge the same rate for reset shoes vs. new shoes?

Mine charges the same for resets. He will also reset a shoe once (he has never reset the same shoes twice) even though the shoe has some toe wear. He’s the most in-demand and respected performance horse farrier in the area and he turns down many clients. So I go with it. It never has caused any issues.

[beowulf]

Agree with others that this is not an entirely unusual practice, and not to expect a discount. Also agree that it’s worth asking your farrier – in a non-accusatory way.

If a horse isn’t wearing a shoe enough to toss it, I don’t see the problem in resetting. If anything, this upcycling reduces waste which I am all for, I have often wondered how wasteful the shoeing industry is. What happens to all those worn shoes? Horses go through so many.

I could see a stalled horse not wearing his shoes too much and I could see in certain circumstances, resetting a second time. I’ve never had one get reset twice (reset once does happen a few times a year), but my horses are out 24/7 and on rocky substrate. Some cycles my shod horse wears the plates thin enough that it’s a study in steel’s resiliency as it hasn’t snapped – other cycles he gets reset. It really depends on the season. I notice he’s more likely to get reset in the winter, probably because snow blankets the rough ground.

Consider keeping the shoes after they’re pulled for a few cycles. I started doing this, and it really is fascinating how they wear down the shoes. That wear tells a story if you are curious enough to look into it. I noticed consistent wear on the RH; I was worried it came from an old injury. Vet came out for a baseline soundness exam and didn’t see anything, but he thought it was funny I trotted out 4 months worth of shoes for him to look over. I figured it out one morning by pure chance. It’s because my gelding’s favorite spot in the pasture is where it first gets sunny in the morning. He will stand there snoozing, always facing the sun, occasionally kicking because of flies. It just so happens his favorite spot has a strip of exposed ledge that his RH strikes when he kicks at flies.

[sascha]

@beowulf

this is not an entirely unusual practice, and not to expect a discount.

I don’t see it as a discount, but as paying for product/services as received.

I’ve always paid a little less for a reset. Pounding existing shoes back to 100% and purchasing and fully shaping shoes (or building from scratch) are totally different. So, I get charged for shoes when they are new. I’ve had several farriers over many years and that’s the way all of them have structured their invoicing.

However, if a farrier wants to make billing easier, I can totally see spreading out the cost/time of new shoes by charging the same price across the board. Especially in large busy barns this makes sense - 8 in 4 all round, 2 barefoot, 3 fronts only billing is easier than 8 in 4 all round but 2 of those only needed fronts new, 1 needed all four new and 5 got reset, 2 barefoot, 3 of the fronts needed 2 new and 1 of the fronts was a reset.

@horsdoeuvres - one to two resets is totally normal (for many horses) depending on wear pattern and wear thickness of shoe remaining which are affected by footing surfaces, type of shoe, and how much the horse is working. As long as the horse is moving well and comfortable, I wouldn’t worry about wear at the toe - some of us purposely request the forward toe of the shoe get ground down on an angle to assist in a smooth breakover - the shoe version of a ‘mustang roll’ if you will

[fivestrideline]

@beowulf

I figured it out one morning by pure chance. It’s because my gelding’s favorite spot in the pasture is where it first gets sunny in the morning. He will stand there snoozing, always facing the sun, occasionally kicking because of flies. It just so happens his favorite spot has a strip of exposed ledge that his RH strikes when he kicks at flies.

They say horse people are crazy. I think it’s the horses themselves driving us all insane!

[Janet]

I usually get 3 or 4 resets per shoe.
Farrier charges the same whether he resets or makes new shoes.