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Course Description

Cowtown Horseshoeing School emphasizes the mastery of Natural Balance™ and conventional horseshoeing techniques. Students acquire skills through a combination of classroom instruction, demonstrations, hands-on and field training.

Our attention is to the student and meeting their individual learning needs. In order to offer each student and intensive learning experience with close, individualized instruction, we limit our classes to 6 students. During the course students will master the fundamentals of the farrier profession. We begin with the anatomy and physiology of the horse to provide the student with a solid knowledge base of how a horse is built, how the body functions and how the horse moves. We teach our students how to trim and shoe a horse to proper balance. We also teach them how to recognize and treat common types of lameness and gait problems using various approaches including the Equine Digit Support System, modified kegs shoes, forged shoes and hoof repair materials. Proper application of the Natural Balance™ Shoes, as well as proper forging techniques and the ability to hand make shoes are well covered. When students are not in the classroom, they are encouraged to further their skills on their own. The school's farrier shop and forge area are open to students during off hours.

Stability and balance is everything when maintaining sound horses, that is why along with farrier sciences and horseshoeing, horsemanship is stressed throughout the entire course. At Cowtown Horseshoeing School, students graduate with the skills and confidence necessary to practice farriery.

Course Outline

Orientation and Safety

Horsemanship
A. Terms, Points and Regions of the Horse
B. Handling the Horse
C. Shoeing Positions

Anatomy of the Foot
A. Bones, Joints, Tendons and Ligaments
B. Foot Biomechanics
C. Sensitive Structures]
D. Hoof Structures
E. Foot Dissections

Shoeing the Straight and Sound Horse
A. Tools and Skills
B. Trimming
C. First Aide
D. Selecting, Shaping and Fitting Cold Shoes
E. Shoeing Evaluations

Iron and Forge Work
A. Forging Skills and Tools
B. Selecting, Shaping and Fitting Hot Shoes
C. Forging Handmade Shoes

Shoeing the Crooked Horse
A. Principles of Corrective Shoeing
B. Foot Conformation Types
C. Limb Conformation Types
D. The Gaits of Horses
E. Correcting Faults of Gaits
F. Forging and Applying Corrective Shoes

Shoeing the Lame Horse
A. Lameness of the Foot
B. Lameness of the Forelimb
C. Lameness of the Hindlimb

Field Application

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