Protective Horse Boots

Would you like to be an industry insider? Would you like access to discounted product in exchange for helping EasyCare promote the brand? Who wouldn't?

Applications for Team Easyboot 2012 close tomorrow, Wednesday, February 8 at midnight MST. If you have not already submitted your application, you can do so now by going to the Team Easyboot page on our website.

The team members in 2011 enjoyed sharing information among themselves, and then using it as a basis to disseminate information across their broader communities nationally and internationally.

I've listed below some of the things Team Easyboot 2011 members had to say about their experience.

"I have learned a lot this year, and have been able to help several horses and their riders as a result."

"I have really enjoyed being in the team and I'm hoping I will be picked for 2012 also, I really want to stay on this train of knowledge!"

"Thanks so much for giving me the opportunity to be involved with the team this year. I have been able to keep up to date with all the latest developments with Easyboot and try some of the hints and tips out with customers."

"I can't tell you how much I enjoyed being part of Team Easy Boot 2011! I have to say the thing I loved the most is that I was able to help out many new booters at home and at rides."

"I have been very impressed by how active the team was this year and enjoyed reading about all the tips and solutions."

"I thought the conversation & blogs of TE11 were extremely helpful in teaching me how to overcome the complexities of boots. It is so important that customers have positive first time experiences booting their horses and I felt so much better equipped to make that happen."

"The knowledge exchange is just the best. Having a variety of experience levels and disciplines has really broadened my understanding of how the boots can be used. The best part is of course the team itself and the information exchanged but a very close second is being able to be a resource to others."

"Thank you for the opportunity to help others with their booting. I love the exchange of information among the group. We all learn from each other and together think up some great ideas and solutions." We're looking for a broad range of representatives from various disciplines from across the globe, so please send in your application.

Want to read more? You get all the juicy details by reading last week's announcement.

There are some people who believe shoes have ruined the human foot. They say that shoes have made our feet weak and that the majority of foot problems and lower joint injuries occur as a result of wearing modern footwear. These views are a bit extreme since not all shoes are created equal and the length of time spent wearing a given shoe must also be considered. A person who frequently walks around in high heels is going to have much unhealthier feet than someone who wears tennis shoes. An equine equivalent would be the difference between “Big Lick” Tennessee Walking Horses and those that are flat shod. There are times when foot protection is necessary for humans and horses alike - selecting the appropriate type of protection is what is important. With the upcoming release of the Easyboot Glove Back Country and the development of the EasyShoe, horse owners will have more choices in hoof protection than ever before.


A few months ago I started running. This encouraged me to research the human barefoot movement and Vibram FiveFingers, a minimalist shoe (which is more or less a human equivalent to EasyCare hoof boots). Being well versed in the arguments surrounding the equine barefoot movement, I was fascinated that the arguments in the human barefoot movement are strikingly similar. In a nutshell, supporters of both barefoot movements argue traditional shoes weaken the internal structures of the foot and lower leg which increases the likelihood of injury. Detractors of both movements argue traditional shoes are necessary to protect the foot and that the likelihood of injury is higher without this protection. Whether you are a human or a horse, going barefoot is not as simple as removing traditional shoes – both require a transition period and conditioning. The length of this transition varies in both humans and horses; for some it may take weeks or months to be comfortable barefoot while for others it can take more than a year.


There are many runners embracing the human barefoot movement and this has encouraged shoe manufacturers to develop running shoes that blur the line between minimalist shoes and traditional ones. Similarly, the EasyShoe will blur the line between alternative and traditional hoof protection, creating a unique option that combines advantages of both. For the time being I have put the Vibram FiveFingers on hold and am using a light weight trail runner that has some minimalist properties. Being young and healthy I am sure I could go barefoot and that over time my feet would strengthen a considerable amount. In the same manner, most horses that have been raised with proper stimulation, nutrition, and environment do not need steel shoes. The majority of horses lacking such an upbringing are able to make a successful transition with the aid of a qualified trimmer/farrier and the appropriate hoof protection. As with most things in life, there is no absolute right or wrong; you must do the research, weigh the pros and cons, and in the end, make the decision you are comfortable with.

What do you get when you cross the hoof boot that was used to win the 2011 100 mile Tevis Cup with the polyurethane horse shoe that was used to win the 2011 136th running of the Preakness? 

A new tool for farriers and hoofcare professionals.  The new glue-on urethane shoe is a collaboration between EasyCare and No-Anvil.  The combined efforts have produced a new urethane hoof protection device that blur the lines between boots and shoes.  The urethane hybrid device absorbs concussion, is held securely in place for a shoeing cycle without nails, is lighter weight than most all nail on shoes and allows the hoof to expand and contract as nature intended. 


Stay tuned for more updates and news on the collaboration. 

Gail Snyder recently wrote an interesting two-part article for Natural Horse Magazine on the best practices for managing and preventing thrush.

