This message is from: "Gail Russell" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Hi Gail! In my experience, if the boot moves at all on the foot, it is too big (lost one that way, all that was left was the bootless gaitor on Lisa's foot).
Thank you so much for the response. I am beginning to realize that you are right that the boot needs to stay on without the buckle....but there is the "lazy factor" that leads me to put on boots that are a bit big as it is sometimes so hard to get them over the foot otherwise. I agree that combinations of pads definitely help to get the exact fit. Also, as the horse's foot grows between trims, the size that is easy to get on changes. This is particularly so if the horse's foot has a flare at the side that gets bigger as the foot grows out. I am curious as to why your "up" buckles failed. Were they closed on the top "rung," and still came open? As to your problems with broken cables, it does appear to me that the "up" buckle design puts much less crimp in the cables, and that the cables are likely to last longer. In surfing the net today, I found an endurance rider who was worried about gravel getting in the boot. She simply put a pad on the foot, and then wrapped foot and fetlock in vet wrap, and then put the boot on. That way the foot is padded and protected from any gravel that gets in the boot. Sort of like wearing ShoePacs, or slipper socks under your shoes. Not something I want to do unless needed, but I can see how it would be a slick solution for a long ride, or for a horse that had laminitis. Gail The FjordHorse List archives can be found at: http://tinyurl.com/rcepw
