slippery shoes

[Jenhen01]

hi im Jen and i have a thourghbred who has shoes on the front only. he has had them for a long time but when we moved him to our own home; walking up the driveway he started slipping and falling. it startled me at first i didnt know wat he was doing so i took him on the grass and walked him on the grass to the barn. our driveway is black top and he only slipps on it when it is wet. so is there anyway i can make my horse stop slipping?

[Elana55]

Horses need their shoes reset or replaced every 4-6 weeks. What sort of shoe schedule do you have your horse on? Even if you do not ride the horse, the feet grow out and the shoes need to be pulled, the feet trimmed and the shoes reset.

If you have been going longer than this bewteen farrier visits, the horse likely has long toes and is walking heels down and will slip because he is off balance.

If you are shoeing with plates, you might want to add a little boreum to the toe and the heel only of the shoe. Too much boreum can make the shoe grabby and cause strain on the horse's legs because a little slide when the horse puts his foot down is essential for shock absorbing. That little slide can dissipate a lot of energy that othersise the joints have to take up1

Of course, it is also important to keep your horse OFF slippery surfaces. Black top, especially sealed black top, can be a very slippery surface for steel shoes and more so in rain. Once a horse slips on a surface he can also develop a fear of falling on that surface and add to his own troubles by being tense when walking there. I would keep him off the black top and, if he has not been trimmed or shod recently, get his feet done.