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Hoofcare & Lameness
BAREFOOT, ITALIAN STYLE: BOSANNA BOOTS
Boots such as the Bosanna may be helpful for farriers and veterinarians to recommend to horseowners who want their horses to be barefoot. Having boots like these or American "Easy Boots" on hand give the horse protection for unexpected hacks on the highway. Evaluating hoof balance is always subjective. Belgium's Isabel Coudron uses radiography to measure symmetrical joint pressure in the horse, which she feels is the proper criterion for determining if a foot is balanced or not. Ideally, feet would have 90-degree angles. She recommended the use of the "Equi+" shoe (shown) which disregards foot shape and works from the center of the coffin joint.
BAREFOOT IN BOOTS:GERMAN ELEGANCE
NEW PRODUCTS COMBINE FOR HIGH TECH SYNERGY While the French farriers painstakingly demonstrated how to create the flat-foot shoeing solution described by Dr. Denoix by starting with raw materials, a similar route to the same end was demonstrated by Dieter Krohnert, farrier for the German dressage team, with the help of well-known British farrier Billy Crothers.
Differences between the two techniques would be the desire or need to use one material, leather or plastic, instead of the other, and the amount of time available to cut the leather pad, score it for the frog, etc. The ready-to-go Luwex pad gives the advantage of allowing air to circulate to the bottom of the foot. Dieter also covered the entire frog with the mesh pad, while the French farriers left the frog exposed, cutting away the leather over the frog. Please note when evaluating the photos that a demonstration horse was used, and that it did not have the flat foot for which the technique is designed. Hence, the dome shape of the impression material indicates the concavity of the demo horse's sole. Luwex reports that its full pad is a popular choice for use with all types of impression materials and with Vettec's "Hoof Pak" set-up sole support material. Luwex's "Air Ride" material is new to the market in 1999 and is designed to be 75% lighter than traditional dental impression material in the foot. To learn more, visit http://www.luwex.de (in German) or www.horse10.com (in English). ATTENTION Readers: Please mention Hoofcare & Lameness as your information source. Manufacturers/entrepreneurs/inventors: Send products, literature and instructions to Hoofcare’s New Market, 19 Harbor Loop POBox 6600, Gloucester MA 01930 USA. © 1997-99 Hoofcare & Lameness |
Hoofcare & Lameness searched high and low, in the USA
and abroad, to find new products of interest in the treatment and prevention of hoof and
leg problems in horses.
Milan, Italy--Part boot, part shoe, this clog-like strap-on overshoe from Italy is news to US consumers. The Bosanna resembles the ski boots of long ago but has the advantage of keeping heel bulbs free of friction. They stay on remarkably well, thanks to a little fish-hook tool that locks the boot into the extended heels of a shoe. Difficult to explain, but nonetheless a valuable recovery boot and shoe replacement for appropriate horses.
Italian
Stallion Boots (literal translation) protect mare during breeding (left)
and are made of thick felt with a leather pad base and adjustable collar.
No manufacturer info available.
Toe
and quarter crack repair (right) simplified with an adjustible clamp that
tightens with a tiny allen wrench, For more information, visit 
Fashion
or function? European show jumpers seemed keen to distance themselves from
the floppy, sloppy look of thick, strappy jumping and bell boots. The
"new look" in the show ring is a giant rubber band of black
rubber (could be neoprene) that pulls on over the hoof and snaps into
place over the heel bulbs, protecting them from messy landings and the
ubiquitous (and huge) studs used on these horses. The bands won't protect
the coronet or a long-heeled shoe (notice the closely fit but unstudded
egg bars at top right) but they tidy up the turnout. Like most fashionable
footwear, the bands are made in Italy and they come in different sizes,
obviously; the chestnut at left is a Connemara pony from Ireland; the dark
bay at top right is a very large German warmblood. Prediction: American
dressage riders will love this new look, which may be borrowed from the
Standardbred shedrow or reining barn.
The
Cadillac--or perhaps Mercedes Benz--of removeable shoes is the new Marquis
boot from Germany. The patented air chamber is inflated with a
bicycle-type pump; the soles and calks are interchangeable and the buckles
replaceable. They come in five sizes and a dazzling array of day-glo
reflective colors or conservative black. Marquis used a simulated motion
machine at Equitana in Germany to show the boot's breakover and fit under
load.
Krohnert
achieved a similar result using a machine-made shoe manufactured in a
"close to handmade" production (turned steel, pitched nail
holes) process by Billy in the UK. He pounded out the heels to the
characteristic "onion" shape, then fitted it to the foot, adding
a full "Luwex" pad with mesh ground surface, and Luwex's new
"Air Ride" light-weight impression material.