Hoof Care Clinic: El Dorado Hills Ca.

Hoof Care Clinic: El Dorado Hills Ca.

This past August 9th, HOOF-it Technologies hosted a hoof care clinic at The Grace Foundation of Northern California in El dorado Hills Ca. The Grace Foundation is an equine rescue and rehabilitation facility for abused and neglected horses. After the rescued horses are rehabbed back into shape they are placed up for adoption. The Grace Foundation accomplishes great things in their work and greatly appreciate any donations.

The clinic was well attended with 28 people participating. The topics covered included daily hoof maintenance, emergency shoe removal, and basic hoof anatomy. The clinic lasted three hours with two hours being devoted to hands on training with "Alfred" the bio-mechanical horse. Clinic attendees were encouraged to practice various techniques on "Alfred" while being instructed by certified farrier Steve Samet. Steve is also the head of research and development for HOOF-it Technologies.

After the "hands on" portion of the clinic, Steve conducted a question and answer period. Questions included "How do I get rid of thrush?" and "How can I tell if a hoof is properly Balanced?" Steve gave insightful answers based on his forty years of experience as a farrier.


The next HOOF-it Hoof Care Clinic will be on Wednesday, August 27th at Foothill Feed and Trailer Sales in Reno, NV. We hope that you will be able to join us! Sign up at http://www.hoofcareclinics.com.

July 17th HOOF-it Hoof Care Clinic - Minden, NV

On Thursday July 17th HOOF-it Technologies presented a hoof care clinic in Minden Nevada at the ranch of Master Farrier Steve Samet. The clinic, which was facilitated by Kristi Jackson, focused on the importance of proper hoof trimming and proper hoof maintenance. Steve gave a lecture on common hoof ailments such as quarter crack, missing hoof wall, and pulling a loose shoe. He also discussed the importance of having good communication with both your farrier and veterinarian in regard to hoof issues.

Steve demonstrated various hoof care techniques on “Alfred” the bio-mechanical horse. “Alfred” is a life sized horse mannequin with moveable legs which replicate the legs and hooves of an actual horse. The students at the clinic were allowed to practice on “Alfred” throughout the evening to better understand the techniques of hoof maintenance being discussed. In fact, students were given lots of hands on instruction with “Alfred”

Steve spent a lot of time explaining the importance of having the hoof be balanced back into “mechanical harmony”, his term for having perfect alignment of the hoof with the bony column. Steve feels that this is the single most important aspect of correct trimming, and for the prevention of lameness.

Steve discussed the pros and cons of having a horse go barefoot as opposed to being shod, a hot topic these days. He also spoke about the relative benefits of composite shoes versus steel shoes, and how to repair cracks in the hoof with acrylic compounds.

Those attending learned how to properly pull a shoe and how to acclimate a horse to the use of a hoof stand. Once acclimated to the hoof stand, a horse is much easier to work with when compared to having to hold the hoof up with one hand and do work with the other. The HOOF-it Hoof Stand is an excellent piece of gear to have in your barn for this purpose.

The next HOOF-it clinic will be held in Eldorado Hills, CA, at the Grace Foundation of Northern California. The Grace Foundation is known for their work in rescuing horses. We hope that you can join us at this clinic.

Reported By: Gene Daniels