Looks like pads on the front. And why are the shoes coming so far out past the heel?
(click on pictures to make them bigger)
http://www.wilsontrainingcenter.com/h-pepper-h/
http://www.iequine.com/horses-for-sale/arabian/scottsdale-showcase-arabian-gelding-h-pepper-h
video of movement http://www.hennesseyarabians.com/all-sale-horses/h-pepper-h
Any comments on overall movement?
I just do not get it. What am I missing?
I am not being snarky. I sincerely want to know.
TIA
The shoe should be back far enough to support the heel if you dropped a plum bob off the bulb of the heel.
Sometimes that is quite a bit further back than the contact surface of the hoof.
Here is a good photo example of a horse with a longer toe and pad shod with correct heel support
http://www3.telus.net/sherrisstable/Gallery/Shoes-edited.jpg
From certain angles, quite a bit of that pad will be visible.
Here is a photo showing a longer toe without heel support
http://canterne.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/hoofheelanglemismatch.png
“Should” is a word that only applies on a case-by-case basis in farriery, and with movement like that along with a “before case on a Viagra commercial” hackamore, who knows.
“Enhancing movement” would be a good guess, whatever that means to this particular person.
[QUOTE=aktill;8002311]
“Enhancing movement” would be a good guess, whatever that means to this particular person.[/QUOTE]
Likely the reason for more toe or overall length, but at least they’ve followed through with heel support.
Without knowing the horse’s history it’s impossible to give any sort of accurate answer. Odds are the shoeing has more to do with keeping that particular horse sound than anything else.
I groomed a half-Arab WP horse that wore a package that made the park horses look tame - bands and all - it was designed by one of the West coasts best lameness vets and a farrier working hand in hand to keep the old guy sound and comfortable. But yeah, I got more than a few snarky comments from passerby at shows about how it was clearly all there to enhance movement. :rolleyes: The extra weight gave him more knee, which is the exact opposite of what anyone sane wants in their western horses. He did well despite the shoeing package. No one puts pads on a western horse unless they have too.
As far as movement goes the horse is a perfect example of being behind the bit without any true collection. He looks like one heck of a bone jarring ride.
The horses’s movement has nothing to do with the shoeing which appears to be trying to support the heel. The poor thing has been trained into that movement.
In the 11 second of video I watched, she was constantly bumping him in the nose, I guess to shorten his stride further. He really looks like a good minded fellow.
I am seeing more & more WP horses in the Arabian ring with big thick pads. And long toes. Just wondering why. What is with this trend? 
Same horse no shoes http://www.addisliveonlineauctions.com/en/lots/149926 click the second video
Not at all trying to pick on this horse. He is just one you can see what I am asking about on.
[QUOTE=ThisTooShallPass;8002934]
I am seeing more & more WP horses in the Arabian ring with big thick pads. And long toes. Just wondering why. What is with this trend?
Same horse no shoes http://www.addisliveonlineauctions.com/en/lots/149926 click the second video
Not at all trying to pick on this horse. He is just one you can see what I am asking about on.[/QUOTE]
I saw it 12 years ago when I got my Arabian and started spectating at Arab breed shows so I don’t think it is necessarily a new thing. Lots of western horses… huntseat horses… halter horses. I never ended up showing at Arabian breed shows and haven’t been to spectate in a while.
Are they trying to create action without reach? Poor little horse. Stuffed into a bosal and bam bam bam on the chin.
[QUOTE=ThisTooShallPass;8002934]
I am seeing more & more WP horses in the Arabian ring with big thick pads. And long toes. Just wondering why. What is with this trend?
Same horse no shoes http://www.addisliveonlineauctions.com/en/lots/149926 click the second video
Not at all trying to pick on this horse. He is just one you can see what I am asking about on.[/QUOTE]
Huge difference in movement. Horse moves flat kneed without the shoes with good extension. He is under himself well with his hinds also. Seeing him moving loose he would be on my potential to buy list. Seeing him rode with pads would not take him off the list but the constant “behind the bit” with no collection sure would. Having retrained other horses taught to over flex like that it is very time consuming and frustrating.
Nice horse with a horrible training regime.
He is also slightly off in that right front as he comes out of the turn. He may have just stepped wrong but…
The people I know that show Arabian HUS put a weighted shoe package on to show because they say you want knee action. They do very well so clearly they know what they are talking about when it comes to what is winning.
Do not know what is wanted in western pleasure Arabian.
I assume having your hands in the air and way out to the side is not a negative to them as that is what is shown in those videos.
[QUOTE=trubandloki;8003139]
I assume having your hands in the air and way out to the side is not a negative to them as that is what is shown in those videos.[/QUOTE]
Yeah, what was up with that?
[QUOTE=trubandloki;8003139]
The people I know that show Arabian HUS put a weighted shoe package on to show because they say you want knee action. They do very well so clearly they know what they are talking about when it comes to what is winning.
Do not know what is wanted in western pleasure Arabian.
I assume having your hands in the air and way out to the side is not a negative to them as that is what is shown in those videos.[/QUOTE]
HP isn’t WP. Halter, CEP, etc, also not WP. WP horses should not have high action.
The way of handling the reins is a style choice and has been for over a decade now. Sort of, ‘look how light my horse is! I can ride him with just my fingertips and this big ol’ drape’. I am seeing less and less exaggeration at shows, so that’s good.
There is, IMHO, a lot that is problematic with Arab WP but being shod for high action isn’t on that list.
I read an article way back about the QH trainer that “started” the whole wide spread hand fad. He did give the exact reason why he rode that horse wide handed, but for the life of me I cannot recall what he said. Do not recall his name either. It was just an odd one off thing with that young bosal horse he was showing. Horse won the class. And thus a new style of copycat riding was born for all the wrong reasons.
Tried to watch this horse show this morning, but the Equidome link refused to load.
Bummer. I would like to have known if he is sound or not. Can the results be looked up?
The results will be on iEquine likely tomorrow.
As far as why the “shoes” on western horses? Some horses do require inventive shoeing to keep sound. When used for movement in a western horse, you don’t want so much knee as a little more “roll” in the stride. You see it much more in the HA’s than the PB’s, where you have a lot of QH crosses who just don’t have the same level of roll.
With the Arabian western horses I’ve ridden, the best naturally have that roll, and the movement is enhanced through correct training, and getting the horse to work off their hind end in TRUE collection, rather than a faked version. Sadly, like in EVERY breed/discipline on the planet, some trainers sacrifice correctness for expediency. I usually do a lot of leg yielding, shoulder in, haunches in, spirals, etc to build the strength and carrying ability of the hindquarters on the horses I ride (and my trainer is all for it!).
I will say that a correctly trained Arabian western horse is incredibly comfortable, and a true joy to ride. One of my favorites LOOKS bouncier, but he’s incredibly smooth and comfortable, because he really works off the hind.
Oh, and for more knee on the hunters? That’s slowly falling out of favor. The winning hunters now are looking for more length of stride than knee, and it’s showing at Scottsdale this year. You still want some knee, but not the extremes we saw a few years ago.
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
