I still think aluminum shoes beat steel for most trail horses

After 8 years of shoeing trail horses in the Poconos, I've had way fewer stone bruise issues with aluminum than steel. Anyone else find steel just transfers the impact instead of absorbing it?

3 comments

3 Comments

sarahhart3mo ago

Oh man, my buddy had a similar nightmare with steel on a rocky stretch in the Catskills. His mare kept getting those impact bruises so bad she ended up with a hoof abscess that took three months to clear up. He switched to aluminum and that horse never had a foot issue again, just had to watch the wear on gravel roads.

henderson.kim1mo ago

My first year shoeing I got a hot nail just like @the_gavin did and felt like a total hack, but @sarahhart pretty much nailed why aluminum beats steel for trails.

the_gavin3mo ago

Real talk, that impact transfer is the worst on packed trails or rocky sections. Had a client's mare come up lame twice on steel before we switched to aluminum and she went another two seasons without a single stone bruise. The key is making sure you're not running them too thin though - I learned that the hard way with a gelding that got a hot nail because I got cheap on the reset. Also, aluminum wraps way better on those odd-shaped feet you see in trail horses, less chance of a loose shoe halfway up a mountain.

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