My farrier says that plastic shoes are OK for therapeutic uses, but don use them long term because the hoof needs some concussion to function normally. Is he right?
Plastic shoes do not eliminate concussion, just reduce it somewhat. The plastic we use on the outer rim portion of the EponaShoe matches the mechanical properties of the hoof wall quite closely, so you can think of it just as a hoof extension. Hence it is not changing the natural concussion the hoof experiences very much. Although most plastic shoes are advertised as “reducing concussion” we think that this feature is not the first that should be mentioned — in fact it is probably only 5th on the list of important attributes of the EponaShoe. Concussion abatement is important for street horses (carriage, mounted police) and to some extent for uses like endurance racing. Otherwise, avoiding concussion should not be the first aim of a modern shoe design. More important are: 1) allowing the hoof capsule to flex somewhat like when barefoot, and 2) supporting the frog in the proper way, and 3) allowing the shoe to wear the toe-breakover as the ‘horse wants’, and 4) the ability to avoid nai
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