Had to cut a shoe off mid-ride after a trailer mishap taught me a lesson

I was out at a client's farm in rural Ohio last Tuesday, trimming a four-year-old gelding I've worked with for about a year. The horse was fine until I went to nail the front shoe and felt the hoof wall crumble right under my hammer. I panicked for a second because I've always prided myself on reading hoof quality from the start. Turned out the owner had been soaking the hooves in a too-wet paddock for a week, and I missed the softening during my initial look. I had to pull that shoe, rasp the whole foot down three sizes, and reset with a lighter nail pattern just to get the horse sound enough to walk. It added 45 minutes to the job and cost me $15 in wasted materials. Has anyone else dealt with sudden hoof wall issues from wet ground and found a way to spot it faster?

2 comments

2 Comments

hill.david5h ago

I had the same thing happen with a client's mare after three days of steady rain. Now I always check the sole and frog for sponginess before I even pick up a rasp. Saves a lot of headache.

dianagreen3h ago

Wait, you've had soles just straight up fall apart from rain? That's wild, I've never seen it that bad.