For a farmer there is no such thing as a day off really, but we like to take it easy on Sundays and just do the required tasks like milking and feeding. We did have one other task planned for the day and that was to get Mr Ed a nice new set of shoes.
Some friends of mine offered to do the task for me and arrived about noon. Having seen how things are sometimes done down here, I was a bit worried about the wellbeing of my gentle horse but my fears were unfounded. They brought along their own set of tools and I was surprised to see he actually had a real farriers hammer, nail clippers and horse rasp. Like most hammers here in the country the original wood hammer had long since turned to dust, and a length of pipe was welded in place.
Mr Ed was soon located and being lead quietly back to the barn while his companion, Bonehead, galloped about the field and generally made an ass of herself. Our hero the horse was very well behaved considering the nails being pounded into his hoof.
The process goes something like this. First, the hoof is cleaned and flattened using a knife and or a rasp. Second, the shoe is checked for fit and adjusted for width using a hammer. Third, specail nails are driven through the shoe with the points exiting the side of the hoof. The nails are then bent over and cut off using the nail clippers. The nails are then further bent using what looks like a cold chisel and a hammer. The hoof was then trimmed and shaped using the rasp. I dont know why but when all the hooves were completed, some diesel fuel was poured on each hoof.
A better picture of our bull. The picture does not do this massive animal justice. He still needs a name if you have suggestions.
