This article is from the August 2020 Horse Deals magazine.

Lock-down has put a handbrake on our plans for this season with clinics and events postponed, so we’ve found ourselves more inclined to get some jobs done at home — including handling the foals.

It’s usually a struggle to find the time we need to dedicate to weaning and handling the foals we’ve bred, amongst everything else we have going on, but this year there’s been plenty of time and it’s been great to spend that with the babies.

With that said, I felt like this training article would be a good opportunity to cover leg handling and preparation for the farrier.

STAGE ONE:

Introducing Hoof Handling

Before I start handling legs I need my foals to accept me rubbing them on their bodies both sides. I need to have them confident with the halter and leading well, and I want to be able to circle them both left and right.

Once we have that achieved we can start to look at handling the legs. To get started I rub my hands from their body down to the foot. At this stage I’m not actually wanting them to pick their foot up, I am just looking for the horse to stand happy while I rub the leg. If the foal does pick up his leg I certainly don’t grab the foot; most likely the horse is just reacting to the feel of my hand, and if I grab his foot it will scare him and undo any trust that I have built. So, if he is to pick up his foot while I am rubbing his leg, I will just continue rubbing his leg until he places the foot back on the ground. I will pause and dwell for a small moment and then start the process again until the foal is happy and willing for me to rub all four legs without them moving a foot.

Once the foal is happy with me rubbing down their legs I will place a small amount of pressure on the back of the fetlock until the foal shifts the weight off its hoof. Again, at the early part of this step I won’t actually pick the foot up — I am just wanting them to be comfortable taking weight off the desired hoof without being reactive or impulsive.

When they’re okay with shifting their weight I’ll introduce moving ropes around their legs. I will place a soft rope around the leg (not tied) and I will hold both ends in each hand, then gently move the rope up and down the leg. Once they are happy and comfortable with the rope I will manoeuvre the rope until it sits behind the pastern, then I will apply a touch of pressure to ask the foal to take their front leg forward, and I’ll aim for them to place the hoof back on the ground just a little bit more forward than its original position.

For the hind legs, I will take the leg forward with the rope in one hand. When the leg relaxes into the rope I’ll take the weight of the hoof in my free hand, keeping it in this forward position. When the foal is relaxed I’ll drop the rope off and rub down the leg.

Now I’d move towards picking up the foot without the rope. I will still rub down the leg with one hand while I will leave the other at the top of the shoulder for the front legs, or resting at the hip for the hind legs. I will put a small amount of pressure on the fetlock and when I feel the horse take weight off the hoof I will pick up the foot with my hand. Initially, I will keep the foot low and underneath the horse’s body; what I mean by this is not taking the leg out sideways and pulling the horse off balance. Throughout any of the steps, if the horse snatches its foot back or pulls away, without hesitation I will quickly repeat the process, but if the horse stays relaxed throughout the process I will dwell in between stages.

Throughout all the steps so far, I will only ask the horse to hold its foot up for a small amount of time.

When I can pick each foot up confidently unassisted by ropes, and the horse is calm and willing to stand, I will now start to ask for the horse to stand on three legs for longer periods of time, and I’ll begin to help the horse find balance as I move each leg around a little more, both forwards and backwards, much like a farrier will.

STAGE TWO:

Preparation for the Farrier

Now that we have our weanling happy and willing to stand to have its feet picked up, it’s time to start farrier preparation.

I will start by tapping the hoof with one hand while the other hand holds the foot. I will also start moving the leg from side to side slightly in preparation for placing the leg in my lap. I want to help the horse learn to find his own balance in these positions.

Remember that the front legs get placed between our thighs and the back legs get placed on top of your thighs while your legs are pressed together. So it’s useful to start simulating this with the horse before actually putting the horse’s leg in those positions.

Once I feel confident that the horse is accepting this, I will place the leg in the correct farrier position for both front and back, while being mindful I am keeping their leg nice and low, as well as keeping the leg underneath the horse to help him with balance.

You will also need to take the horse’s leg and foot forward to rest on your knee to mimic the farrier rasping the front of the hoof. Be careful not to agitate the flank area, and cause the horse to get scared or worried when you bring the hind legs forward. Slow and low is the key while you build his confidence.

From here you can start tapping the foot again on all sides. I will even graduate to tapping the hoof lightly with tools that are akin to those that a farrier may have.

Now that the horse is happy with us handling the leg in the various positions while tapping the hoof, I take it one step further and put a farrier apron on. Then I get someone to hold the horse, while we go back over imitating farrier leg handling positions.

Throughout the training process and preparation for the farrier, be mindful not to rush. Take the time it takes. These lessons could take a couple of weeks of frequent training sessions to get a young and unhandled horse to fully and willingly accept the process. Remain calm and patient. If the horse finds himself worried at any stage, just go back to step one and build again from there.

I have seen horses that have done a lot of leg handling desensitisation, still find themselves troubled when the farrier arrives. If this happens it can be due to two reasons; either the horse is feeling claustrophobic having two people working around him in close proximity, or he’s being spooked by something as simple as the apron or the clanging noises. It’s a really good idea to get your horse accustomed to all the things he might be faced with during a farrier visit before the actual visit — not just with leg handling, but with the feeling on his feet and the noises around him. This way you’ll set your horse up for the best possible experience when it comes time to call in a farrier.

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