Should I be using boots or wraps on my horse?
I’ve been wondering if I should be using some type of boots or wraps when riding/lunging my gelding. I do western riding, usually in an indoor arena with small rocks mixed with sand as footing. It’s a pretty small arena, too. I do W/T/C both lunging and under saddle with him. If I should be using leg protection, what should it be?
I’m lost when it comes to the world of boots and wraps, so hopefully someone can enlighten me!
Preferably, you should use something on the legs. You never know when your horse may accidentally slip and strain himself. The best thing to use would be a boot; wraps require a bit of a technique to use, which I’ll mention later. The best boot type to use would be of the SMB type (Sports Medicine Boot). These are designed to support the horses suspensories, helping to prevent things like bowed tendons. There are a variety of different brands you can use (Legacy- Classic Equine, SMB[1,2,Elite,3]- Professionals Choice, Cobra- Thinline, and other brands like Brookside). I have used all of the ones I mentioned and my overall favorites are the SMB Elites by Professionals choice. With the Legacy boots my horses fidgited while putting them on and while standing in them as well. The Cobra boots by Thinline are decent but they are not contoured to the front/hind limbs like the SMB Elites by PC. The only fault of the SMB Elites is that they are a little pricey; witht that aside though, they will last you a long, long time so in my opinion the money is worth it.
Then there are splint boots. For what you are currently doing you don’t need them. These boots are designed to protect the physical sturctures of the leg, such as skin and bone, from damage if one leg should happen to strike the other at high speed. These boots are easily recognized by some sort of durable material (thick leather, plastic) on the inside portions of the boot and sometimes on the suspensory area as well. These boots are usually reserved for events such as roping and reining.
The reason that I discourage the use of wraps is because they can be downright tricky to use. There is a very precise technique to wraping a horses leg, that, if not followed can lead to serious injuries to the horse such as bowed tendons.
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