New on YouTube: Building Custom Glu-Shus For A Horse

In therapeutic cases, it is sometimes necessary to avoid using nailed shoes that can further damage the hoof wall—assuming there is even enough wall to work with. In this latest video from Noble Farriery on YouTube, podiatrist Brandon King, DVM, customizes Glu-Shus for a particularly tough case.

When King is called on a therapeutic case, a lot of triage is necessary. How do you prevent the hoof from further degrading? How do you form protection for the foot while the hoof grows back? These a can be life-and-death matters for horses, so it’s crucial to diagnosing the hoof’s issues correctly and act accordingly.

By evaluating the horse’s comfort and movement, King decides in this video that a custom glue-on shoe is the most suitable intervention. Using his command of equine biomechanics and expert craftsmanship, Dr. King assembles a shoe designed to fit the unique contours of the hoof. He demonstrates the application of glue protocols and the importance of precise fit — ensuring optimal load distribution, protection, and support.

This walkthrough includes a look at cutting, shaping, and customizing the shoe to match the hoof’s contour. As he does this, Dr. King also discusses why specific design choices were made.

Then comes surface preparation, including cleaning, drying, and roughening the hoof to give the adhesive a proper surface. In this process, Dr. King also explains why care must be taken to prevent glue from compromising sensitive structures, which are especially exposed in this particular case.

Only after all of this preparation is the shoe ready to place, all while double-checking alignment, balance, and breakover and ensuring the shoe seats properly without gaps. Finally, it’s time to cleanup excess glue and do the final shaping or rasping for smoothness. Dr. King is only satisfied after watching the horse walk, allowing him to check stance and balance after application.

Dr. King’s method combines clinical diagnosis with practical farriery, offering a compelling look at what equine podiatry is all about. See him and Glu-Shus in action in the video on YouTube.