"Thrush is as controversial a topic as any in the equine world. Everyone has a tried-and-true remedy with free advice for you. If you doubt that statement, type "horse thrush" into an online search engine. In this two part series, I'll cover the topic of thrush in detail."

Natural Horse Magazine graciously gave us permission to make the article available to our readers. Simply click on the links below to download a PDF version of the articles. Note: this function requires Adobe Reader to be installed on your computer. If you don't have it yet, you can download Adobe Reader by clicking on http://get.adobe.com/reader/

Here are the downloads to the articles:

Thrush: Restoring Hoof Health Naturally - Part 1
Thrush: Restoring Hoof Health Naturally - Part 2

Let me know what you think of them.

We're listening. Please tell us what you think.

If you are a current EasyCare customer and you've purchased Easyboot hoof boots within the last 12 months, we'd like to hear from you.

Help us shape the evolution of our boot design based on what is important to you as a boot user. It won't take you longer than five minutes to complete and your answers are completely anonymous.

Click on the survey link now at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/utltimateeasyboot2012 and follow the simple directions on screen. The survey closes at midnight PST on Friday, February 3, 2012.

We're listening. And we hear you.

P.S. Enter the sweepstakes at the end of the survey and you could win $100 in Boot Bucks, (redeemable only through purchases made directly through EasyCare). Due to gaming restictions imposed through the Survey Monkey platform, the online sweepstakes is only open to US residents. We will therefore hold a separate drawing of all non-US residents who identify themselves as such in the demographic section at the end of the survey.

Submitted by Joanne Pavlis, Team Easyboot 2012 Member

Back in the December 2011 Newsletter, Garrett Ford wrote to us about the concept of “New Tracks”, and asked us the question “Have you ever thought about what tracks you leave”?

As a licensed race track trainer, riding instructor, endurance competitor, and equine wellness foundation founder, I think about this all the time. Whenever I contemplate the vision of “New Tracks”, I recall the remarkable journey I embarked upon with this new EasyCare concept and product. MileMakers has played, and continues to play, a small part in the overall EasyCare evolution of change, as we all move ahead with our new found knowledge and product development. When I think of what Milemakers does on a daily basis, it seems relevant as an answer to the proposed question.

MileMakers began seriously promoting EasyCare products and educating our local horse community about the benefits of equine hoof boot protection in 2011. It has been the best transformation we could have made for our horses health, while giving us the added benefit of exposure to the latest science and technology to better educate those owners who had been sitting on the fence between old school & new school thinking.  EasyCare is constantly improving their product to better the wellness of horses, and they do it by using sound research while listening to the horse’s response.

Time and again, I lay witness to the fact that people will not change unless they fully understand the reasons behind the need for change. That is why, at MileMakers, we believe in promoting the education behind the EasyCare concept as we develop one knowledgeable customer at a time. Each newly educated owner/equestrian represents a “new track”. And each “new track” represents a seed of knowledge that has been planted and will continue to grow.

When the new EasyBoot Racing Shoe concept came onto the horizon, there was a lot of head scratching, questions, and a whole lot of “what if” scenarios. Some race track officials and commissioners didn’t know how to react to this new product because it was a divergence from their zone of comfortable knowledge. Other racing officials embraced the new concept, and were able to easily see the benefits for the future of horse racing, and overall equine foot health. No evolutionary journey is without its setbacks. The key is to remain confident with your concept despite those who want to drag you back down to “what has always been” and “we’ve been doing it this way for the last 200 years”.

In 2012, MileMakers will walk our talk. We plan to take our 3 year old colt, Defying Magic, (a.k.a. Indy) to the race track.

He has been barefoot his entire life, and will only wear the new EasyBoot Race Glue-Ons, while running races, due to a Colorado Racing Commission ruling which calls for all race horses to wear hoof protection. He is the first foal we ever bred, and we will not trust his feet to any other type of hoof care product or ideology.  

The journey one must take when laying down “new tracks” will never be an easy one. But by using education and proven results we can progress one step at a time. That’s why at MileMakers our motto is “Not just a destination, but a journey taken one hoofbeat at a time.”  With “New Tracks” I am excited about what I do as a Team Easyboot member, and we plan to leave a lot of “New Tracks” in 2012.

“Sometimes you’ve got to run away and see if they follow” - Manfield Park.

EasyCare will accept applications for Team Easyboot 2012 until midnight on Wednesday, February 8, 2012. Visit the Team Easyboot section of the EasyCare website for more details and to complete the application form.

How much does it take for you to break a sweat?

We've had a number of people contact us recently asking about the use of a rubber mallet when applying the Easyboot Glove. Some people are concerned about the resulting concussion on the horse's feet. Others are concerned that using a mallet will make the task of applying boots even more complicated.


I always keep a mallet in the trailer tack room door where I keep my hoof boots. I grab the mallet when I reach for the bag of boots for the horse I'm tacking up. I originally bought the mallet for gluing on hoof boots at events, but I find it also helps confirm the toe is all the way into the boot without any additional struggling while you're under the horse.

