Bruce Matthews ~ VT Farrier

[Theloggerswife]

I still have a draft that is giving us a MAJOR challenge when it is time to trim the feet. I watched Bruce Matthews clinic at DAPFD this past fall and he has a harness and video that helps you work with your horse that is stubborn about trimming/shoeing Has anyone used this harness/video and had positive results?

At this point if Derrick stops trimming the feet, I cannot imagine any farrier that will take abuse that this horse dishes out. I would really have to hate to choose between my horses and my husband….because I would really miss him on a cold winters night!:D

[Rick Alger]

I don’t know anything about Bruce Matthews, but I do know that shoeing stocks are another possible solution.

[Andy Carson]

It took alot of time and gentle treatment before the horse I have now would let me hold her feet. She had some trust issues and I am pretty sure she had been beaten for misbehaving with her feet in the past. I can pick them up and dance a jig now, but she only trusts me to hold them up for very long. When the farrier comes, I stand in such a way that she mostly sees me and not the farrier. She seems to believe it will be OK that way. If I am far away she gets pretty nasty with him. I don’t know if this will help in your case, but it might be something to try if your horse is good for you but not other people.

[Farrier]

Stocks are the way to go. I have a client who has 9 percherons that are very well behaved and a tenth that is not. The one bad horse is shod in stocks and does fine. After shoeing him in stocks I have the owner put him in the stocks to clean his feet etc. and I can usually shoe him the next time without the stocks. You can also start tieing up the foot to be worked on so he can’t jerk away. Exactly what is he doing? Jerking away, Leaning or is he just an all around outlaw?

[mitchmaine]

i have to agree with the shoeing stocks folk. they may look like a medievil torture device, but we had a stubborn mare. if you got her off the floor she would lay on you. after a few times in, she turned right around. she has horrible feet but is a dream to work on.
my feelings on stocks is its harder for the trimmer than the trimee. i think it is much easier holding the foot you are trimming.

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