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Had a horse spook mid-shoe and it turned into a three-hour mess
I was out in rural Ohio last week, nailing on a front shoe, when a barn cat jumped off a railing and the mare just lost it (kicked the anvil clean across the stall). Ended up having to re-rasp the whole foot and re-set because she twisted a nail sideways on the way out; has anyone else dealt with a animal spooking that late in the process?
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the_ben1mo agoTop Commenter
I used to think wrapping a leg was just an extra step that slowed things down, but after a similar experience I changed my mind. I had a gelding spook at a passing tractor trailer while I was fitting a hind shoe, and he yanked his leg back hard enough to bend the shoe I had just shaped. The whole thing took twice as long because I had to start over, and he was jumpy the rest of the time. Now I always keep a clean bath towel handy, not just for the leg but to drape over his hip while I work. It helps steady them and gives you something to grab if they startle. That towel trick saved me a lot of headaches since that day.
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harperschmidt12d ago
Oh man, that sounds like a nightmare. @the_ben has a good point about the towel trick, but I actually think the real problem might be what horse you're working with in the first place. If a mare is that reactive over a barn cat, she probably shouldn't be getting a shoe nailed on in a standard stall without some groundwork first.
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