# Hoof Boots for minis/shetlands?



## brasstackminis (Nov 4, 2011)

So... since I have been driving my gelding 3-5 times a week and each outing is about 5-8 miles, I have noticed that he is wearing his hooves quite a bit. So I am wondering if I should worry about it or just go on and not worry. He is not lame or off or anything, but I am concerned that may change if we keep working like we are. There is no real place to drive except the roads so I am not really wanting to put nail on shoes on...too slippery... but he wears about a 00 so that limits what is availible for him a bit. Any suggestions? I live in an area that is like beach sand and in this drought, it is too deep to spend much time in the sand. So on the roads we go, which is fine, so far. I am not super worried about road founder...already discussed this with the vet. It is just the actual wear on his hooves. I am also not wanting something that has too much traction. I worry that it will cause stress on his tendons and ligaments if his natural movement is altered too much. Many of the boots look super bulky for a small animal. What to do....






I am looking at the Easy Boot lines...so many choices there, or Renegades...or hoofwings?

Sooooooo I am poleing the populus to see what everyone else thinks. Suggestions? Comments, concerns?

Thanks, Karen


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## Minimor (Nov 5, 2011)

Hoofwings. They seem to be the lightest, least bulky of the good boots and are the only ones I will spend money on now.

Some people have Easy boots and are happy with them, but I had a set for one of my Morgans and hated the things. I found them to be bulky and clumsy.


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## MiLo Minis (Nov 5, 2011)

The only time I worry about putting boots or shoes on is if the terrain is rough and sharp and going to slice his feet. Working him on asphalt shouldn't cause him a problem if it hasn't been so far and his feet are in good condition. From the sound of it his feet are good, as most Minis/ponies are if they have had proper hoof care. I find boots and shoes quite often cause more trouble than they prevent.


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## sassy1 (Nov 14, 2011)

Hi Karen,

My friend (named Karen too) has a Shetland Pony stallion (native one). He is shown in harness and as our first - and one of our Major Shows - is in very early Spring, she has trouble working him. All her roads are quite stony so she either has to put shoes on him or be very limited as to how much driving she can do. She can long rein or lunge him without shoes on which helps get him a little bit fit, but he really needs to go out and down the road to condition him enough.

Last year we bought a set of 4 Easy Boots from the States for him! Sooooo much better. I don't have any photos of him in harness with them on but I have two photos of him being long reined in them. Silve is 37" and takes a 000 metal horse shoes with the heels cut off. He is shod for the actual Shows, with only 4 nails in each shoe and our farrier imports the smallest nails that he can source to use for this.

These Easy Boots were the smallest ones we could find, and he needed the Mini sized ones. We got them from Ozark (minitack.com) but they are out of stock at the present time.


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## disneyhorse (Nov 14, 2011)

Silve is sooooo adorable! I love him!


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## DrivinTime (Nov 15, 2011)

I bought some leather sneakers from Ozark Mtn (http://www.minitack.com/sabre.htm) for my guy. They are easy to put on and stay on well. Only problem with the ones I got are they're a bit too roomy and when he really trots on his hind feet grab the back of the boots (I only use them in the front). They are well-made and don't seem to rub, and he doesn't mind wearing them. I did have to replace the leather laces with nylon running-shoe laces. I think they're worth the money, especially if you'll be using them a lot.

...I wish I was out driving 3-5 times a week...sigh...


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## brasstackminis (Nov 18, 2011)

I decided to get metal shoes and had borium welded to the heels for grip. I was afraid of the possible rubs from boots and them coming off during a drive or something. They worked great when he took off the other day on the road!



Thanks for all the input!


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## Sue_C. (Nov 19, 2011)

brasstackminis said:


> I decided to get metal shoes and had borium welded to the heels for grip. I was afraid of the possible rubs from boots and them coming off during a drive or something. They worked great when he took off the other day on the road!
> 
> 
> 
> Thanks for all the input!


Where do you get the teeny nails???


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## brasstackminis (Nov 22, 2011)

Sue_C. said:


> Where do you get the teeny nails???



The ferrier got a special box of shorter nails. And the borium apparently comes is all different sizes too and it is hard to tell from the "stick" that you weld it onto the shoes with. I got the pleasure of helping the shoer weld the borium on. We did a good job...if I do say so myself!


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## Sue_C. (Nov 22, 2011)

brasstackminis said:


> The ferrier got a special box of shorter nails. And the borium apparently comes is all different sizes too and it is hard to tell from the "stick" that you weld it onto the shoes with. I got the pleasure of helping the shoer weld the borium on. We did a good job...if I do say so myself!


Would you mind doing me the favour of finding out the name and number of those nails??


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