If you did not read my blog last week about identifying proper fit, you can read it at Fit On The Fly: The Top 4 Most Common Mistakes When Using Easyboot Gloves. I don't subscribe to the concerns that tapping with a mallet will cause any harm to the horse: the amount of force exerted with a few taps is only a fraction of the force exerted on a horse when you're trotting or cantering down a semi-hardpacked trail.

If you subscribe to this blog via RSS and you can't see the video above, click on this YouTube link: http://youtu.be/0fbx9P1_VVs.

What sort of application tricks do you use to make sure your Gloves are properly applied?

Expectations of Team Easyboot Members

If accepted onto Team Easyboot 2012, members are requested to participate in at least 7 of the following 12 items:

1. Represent EasyCare in a professional and positive manner.
2. Be fully knowledgeable about all EasyCare products and help others in the field.
3. Keep information available and on hand to help answer people’s questions.
4. Be available to assist in boot fitting and advice in person and on line.
5. Provide feedback on product as needed.
6. Actively promote the EasyCare brand in person.
7. Submit bio, photo and monthly schedule of activities and availability to help others.
8. Blog once a month on the EasyCare corporate blog.
9. Actively participate with positive interaction and product advice on the Easyboot Facebook page.
10. Wear Team Easyboot attire at events.
11. Display Team Easyboot logo on tack, trailers and vehicles.
12. Consider hosting boot fitting clinics in conjunction with hoof care practitioners.

Summary of Benefits

1. Access to discounted EasyCare product for personal use.
2. Access to EasyCare management team for help and guidance.
3. Access to broader team members for general booting education and problem-solving.
4. Advance access to product information and new products.

Note: Product purchased through the Team Easyboot discount program cannot be resold.

How To Qualify

In order to submit your name for consideration, all you have to do is answer a few basic questions in an online application form. Applications will be accepted until 12 midnight Mountain Standard Time on Wednesday, February 8, 2012.

The Selection Process

75 Team Easyboot 2012 Members will be selected by a panel of EasyCare staff. The new team members will be announced on Tuesday, February 14, 2012.

Over to You

If you would like to be considered for membership in Team Easyboot 2012, please click here and then click on the Application Form button. Remember to submit the form before Wednesday, February 8, 2012 to be considered.

I’ve had the good fortune to attend four endurance events since the end of November. It is always fascinating to meet people out in the field and to see what the current practices are – for better or for worse. Listed below are the four most common mistakes I've seen in the last two months.

Mistake # 1
One of the most consistent things I see at events and on the trail is people using the wrong size Easyboot Gloves on their horse. I often see Gloves that are one or even two sizes larger than the foot requires.
The oversized boots obviously work for people - to a certain extent. But I think the addition of water uphill or speed added to the equation would probably cause a boot loss. When I ask people about the sizing choice, they often say they go up a size to allow for changes throughout the growth cycle. My experience is that you do not need to allow for the growth cycle. It is important for the boots to be snug – very snug – not loose. A simple rasp of the toe area every week or two will keep the boot fitting nice and snugly. Any barefoot trimmer would be delighted for their customers to do a little hoof maintenance between visits because it would also help maintain a healthy hoof.

Mistake #2
People often make the mistake of thinking that adding a Power Strap will offset any size deficiencies. Or perhaps that it will offset any issues around flare, long toes or high heels. Whilst a Power Strap helps keep the top of the boot snug, it will not solve all fit issues. And if you are new to boots, the Power Strap will often mask what is going on inside the boot.

Mistake #3
People are going up a size because they can’t easily apply the boot to the hoof, or they are not putting completely putting the boot on the hoof. When I ask if they use a mallet, some people cringe at the thought of banging a boot on. As a point of fact, the forces exerted when a horse trots or canters on hard ground are going to be significantly greater than the amount of force you can exert by a few bangs of a rubber mallet.

Mistake #4
People often tell me they have trouble getting tight-fitting boots off. The trick is to pull from the side/rear of the boot, rather than from the heel bulb area. Pulling from the rear of the boot actually causes the top of the boot shell to contract, hugging the hoof capsule even tighter, and making boot removal more challenging. Pull instead from one side or the other, and you will find it much easier to remove the boot.

Kevin Myers

I have used Easyboot Gloves since they were released and absolutely love their lightweight and sleek design. I’ll admit when I saw the Easyboot Trail, I was skeptical and couldn’t help but compare them to my beloved Glove. Even though they are light, they aren’t as light as a Glove. Although they are sleek for a boot, to me they looked downright clunky next to the Glove. After becoming a customer service representative at EasyCare, I knew I needed to ride in the Trails since they were our most popular boot in 2011. So for the past three months I have been using the Trails on Cal, my Tennessee Walking Horse cross. Cal has always been a sensitive horse, the type that would gimp over rocks even when he had shoes on. The Trails were a breeze to put on and I was absolutely amazed at how comfortable he was in them, even more so than when I rode him with Gloves on the front. Now I see what all the fuss is about; the Easyboot Trail really is amazing!

We’re pleased to announce the results of the 2011 edition of the $10,000 Hoof Boot Contest. Riders enrolled in the sixth annual EasyCare Hoof Boot Contest accumulated more than 25,000 miles across two disciplines.

20 competitors earned $10,000 in cash and product based on their total annual mileage accumulations. "Now that the results have been tabulated," said Garrett Ford, President and CEO of EasyCare, "we can give back to the community who puts the most miles on Easyboots."

Endurance Division
Winner of the 2011 EasyCare Endurance Hoof Boot Contest is Carla Richardson, who rode a staggering 2,525 miles with SS Kharady Khid. She and Khid will also win the coveted AERC 2011 National Mileage Award. Carla and Khid completed 50 endurance rides in the 2011 ride season. Khid now boasts 6,635 career miles, and he just keeps on trucking.


In hot pursuit, Debbie Boscoe rode SRT Sizzling Sage and Scarlet Wind Song to second place with an accumulated 1,915 miles. New to hoof boots, Debbie was one of the highest mileage competitors at the 2011 2,000-mile XP ride from Missouri to California. In third place is 2010 Hoof Boot Contest winner, Terri Tinkham, who rode Oliver Twist for a total of 1,435 miles.

CTR Division
Winner of the 2011 EasyCare CTR Hoof Boot Contest is Mary Lambert. Mary rode High Tail Hanna and IM Bronze to a combined total of 375 miles. Bill Wingle rode Mariah for to second place with a total of 372 miles. Sheryl O'Brian rode Psyches Amore and Truimage of Gold into third place with a total of 350 miles.

Detailed Results

For a full listing of the 2011 Hoof Boot Contest results, go the 2011 EasyCare Hoof Boot Contest page.

Easyboot is the official hoof boot of NATRC, AERC and Tevis 2012.

Keep up the Bootlegging!

If you've ever met Natalie Herman, you will know her to be dependably positive and honest. Since she started her business in 2005, she believes there has been an explosion of booting options, both in the growth of new boot brands and within EasyCare itself.

Natalie attributes her success to her burning desire to learn. She finds she can learn something from everyone. Even if she does not agree, there is always something that might cause her to approach a problem from a different angle. She credits her reputuation to the power of word of mouth and her conscientious approach to customer service. "I do some marketing, but it is a fairly tight community around here. If you want to be successful, you need to have people talking about you in a good way."

Natalie says Easycare makes working with their dealer networks and boot users a pleasurable process. "They have a friendly, helpful, knowledgeable staff; they have favorable return policies, and when a product is shown to need improvement, they modify the product instead of sticking with the same old thing."

She uses the same philosophy in her own business: "I am very helpful and giving with my knowledge. If a client has a question, they never hesitate to call or email me with it, and I try and help them. A good trim is just the tip of a large iceberg." She studied horseshoeing first, and credits that time with learning the principles of anatomy and a balanced trim. She feels strongly that evolution is just as important in hoofcare as it is in the boots that protect those hooves.

Natalie is quick to compliment EasyCare: "I love how inovative Easycare is, always trying to come up with new solutions to existing boots, or totally new boots when the need arises. Instead of insisting that the user is at fault, or the trims are incorrect, EasyCare tries to find a solution to boot failures by either modifying the boot design, or coming up with a design that fits the activity of that user. She says she's still waiting to see a sliding plate boot, though. "It just amazes me how fast things are changing in the industry," says Natalie, "and I am loving it."
 
Natalie currently owns three horses: a 13 year-old Morgan/Quarter Horse mare that was her first horse and, she says, her best horse. "I tried about everything with her, and she is currently being leased to a friend's daughter. Together they won the state championship for CSHA Trail Trials in their division this year, bare and sometimes booted with Gloves. She was also her experimental horse for getting into barefooting. She always needed shoes with pads in the front, having long toe/low heel issues, and wore the outside branches of her hind shoes to nothing in six weeks. Natalie was skeptical of taking her barefoot. "Her feet became so much better that I decided to completely convert my farrier business to natural hoofcare." She has never looked back.

She bred the mare to the top AERC mileage and Hall of Fame stallion, DR Thunder Bask, and this year her six year-old daughter completed her first endurance season. She has been bare her entire life, and performed wonderfully in Gloves, Epics, and Glue-ons at rides throughout 2011. "She is also my 'thinking outside the box' booting horse. I have had to modify boots and how to apply them to the hoof with her, as she tends to have a lot of torque on the hind end." Having a challenging horse in booting has helped her help others.

Natalie also has a 13 year-old Kentucky Mountain stallion. "He is my 'soul horse' and I love everything about him."

As a small business owner, Natalie keeps a minimum stock for clients, and appreciates the fact that Easycare does not have a minimum order policy amount. Her best-seller is still the Easyboot Glove and Glove Wides. "Most of my cients love them as they are so simple to use. The next best-selling models are the Epic and Easyboot Trail, as both allow a greater range of fitting for clients unable or unwilling to keep the hooves trimmed as frequently as the Gloves require.

Her most rewarding experience as a trimmer was treating her first founder case. "I knew the theory, and had trimmed a few mildly laminitic horses, but not a really bad case. When I called the vet for a consult and to go in and see the radiographs, the vet had basically written the horse off and told me to expect to see the coffin bone coming through the sole." She never did get sole penetration on that horse, but there were months of abscessing. Today the horse has textbook hooves. "This case got me started on the path to working on laminitic horses and it boosted my confidence in the barefoot method."

Natalie's most memorable hoof boot success story is the 2011 XP 2,000 mile ride. "There were a good number of barefoot and booted riders already, but there were also many shod horses competing." The barefoot horses proved to be most of the highest mileage horses on this ride, with over 1,000 miles each during the two-month span. Riders with shod horses discovered the benefits of barefoot/booted protocols, and many of them solved lameness issues during the race by pulling shoes and applying boots. "So much for an extended transition from shoes," said Natalie ironically.

Natalie's prediction for the future? That a barefoot and booted lifestyle will become the norm instead of a fad. "More and more vets and long-time farriers are becoming interested in it. As boots become easy to use and effective as hoof protection, more people see barefoot and booting as a viable option for their horse's hoofcare.

For more information on Epona's Natural Hoofcare Services, visit Natalie's new Facebook page. For more information on becoming a dealer, visit the Dealer's Corner on the EasyCare website.

I just wanted to let you know of the very wonderful ordering experience I recently had when puchasing my first set of boots for my ouchy mare.

I was skeptical for months about what size to get - and/or if protective horse boots would even help her. I called in a few times, asking questions about the different styles of boots and sizing (she is a draftier build) and her feet are more of a round shape than long.



I was not going to get the Easyboot Trails, originally, but Dee explained that the sizing was more forgiving with the Trails and they were really easy to put on and take off, which was a real plus since I had never booted before. I will admit, I was a bit skeptical when ordering, but EasyCare's policy of being able to return the boots within a 30 day time period if they didn't work for my horse made me plunge in and order.

They arrived last week and I did not get to see if they were going to fit until this past weekend and they fit perfectly. She has been ouchy for awhile, poor young girl. I put the the Trails on the fronts first and she tried to bite them off. She took a few steps and looked like a baby taking her first steps. I walked her outside to get used to the fronts before putting on the rears, as she would not stop biting them. After the first few steps, she adjusted and I then put the boots on the rears. Again, I walked her outside. This mare never wants to move, let alone run. Well, she got very fiesty on line and squealed. I let her loose and she flew like lightening and she ran for most of the day. I also don't see any pain in her eyes.

Thank you EasyCare!

From Lynn Eberhardt

Thank you to my friend Cathy for sharing her story with us all.

There were a few firsts at Arizona's latest competition, Lead, Follow or Get Out of My Way Endurance Ride in McDowell Mountain Park this past November 19th. Mules are notoriously difficult to correctly fit boots.  Their feet are narrower than a horse and trying to find a boot that is long enough, yet not too wide is difficult. 


My Mule, Soldier, uses Easyboot Epics and Easyboot Bares size 00 successfully with gaiters, however he needed something a bit different for his first 75 mile endurance ride. This ride had great footing with decomposed granite and some sand washes. The Original Easyboots work great on the trails when traveling at speed, but when you get in the sand washes, you get sand in the boots. Under normal conditions this is not a big deal, but when you are trying to make time in an endurance ride you don't want to fool around with taking the boots on and off to empty out the sand. I decided he needed to be fitted to a pair of Easyboot Glue-Ons.

The EasyBoot care team, consisting of Kevin Myers, Rusty Toth and Kevin Waters, came over to Soldier's trailer the Friday before the ride and fitted and glued boots. Kevin prepared the hooves and Rusty glued the boots. Soldier is the first mule this team has glued before and it was the owners first use of glue on boots.  Soldier was a good customer and the boots went on without a hitch.



Throughout the ride Soldier moved along flawlessly and actually seemed to enjoy the added protection.  For me, it was a joy to not even have to think about the boots or worry about the footing of the ride. 

The Easyboot Glue-Ons performed flawlessly.

Do you like uncomplicated things? I find myself drawn to them, and last weekend was an excellent example of keeping things uncomplicated.

The 2012 endurance ride season started on December 1, 2011. I was fortunate enough to spend two days at the Las Cienegas endurance event near Sonoita, Arizona to kick the season off with a bang. A serious cold front kept temperatures well below freezing at night and only ten degrees above freezing during the day.

There were a few good lessons for me over the weekend - and they were simple ones. Here they are.

There is a Market for Glove Wides
I admit it: I was skeptical. But there really are horses out there who need the Glove Wide. One of our new horses, Quake, got to run his second 50 mile race - in Easyboot Glove Wides. He is a textbook fit.


Cold Weather Adds New Challenges to Putting On Boots
The frigid overnight lows brought a couple of additional challenges. One of them was the possibility of hard frozen ground in the morning. We decided to add additional support and cushion by applying Goober Glue padding under the Gloves on the front feet. The whole process only takes about 7 - 10 minutes per horse, and since we put the boots on the night before the event, we saved time the next morning in our foggy early morning state.

And the boots are easily removed after the event with the help of a long flat-heat screwdriver. The glue can be pulled out by hand from the frog area, and the boots can be re-used without any additional cleaning or grinding.

The other challenge with cold overnight temperatures can be how easily the Glove gaiters will fold down, and how easily the boot can be put on the hoof. I brought the hind boots and a roll of athletic tape into the trailer with me and set them near the furnace outlet so they would stay warm and supple. I folded down the gaiters before leaving the trailer, and the boots went on easily and and stayed on for 50 miles.


There's a lot to be said for keeping it simple.

Dresden, a pearl a the river Elbe in Germany, was the first stop of a 4 week Hoof Care Tour last month conducted by me, The Bootmeister from Global Endurance Training Center.

I have been going to Europe now for the last two years, sharing some gained hoof care and hoof protection Knowledge with riders, horse owners and farriers. The demand for more knowledge is high, people are eager to learn about Natural Hoof Care and the newest  Hoof Protection products on the market. EasyCare is the undisputed leader in the world with research and development of hoof boots of all kinds. R&D is of utmost importance to the EasyCare staff. Horse owners worldwide know that. Hence, it is only logical, that EasyCare boots stood in the lime light of my presentations.


After an indoor anatomy session and PowerPoint presentation, the 20 participants had ample opportunity to train their eyes during conformation analysis sessions and study first hand how conformation affects hoof growth. Afterward, the riders who brought their own horses, in total over 10, could practice mapping out the sole and rasping the hooves of their horses. I placed a lot of emphasis on developing the skill of reading the sole. Aspiring hoof trimmers generally fare well when following the principle of trimming a hoof no further than to the live sole. It is a safe approach and everybody can learn it quickly.

The second day was devoted to Hoof boot selection and application. I explained and demonstrated the usage of Easyboot Edge, Trail, Glove and Glue-On and afterwards everybody could practice. It is important to actually do things. We humans all learn most by doing, we easily forget when just watching and listening.





These coaches in downtown Dresden provide visitors a feeling of stepping back in time. After looking at the hoof protection of these carriage horses, we all agreed that they would travel  much more comfortably with Easyboots.

Next stop was Hannover. Well known for the Hanoverian breed, this city has a long horse tradition.

The on-site organizing committee had invited over 45 Hoof Trimmers, farriers and veterinarians. After my initial presentation about the different Natural Hoof Care schools and philosophies in the USA and Europe, we discussed NHC and trimming techniques as well as hoof pathologies and remedies. I presented the thesis and studies of Dr. Brian Hampson of Australia, who did the most thorough studies on the hooves of wild horses so far.

If someone were to conduct a study, for example, on the hooves of one herd of wild horses  in Nevada or Utah, the two driest states within the USA, where horses have to travel many miles over rocks and sand to find water and food and then propose to use that feral hoof as a benchmark model for healthy hooves for all domestic horses in the world, would that be a realistic and fair conclusion?

Hampson studied and examined hooves from various areas in Australia,  wild horses living in arid areas and others in wet areas with lush vegetation. The hooves of the wild horses living in the wetter areas looked a lot like the average domestic hooves. Does that mean the hooves adapt to the environment or are the hooves shaped by the substrate the horse travels over?

An answer to this question might be obtained by looking at the following photos, provided by Brian Hampson.

The left hoof has the appearance of a typical domestic hoof. Recessed frog, under-run heels, flares. Yet, it is a wild horse hoof. After moving several horses with these hooves to a different (drier) area, the hooves were remodeled by the ground the horses traveled over. The hoof on the left is void of any mustang roll. Does it not need it? Within 16 weeks the rocks and dry ground reshaped that very same hoof. The mustang roll is clearly visible now. The question might be asked, how important is the mustang roll then, when we as natural hoof care trimmers applying it to all horses, yet only a small segment of wild horses worldwide even display one in the wild?

The study also showed that only three hooves out of 100 assessed were free of abnormalities. In fact, he found a 67% incidence of chronic laminitis within the horses living in the dry climate and the hard substrate. When the majority of the wild horses display this pathology, is it still a pathology or is it physiologically normal now? Who makes these decisions?

Not everything wild is necessarily good solely because it is wild and natural. The wild horse paradigm model of desert horses' hooves may not be applicable across the board to all horses worldwide.

The discussions were very interesting and we were only scratching the surface of all the ramifications of the Hampson study.


On I went to Kassel, stop for the next seminar. 

Similar to the USA, Germany experiences also a shortage of farriers who are willing to offer services beyond the traditional iron shoes. Many do not know about bare hoof trimming and alternate hoof protection like plastic shoes and hoof boots. Therefore, more and more riders and horse owners want to learn to trim their horses' hooves themselves.

I set up several stations, where people could work on their horses hooves simultaneously. That way, everybody had ample time to practice and learn.

Onwards to Belgium. near Brussels, I conducted the last clinic. My French is very rusty, to say the least, so everything was translated by Leonard Liesens, a famous and successful Belgian endurance rider.
I learned to speak slowly and to include only essential information in my sentences. And I got my message across as well, without lengthy and repetitive wording. An exercise in disciplining speech.


At all the seminars, I also showed slides of the Tevis ride. With all the Europeans now coming to the Tevis next year, we better all put our entries in early to avoid being placed on the waiting list.

The Europeans were all very eager to learn and try new trimming techniques. They are pragmatic and want to use the trimming and hoof protection that works best for their horses. They do not believe that Natural Hoof Care and Bare Hoof Trimming is an ideology or a mantra. For them, it is not an absolute, rather a better and healthier way to take care of their horses' hooves. They do not want to listen to self righteous statements of cult-like organizations. The welfare of their horses is important. That is a reason why Pete Ramey stands in such high esteem in Europe, his open mindedness, his tolerance, his knowledge and non judgmental approach to hoof care puts him in a class of his own and a big step above everybody else.

I did stress the importance of looking at each horse as an individual. The trimming procedure that works for one horse, might not be the best approach for the horse right next to it.

Europe has many more horses than the USA. Per capita, Germany has 70% more horses than the USA. Horse owners and riders want to learn and improve and use modern and better hoof protection methods.
Already now, I have booked several more clinics for next spring, this time in addition to Germany also in France and Switzerland. Natural Hoof Care, Barefoot Trimming and Easyboots are on a roll and gaining ground and popularity throughout the whole equestrian world.

A special Thank You goes out to my liasons and support persons who organized the events on site. Without them, it would have been very difficult to impossible to conduct the seminars:

Dresden:     Veit Koppe

Hannover:   Patricia Nastoll and Kathrin Ewen

Kassel:        Martin Boesel

Brussel:       Leonard Liesens


The Bootmeister, reporting from Europe

I had the opportunity to put first ever tracks on earth over the Thanksgiving weekend. Two new hoof protection inventions were used in soft soil conditions that may potentially leave fossil tracks for the next inhabitants of the earth. 


Have you ever wondered how they will react to the tracks we leave on earth? Will the next inhabitants look at booted horse tracks and wonder what the heck?  Will the hoof tracks covered with hoof boots and iron shoes confuse them or will they even care? 

I personally always look at tracks when I'm out and about.  "Is that an Easyboot track?" "Wow that's a great looking barefoot track."  "Is that an Easyboot Glove track?" "Mountain Lion or bear?"  "Montrails or New Balance?".  Kind of fun to see who's making tracks.

Submitted by Karen Bumgarner, Team Easyboot 2011 Member

One of my goals for the year was all five days of the Owyhee Canyonlands. Last year I used the Glue On's, which worked beautifully. They were flawless and still very difficult to remove after a week, but I did get them off.


Now as I see it, the drawback to glue is its pretty tough to clean them and reuse them even though I had lots of wear left on them. Plus I pretty well destroyed one while taking it off. I kept mulling over all this and kept thinking of not gluing boots. But I had a little voice telling me "you know you will get rubs after a week" and "you have a larger chance of acquiring scratches after a week". So many "you coulds"! This Queen of Tightwads could also save money using the Easyboot Glove Wides that I already had and not buy more boots, glue, tips etc. Hmmm.

My friend, Tamara Baysinger, had reminded me of the "nylon trick". She had been using the nylons to prevent rubs on her mare. I used them once in awhile to keep the cheat grass out of my velcro on the gaiters. I vegetated on all this and finally decided, no glue. I'll take my chances.


Every day after the ride I would pull the boots and bathe my horse because it was hot. I'd get all the sweat off and allow air to get to the hoof and pasterns each evening and all night long. I checked closely for any signs of scratches and I had none. There was not even one little bump, which I found very surprising.

We finished all five days without one rub and without any scratches! The Glove Wides still had plenty of wear left too so this tightwad still had boots to use.

Karen Bumgarner

For several weeks, Lisa talked about the horse with the "worst feet in the barn". I couldn't work on him right away because the track farriers had just put shoes on his feet.  And so I waited patiently to see the worst feet in the barn.

Finally the day came when we could pull his shoes, and I could get started on my new project. Banfish, who is two now and is only doing light work at the track, had been sick when he was a foal. The sickness affected his entire body, including his feet. After months of love and attention, Banfish fully recovered from his illness. Except his feet were still a mess.


The track farriers put shoes on him as they always do, but in time he developed a quarter crack that spread all the way to the hairline. To correct the crack, glue was applied to the crack and the metal shoe was cut so that it stopped just in front of the crack. Yes, that's right. The shoe itself went from one heel, around the toe, and stopped just in front of the quarter on the other side of that foot. No shoe under the quarter or heel on that side of the foot.


When I removed Banny's shoes, I quickly agreed that he had the worst feet in the barn. Unsurprisingly, his heels had been lopped off to accommodate the shoe. To my horror, however, I also found that his soles were in fact the very opposite of concave; the bottom of the foot was thin and bulging at the toe. Yikes!


I always air on the cautious side when I am presented with a long toe or long heels. In this case, Banfish had long toes with no real attachment of the hoof wall.


He still has quite a lamellar wedge when my first trim is complete, but I know that I'll be coming back soon for another go-round.


Amazingly, Banfish showed little discomfort as he walked on dirt or sand with bare feet. Nonetheless, he got his own pair of size 2 Epics to protect those unique feet.

Several days later, I met the vets at the track for x-rays of Banny's feet. Although I don't always get the luxury of seeing x-rays, boy do they help when I can get my hands on them. And so I removed another inch off of his toes and swapped out the size 2 boots for some 1's!

Banfish has been barefoot and using his Easyboot Epics for the past two months and has shown some good improvement during that time. Although he began by wearing his hoof boots on the track and on the walker, he was able to begin some barefoot work within just a few weeks of beginning his new "program". To keep the quarter crack from spreading, I gave him exaggerated pressure relief at the site of the crack.



His lamellar wedge has been greatly reduced, and his foot is looking much less like a pancake. Although the bottoms of his feet are much flatter than I would like, he is totally sound barefoot on the barn's dirt floor and in the track sand. He is still too sore to walk at all on any hard surfaces such as concrete.


As you may know, I tell clients that I will only trim their horses if those horses are being fed a dry pelleted food. I cannot make such demands at the track, because (unfortunately) it has been shown that racing horses need the extra energy (sugar) in the sweet feed to perform at their best. And so it is particularly interesting to note that Banfish has made such improvements despite being kept on a sweet feed diet. Keep in mind that the sweet feed fed to racehorses is very different from the typical $5 sweet feed found at a backyard barn. Although racehorse feed is covered in molasses (the real problem), it is also composed predominantly of vegetable oil, beet pulp, and other ingredients found in a dry pellet.

Banfish has been feeling great. So great that he tried to run away with the rider! With this new attitude change, he's been sent back to kindergarten to learn his manners and his steering.


Can we grow a truly healthy foot while still feeding the racehorse sweet feed? The verdict is still out, but with the improvements I've seen so far, I'm willing to keep up this experiment in hoof health and nutrition. We'll look at his feet again in a few months to see if the Easyboot Epics have won out over the molasses.

One of the things we researched in some detail before the EasyCare organizational retreat in January 2011 was The Voice of the Customer. We've spent a fair amount of time since then attempting to better understand the the things that motivate (and unmotivate) you.

We conducted an informal poll earlier this month to get a sense of the potential barriers to entry. The results are fascinating.


1. Cost
33% of respondents told us cost was the biggest disincentive. We're always glad to talk about the price point of the Easyboot Trail, which is arguably the most affordable hoof boot on the market today. I was also reminded of Brian Mueller's humorous suggestion earlier this year for an ad campaign around the Easyboot Glove. Most people get 350 - 500 miles out of a set of Easyboot Gloves. And if you're a bargain shopper, check out our Bargain Bin.


2. Sizing & Fit
30% of respondents were most concerned about the proper measuring process, and then making sure they purchase the correct sized boot. I'm going to do a detailed post next week about measuring for your first hoof boot attempt. In the meantime, you can always check out the measuring guide on the EasyCare website. And if you like the Easyboot Glove, the Fit Kit will either take the stress out of size concerns or confirm the boots won't fit your horse.

3. Lack of Access to Trimmers or Dealers
10% of respondents cited lack of access to experts close to them geographically - both trimmers and suppliers. If you have concerns about either, please drop us a line and we will see if we can connect you with someone in your area. You can also try looking up our dealer locator.

4. Fear of Boot Loss
8% of respondents feared losing a boot. We can help with that, too. Our customer service representatives are well-educated in current best practices for hoof boot application. We can usually find a way to help you make the boots work properly.


5. The Hassle of the Return
If you're in the 5% of potential boots users who fear the hassle of returning product to us; worry no more. We have a 30-day money-back guarantee and a 90-day repair/replacement warranty. If you like fine print, read about our guarantee in detail.

What barriers to entry do you see? If you subscribe to this blog via RSS, go to the original blog and scroll down to leave a comment.