milestaylor•1mo agoOG Member

PSA: Saw a ranch in Bend, Oregon using glue-on shoes exclusively

They had about 40 head of trail horses all in glue-ons, no nails at all. The owner said it's better for hoof health and they never have lost shoes. But their farrier charges almost double per horse. Is that the future or just a fad for certain barns? What's your take on the cost versus benefit for a whole operation?

4 comments

4 Comments

sarah5311mo ago

Heard about a friend's barn that switched to glue-ons for a few problem horses. They loved the results at first, no lost shoes and the hooves looked great. But after a full season, the owner said the cost really added up, especially for horses that didn't really need it. They ended up going back to nails for most of the herd, saving the glue for just the ones with weak hoof walls. Makes me wonder if a whole operation using them is sustainable unless they're passing that cost to clients. Would you pay a lot more for a trail ride if you knew the horses had glue-on shoes?

king.andrew1mo ago

Seriously, how many trail ride horses even need shoes at all?

vera3081mo ago

Yeah, exactly. No way I'm paying extra for something most horses don't need.

eric_murray261mo ago

Man, that's exactly what happened to my buddy down in Ocala. He runs a small trail string and tried glue-ons for three horses that kept throwing shoes. First couple months were great, no lost shoes, hooves looked perfect. But after a full season he figured out each horse cost him about $200 more per cycle compared to nails. He only keeps glue-ons on one horse now, the rest are back to standard shoes.