Hoof Care

Cordia Pearson

Society of Master Saddlers Qualified Saddle Fitter

Walking on Sunshine!

I would like to share a resource with you. We have a few older mares who were foundered and if you've ever dealt with this situation, you understand the daily ache in your heart to see them moving like they have no joints in their legs. During a conversation with a saddle client, Monique Craig, I discovered she was the inventor of Epona Shoes. When Monique told me that the Epona was capable of realigning the coffin bone, I was more than ready to give the shoes a try. With the expert help of our farrier, Don Rudeen, we all threw ourselves into the work and got the girl's in their glued-on Eponas. Almost immediately, the first miracle occurred: every one of the girls grew a heel, something they had lacked all their lives. At last, Don had some real hoof to work with. By fall, they had grown their feet out enough that we were able to nail the shoes on and do without the glue. But we live in Minnesota and next, comes winter. With the brutal cold and rock hard ground, again the girls began moving stiffly. We were heartsick, knowing our location was the culprit. What to do?

If you've looked at my top toolbar, you may have noticed the ThinLine pages. Elaine at ThinLine sent me a pair of their new hoof pads with one of my shipments. I gave it some thought and asked Don what he thought. "I can't see a downside," was his response. So all the girls got a ThinLine pad added to their Eponas. Normally, we would give them bute after a reset, but we made the decision to not do that night. Come morning, nothing short of a miracle. Despite the fact it was way below freezing, and the ground was just as rock hard as the day before, all the women were raring to go. We had to get out of their way as they marched (barged in some cases) out of their stalls, heading for the paddock and the morning hay. Come evening, they walked over the snow and ice with authority and down the concrete aisle as if it was carpet.

Next day, the next miracle. A couple of them started head tossing, semi rearing up, and testing out the trot. And so it's went. That was four weeks ago. Every single one of the mares is still full of beans and using themselves in a totally non-foundered way. There has not been one day of wrong steps or soreness. If you have a foot sore horse or foundered horse, I hope you will take advantage of what Monique at Epona and Elaine at ThinLine have to offer your horse. For more info you can go to Monique's site: To order the hoof pads, click here: