Took me 3 years to admit I was wrong about egg-bar shoes

Honestly, I used to think egg-bar shoes were a gimmick. Been shoeing for 12 years now, mostly hunter jumpers in the Lexington area. I had this one mare with chronic quarter cracks that just would not heal no matter what I tried. My mentor kept telling me to try egg-bars but I brushed him off for like 3 years. Finally gave in last spring on a whim and put a set on her. The difference in her heel growth over the next 4 months was ridiculous. The crack grew out clean and she went sounder than she had been in 2 seasons. I still think they get overprescribed by vets who never pull a shoe, but for a horse with specific heel issues they work. What do you guys do when a vet recommends a shoe you think is overkill for the situation?

2 comments

2 Comments

harperwright1mo ago

Haven't you ever thought that maybe vets recommend egg-bars too often because they're just an easy way to kick the can down the road? I've seen way too many horses get thrown into egg-bars when the real problem was bad trimming or the horse just needed more time off. That crack growing out doesn't mean the shoe fixed anything, it just means the foot was allowed to finally do what it needed to do without all the extra pressure from a weird shoe. And now you got a horse dependent on a specialty shoe that costs more and falls off easier than a regular one. I'd rather fix the root cause than just slap on a band-aid that makes the vet feel good about their recommendation.

lee7331mo ago

You brushed him off for like 3 years" man that hits close to home. That's totally the pattern I see everywhere not just in shoeing. Like my buddy insisted on using a certain kind of caulk for our bathroom remodel and I fought him for months. Finally tried it and yeah it worked way better. I think we all get stuck in our ways and hate admitting someone else got it right. For the vet thing I just ask them to walk me through their reasoning. If they can explain it clearly I'll try it once. If they get defensive about it then I know they're probably just guessing too.