Use of gyroscopic sensors for objective evaluation of trimming and shoeing to alter time between heel and toe lift-off at end of the stance phase in horses walking and trotting on a treadmill.
Authors: Keegan, Satterley, Skubic, Yonezawa, Cooley, Wilson, Kramer
Journal: American journal of veterinary research
Summary
# Editorial Summary: Gyroscopic Assessment of Breakover Mechanics with Contoured Shoes Researchers investigating whether specialised farriery techniques could objectively modify breakover mechanics fitted ten horses with wireless gyroscopic sensors on the right forelimb to measure three-dimensional hoof angular velocity during walking and trotting on a treadmill. Comparing three conditions—untrimmed/unshod, trimmed with standard shoes, and trimmed with axially contoured lateral-branch shoes—the team collected data throughout the breakover phase and mathematically integrated angular velocity measurements to calculate precise hoof angles in pitch, roll and yaw planes. The contoured shoe design produced measurably greater lateral roll (3.2 degrees and 2.5 degrees more than the control and standard-shoe conditions respectively) during trotting, though this effect was confined to the first half of breakover and diminished significantly in the second half; notably, the same intervention showed no significant benefit at walk. Whilst the kinematic changes achieved were modest and gait-dependent, this technology provides objective quantification of how trimming and shoeing alter breakover mechanics—a parameter often managed empirically—and suggests that contoured lateral branches may warrant further investigation for horses requiring enhanced lateral roll specifically during faster gaits, though practitioners should recognise that benefits are neither immediate nor sustained throughout the breakover phase.
Read the full abstract on PubMed
Practical Takeaways
- •Contoured lateral branch shoes can be used as a shoeing tool to increase lateral hoof roll during breakover in trotting horses, potentially useful for managing breakover mechanics
- •The effect is gait-dependent and significant only at trot; expected benefit is minimal when applying this trim/shoe combination to walking horses
- •Farriers should recognize that the biomechanical changes induced by this shoe design are modest (2.5–3.2°) and transient, occurring only in early breakover phase
Key Findings
- •Contoured lateral branch shoes induced 3.2° greater lateral roll during first half of breakover in trotting horses compared to no trim-no shoe
- •Contoured shoes produced 2.5° greater lateral roll versus trim with standard shoe during early breakover at trot
- •The lateral roll enhancement from contoured shoes was limited to the first half of breakover and dissipated in the second half
- •Walking gait showed no significant lateral roll enhancement with contoured lateral branch shoes