Sole Callus - Preserve the sole callus! It is an adaptive sole structure that is necessary to support and protect the border of PIII, and the circumflex artery and vein.
Aluminum Natural Balance® Shoe
~ Suggested Hoof Preparation and Shoe Placement Guidelines for the Aluminum NBS ~
The following suggestions and guidelines, working together with the Natural Balance® Shoe, have been found to “Service the Needs of the Equine Foot” very well. The application procedure and shoe design* combination have been beneficially used to maintain soundness and allow horses to move freely and more comfortably throughout the shoeing regime.
We suggest that the foot be prepared so that the trimmed heel terminates close to the back of the frog. (Fig. 1-A & 2-A) This generally requires removing the heel so that the hoof wall is about 1/16” to 1/8” from the live, exfoliated sole at the heel. (Fig. 1-B & 2-B) The wall at the toe is trimmed equal in height to the sole callus. (Fig. 1-C & 2-C)
The distance from the frog apex to the inside border of the shoe (Fig. 3-A) should be:
Shoe Size ‘00’ = 0” - 1/4”
Shoe Size ‘0’ = 1/8” - 1/4”
Shoe Size ‘1’ = 1/4” - 3/8”
Shoe Size ‘2’ = 1/4” - 1/2”
Shoe Size ‘3’ = 3/8” - 1/2”
Shoe Size ‘4’ = 3/8” - 5/8”
All shoes should extend to the end of the frog, which usually means that some shoes will extend beyond the buttress of the heel. (Fig. 3-B)
When finishing the foot, only remove the flares that are obvious from the mid portion of the hoof wall down. (Fig. 4-A) Undercut the remaining hoof left over the shoe. (Fig. 4-B) This will give you the appearance of the Naturally worn bare foot.
Copyright ® 1996 - All Rights Reserved Equine Digit Support System, Inc.
*These horseshoes have been patented by Gene Ovnicek in U.S. Patent No. 5,727,633 and by David M. Duckett in U.S. Patent Nos. 5,165,481 and 5,368,104.