--- Kaaren Jordan <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Skye: With wide swings in alternating wet/dry. The GC's kept loosening up in the nail holes which we never had problems with in the St. Croix Lite's etc.
Kaaren Ok. Sounds like he did a nice job. We have been using these for the past couple of years on many horses in I would say a much more challenging environment than where you are right now with your horses. With trial and error these are the things we have found that work with these shoes....we have been dedicated to these as we really wanted our horses barefoot, so this was the next best alternative.. 1. You can put a very thin rolled amount of a 2 part epoxy under the shoe where the hoof is...you can find this at any hardware store, they come in little tubes (tubes are about 4 " long) for about $5 bucks a tube. They have some for wood, metal, poly etc....we purchase all the colors and use them on the hoof that matches as they all work all the same. 2. The farrier must Deep seat the nail in the channel. Sally does this by either using a nail set tool, or now she is able to turn her hammer sideways and hit the nail deep into the shoe, it must seat all the way down. 3. When the farrier cuts the nail after driven , you must leave slightly more nail than with a metal shoe...this is imperative in our opinion as it works to keep the shoe from wiggling. 2-3 mm in length. 4. The farrier should put a small groove directly and under the nails before clinching...this can be done with the side of the rasp...this helps the clinch seat tighter. A lot of farrier do this already, some do not, but it really helps a lot with the polys. You also make a small groove in the nail while doing this, it helps the nail lay flat against the hoof. 5. The clinch must be clinched straight down and tight. Sally uses the GE Easy Clincher...the cadillac of farrier clinchers. I think if that clincher was not on the market she would not be a farrier. It is a curved jaw clincher and really sets the clinch. 6. After clinching, then slightly flatten the top of the clinch with light rasping with the metal side of the rasp. This helps in some way that we have not figured out yet. 7. We fill each nail hole with hoof putty to keep moisture from coming into the white line. We actually do this for all of our horses, poly or steel. It helps address the white line exposed to air and wet issue and our horses in our business have healthier feet because of it. Now we these extra measures we have successfully used Ground Controls in the humid rain forest, in the dry desert, in the wet and cold mountains....in our immediate area where we have 70 inches of rain a year we use them or eponas and we go from wet to dry all year round... When it is wet we use the sole pack from Epona underneath to keep out the moisture so that thrush does not develop.... Any other questions Kaaren, always feel free to write or you can call us directly, Sally is always eager to share information. Skye Fire Island Eco-Treks-808-443-6085 Fire Island Professional Farrier Service-640-6080
