By Cyndee Pryor

What an experience! Greg and I arrived a day early to rest the horses after our long journey across two states from California to southwest Utah. Camp was nice with a few trees, sandy footing, showers, horse water, and outhouses. Anne and Dave Nicholson were courteous and welcoming. For the most part, about 75 to 80 riders started each day with a very high completion rate. The weather co-operated with us, but on day three in base camp we had a sudden hail storm which the riders missed out on the trail. We had applied Hoof-it before leaving home, and after a quick check to make sure all eight hooves of our two horses were covered, we started day one with much anticipation. Luckily for us, the ride started a little late as we forget to reset our clocks forward by one hour. The scenery was gorgeous with the Red Rocks providing a spectacular view. Besides the sandy soil and the Red Rocks, it felt like we were in the California Sierras most of the time. The footing was rather rocky and we re-applied Hoof-it to seven of the eight hooves after day one. Each day progressed into the next with the main difference being the accumulation of tiredness. Greg and I stayed in the back of the pack as Greg weighs in at 270 pounds with tack and I was on a fairly young horse who hadn’t even done two days in a row before. Greg did manage to finish all five days on the same horse and I finished day 1,2,4, and 5, giving my horse day three off. All the days were large loops with lunch being out of camp so we prepared crew bags which were taken out to lunch for us. Usually lunch was about 25 miles into the ride with great views, green grass for the horses to munch on, horse water, people lunch provided, and great vet checks. Most of the days were pretty technical and a seasoned horse sure helped. Some of the trail was following the side of a canyon, some of the trail took you right up to the edge of a mile long drop off with a birds eye view of the Red Rocks. There were places where the trail was on the side hill of a shale rockslide, but everything was passable with common sense and no sense of urgency - meaning slow down, dismount, walk your horse in hand, and pay attention. When it doubt, check it out! It wasn’t an easy ride on horse or rider. Some days we would climb up to 9500 feet, drop down to 6500 feet, climb again to 8000 feet, and repeat this process many, many times during the day. Other days we would follow the side of the mountains around one bend to the next, and after doing this about six or eight times, wonder if we would ever get to lunch. This is not a ride you would want to get hurt on. Many places it would have been tough to get you or your horse out. But the Duck was always aware of where his ducklings were, what they were up against, and remained a calm and commendable leader throughout the course of the week. There were quite a few rock sore horses by the end of the ride and some didn’t get to finish all five days. Ours looked great using Hoof-it for the duration of the ride. Some of the riders were using Easy Boots which worked ok, but some of the Easy Boots were pulled off in the bogs and muddy areas. We re-applied Hoof-it after some of the more rocky days, but after using it at home and on the single day rides, it was an easy job after we came in from the trail. Great ride, great trail, great company, and I’m glad I found Hoof-it.

I received my HOOF-it II repair kit and used it that day. She trotted out almost sound the next day. I turned her out and let her bruise heal while I was on vacation. The HOOF-it repair kit helped support and protect her hoof while she was healing. Thanks!

Dear HOOF-it, I am writing to you about Bo Jangles, my 12 year old registered quarter horse gelding. Bo was purchased this spring and was slightly tender to pincers on all four hooves when purchased. This tenderness did not reflect at all in the ring or on the trail once you began a course of corrective, conventional shoeing. All this changed dramatically in the June when Bo Foundered. Bo had been turned out to pasture, apparently the pasture was too rich in clover, and Bo gorged himself and became sick. When Bo was first seen by us after foundering, he was ready to go down under his own weight and simply could not stand to bear weight on any of his hooves. You responded quite promptly to our call for help and did corrective shoeing, incorporating special shoes and a rather miraculous product called HOOF-it II Hoof Repair Kit. This resin product was used by you to cover the hoof wall and to protect the frog and pad. Immediately following re-shoeing, Bo was substantially relieved. It was miraculous to see the difference a few hours could make where the intervening time was spent properly diagnosing and treating the problem with products which truly performed as well or better then represented. You have followed up twice with Bo since he foundered and the results are truly spectacular. I was working Bo on the ground within two weeks of the foundering problem and riding him within three weeks. Your regimen called for keeping him active and he was able to maintain a high level of activity with HOOF-it to protect him. You have re-shod Bo twice since he foundered and Bo's recovery is truly miraculous. I ride my horse regularly and have taken him on four and five hour trail rides over fairly rough terrain with absolutely no recurrence of symptoms. Bo is very reliable, very sturdy mount thanks to you excellent care and HOOF-it. I have personally thanked you a number of times for the excellent care you have given this horse and thought writing this letter would be helpful and a testimonial which you might share with other clients. Thanks again.  Yours very truly,  Joseph I. Cronin, Esq.

Dear HOOF-it: I'm writing to express my thankfulness and good fortune in running across your wonder product. I have a 20-year-old Thoroughbred broodmare who had foundered and continued to have foot problems. We tried to keep her comfortable with regular shoeing, but with no luck. We tried trimming her and leaving her without shoes, which only made matters worse. This is where HOOF-it came into the picture. I had my blacksmith shoe her again, but with one major change - we used HOOF-it. With the HOOF-it, we were able to build her foot up and hold the shoe firmly in place. This allowed her front feet to finally grow properly. The positive results were immediate. After two weeks she was doing fine and walking comfortably. HOOF-it is a tool that all horsemen should know about. I've bred, owned and trained thoroughbreds for over ten years and I have rarely found a product that is worth passing on to others. This product really works, and it is easy for the average horse owner to use. My hats off to you and your great product. Thank you, Charlene Touzet Thorson, KY

Somken Up Lee (Smoke) is a 22 year old own son of Mr. Gunsmoke who has had careers in cutting, jumping and now dressage. He's been way above average in all three sports, and though he's proven himself to be "golden", he does have one problem... he does have BAD FEET. They are thin and shelly, and after a full summer and fall of competition, his feet are so broken up my shoer has to be quite clever to even find a place to put nails to hold a shoe on.   Enter the glue shoe and HOOF-it!! My vet, shoer, and I felt he needed to go barefoot for the winter, but being very flat footed and tender without shoes he couldn't be ridden. We decided to try a glue shoe and keep ridding. It was suggested that I have Steve Samet take over as he did most with the glue shoe in my area. To make a long story short... Steve has found a way to help keep glue shoes on. HOOF-it is an incredible product for helping in many situations, this being one. He brushed HOOF-it over the glue shoe, thus helping hold the shoe on, and in doing so he stabilized the whole hoof capsule, gave the foot lots of support, and Smoke traveled and performed well... he was one happy camper, as was I. Now going to summer, we have a healthy, not so toey foot that should hold a shoe until winter when I certainly will use HOOF-it and glue shoes once again. Many thanks to HOOF-it, Steve and Sean for their help!!!

I am writing this letter to inform you how happy and grateful I am with HOOF-it Hoof Repair. My horse suffered a serious quarter crack on both front feet. With the excellent assistance of Steve Samet and HOOF-it my horse immediately became sound. I appreciate how it easy the product is to use. Thanks again. Sincerely, Stephanie Zolkowski

I watched your product being demonstrated at Equitana in Louisville, Kentucky a few weeks ago, not realizing I would be in need of it. But as fate would have it, my horse pulled a front shoe and the farrier had to patch it with a product he uses. It only stayed on one day! As luck would have it, a friend had bought your HOOF-it product at Equitana. I tried it and was amazed at the ease of application and durability. It has stayed on and I am delighted with the results. Gail Shelbyville, KY

 

Dear HOOF-it, I just wanted to drop you a line to thank you for your wonderful product. We (my vet, farrier, and myself) have been struggling with persistent quarter cracks with my 8 year old Quarter Horse mare for the last 5 years. After many variations of heart bar shoes, different padding and trimming techniques, and a short stint of barefoot... we found that barefoot seemed to provide the best results. However, my mare has extremely flat feet and did not do well without shoes. After almost a full year with no improvement, I saw your ad in the California Horsetrader, and decided your composite HOOF-it shoes were worth a try. Bingo. After just 6 weeks we had almost 1/2 inch of new hoof growth with NO advancement of the existing hoof crack, after 12 weeks nearly 1 1/8 inch. She even went up a size. We are very pleased with her improvement which can only be explained by your composite horseshoes. Thanks again for your wonderful product. Diana W. San Marcos, CA