Hoof Boot Guide Part II: Measuring Your Feet

Perhaps the most important step in fitting your horse with hoof boots is getting the correct size boot.  This is especially so if you are ordering boots from an online seller (as nearly all of us do).  To correctly size your feet, you will need the following items: a straight edge, a ruler or measuring tape, a permanent marker pen (if desired) and, of course, something to record your measurements on.


1)  Ensure that your horse has just had a trim, as any additional growth may skew the measurements and give you a boot which is too big to be usable.

2)  Using your straight edge, find the widest point on the foot (this is usually found just behind the apex of the frog.  If you are unsure, take a couple of measurements and use the widest.  If desired you may want to mark this line with your permanent marker and measure from this.

3)  Moving to the back of the foot, place your straight edge along the back of the frog/heels as shown.  Then measure the length of the foot from the toe (at midpoint) to the leading edge of the straight edge on the heels (the two points indicated on the picture).  If desired you may want to mark this line with your permanent marker and measure from this.

4)  If desired, place the hoof on a blank sheet of paper and trace around it using the permanent marker pen (you will need hard standing for this).  This will give you the total outline of the foot and allow you to check the fit of the sole plate once you receive the boots without getting them dirty, and is also very useful if you intend to fit a pad to the boot. 

Once you have the measurements for all four feet recorded, take the largest of the pair (for fores or hinds, whichever is applicable) and use this as  your sizing measurement when ordering.  Online sizing guides can be found here (http://www.easycareinc.com/our_boots/easycare-hoof-boots.aspx#&panel1-1) for Easycare products, here (http://www.cavallo-inc.com/products/hoof-boots/fit.html) for Cavallo boots, and here (http://www.renegadehoofboots.com/sizing.html) for Renegade hoof boots.

For more, see my See Hoof Boot Guide Part II:  Testing the Fit