How to: Trim Hooves

An important part of caring for a horse is understanding the things needed for their wellbeing. At the Anderson Horse Farm we have a farrier come out every 8-12 weeks. The timeline can depend on conditions and our farrier’s availability. Horse hooves can become cracked and hurt the horse. Due to weather changes such as frozen ground to mud and back and also in the summer when there is little to no rain.  

 

When the farrier comes to trim our horse’s hooves this is the process. These are things that anyone can do with their animals if they choose, they do not need a certification but do need their own tools. We choose a farrier due to the number of horses we have and that hooves need to be cared for carefully because diseases and sickness can affect a horse through their hooves.  

 

First he will clean out the hoof with a hoof pick. He is cleaning dirt, rocks, sand, mud etc out of the hoof. Once that is clean he will take a knife and cut down the horse’s frog. The frog is the padded part of the horse’s foot so it shouldn’t be too short. After that he will trim the hoof with a pair of nippers. This is like cutting your fingernails or toenails. It is also important to not get this too short but to also not cut uneven. Once that part is done he takes a rasp and files down the underside of the horse’s hoof that he just cut. Then the hoof will be dressed down. That means evening out the hooves with either a rasp or a hoof buffer drill attachment. This is the front part of the hoof that you see by just looking at the horse.  

 

You must make sure the horse is balanced at all times. You are able to do all 4 hooves which is recommended but if necessary you are able to do either both front hooves or both back hooves. You can’t do just one side of the horse, such as the front and back on the right side, because then the horse is uneven, and that can be dangerous.