| |
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| contra
plastic |
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| To
prevent most of these problems please read "Tips
& Tricks for working with plastics" |
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|
| When
using plastic hoof shoes for the first time |
-
When
changing to plastics, after wearing steel shoes
without barefoot periods, the horse might be uncomfortable
for the first few days. Steel shoes artificially
keep the hoof capsule together, with the flexibility
of the plastic shoe the hoof capsule is allowed
to work and stretch out as nature intended. This
may lead to cracks in the carrying wall if the hoof
is not properly rounded and shortened by an experienced
farrier.
-
Some
horses might be used to "ice-skating",
meaning they slide on tar or asphalt to distribute
the recoil of the steel shoes over a longer distance.
The plastic shoe does not allow the horse to slide,
neither does the barehoof. Some horses need a few
days to get used to the new (natural) way of walking
and while trying to slide, wear off the first pair
of plastic shoes faster.
|
| Durability |
-
The
durability of plastics is rather measured in distance
than in time. Polyurethane shoes, EquiTracks tested
in Namibia and South Africa over recent years, made
on average more then 200 km.
-
Plastics
do not conceal bad hoof conditions like
unbalanced feet, unequal load bearing or weak hoof
walls but make you work on the causes of those problems
instead. Consequently, wear and tear of the shoe
depend very much on the shape and the condition
of the hooves, the horse's specific motion, its
weight and physique, the demand of work as well
as the plastic composition of the specific product
itself.
-
The
horse will produce a rolled toe
into the plastic shoe in relative short time. Usually
plastics look terrible used after the first ride
and make you wonder if they will last another day.
But as it is with good hiking boots or sport shoes
they need a “wear in” to become really
comfortable.
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| Restrictions |
- Plastics
are not a wonder cure! They are limited applicable
for problematical hooves, as for instance hooves with
weak, porous and thin wall etc., shoes can twist and
nails come loose.
- You
will not see or feel miraculous results instantaneously
when changing to plastics and for all its advantages,
plastic shoes should not be seen as the ultimate answer
to every hoof problem.
- Please
ask your farrier for advise!!
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| Cleaning
|
- Due
to the bar/bridge little stones might get stuck and
the cleaning of the hoof can be more time consuming.
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