New pack mule

[CX5Ranch]

We all went on an 11 mile ride this morning. I saddled joe up at the house and loaded him in the trailer. We meet up at my brides grandparents farm. Their house is in the background here, we had just taken off.

First obstacle of the morning....a small low water crossing. No problemo

Second obstacle of the day.....the golden gate bridge. No problemo

Third obstacle of the day.....trying to get my hands on a cup of Joe from the back of Joe. Not easy. But we overcame

And finally a lunch break. Ol joe really loves me. He wants to be right beside me all the time. Lol. We had a great day.

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[Schleppy]

I went ahead and bought one despite your advice. I already have horses and they’re great, I just really wanted to have a mule. I’m loving this thread and I can’t wait to see Joe with full panniers in the mountains.

 

[CX5Ranch]

That's a fine rip Schleppy! Looks old enough to know better but still too young to care! Wheres that brand from?

And you're not the only one ready to see Joe loaded up with some beanie weenies and llama spray!

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[Schleppy]

I have no idea where the brands are from. I bought Louise the mule in northern Wisconsin and was told she had been a pack mule “out west”. The pic I posted was from the gentleman I bought her from. I haven’t fully tacked her up yet. I’ve been handling her every day and finally set the pack saddle on her tonight. I’m heading out to Colorado on the 15th but not planning on taking her this year. I’m not trying to hijack your thread here, I just thought I’d post up a pic of her.

 

[CX5Ranch]

Your mule will be fine. Make sure your horses get along with her. Sometimes they don't. And keep the dogs and cats away from her. Mules will stomp their guts out. And baby calves too. Not all will, but some are just that way.

They say a mule will live its whole life just waiting to kick you one good time. I don't believe that. They usually kick ya twice


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[Schleppy]

Our farrier said that horses and mules both kick all the time but the difference with mules is that they don’t miss.

 

[CX5Ranch]

Speaking of farrier.....I nailed a set on my horse last night. His shoes have been on quite a little while. Mainly because I am lazy and it's hard work. I have been shoeing my stock for quite a few years. I am no professional believe me, but I can do it and it saves me $85 a whack.

This is the foot before I do anything

The first thing I do is clean the outside of the foot if its muddy, with a wire brush. Then take the rasp file and cut the clenches off. The nails pull hard if you don't do this. The clench is the part that keeps the shoe on. It is basically the bent over part of the nail

After the clenches are filed flush, put the hoof between your knees and use a set of pullers to pull the shoe. This is a sequence of pics showing how to do it. Basically you pry and pull and cuss until it comes off.

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[CX5Ranch]

After the old shoe is pulled, I take a hoof knife and clean out the rocks and mud. You'll really do a little cussin if you cut a flint rock in half with the hoof nippers. They cost about 100 bucks and dull easily. So I like the hoof clean before I trim

This pic is after I have cleaned the sole. I like to take it down to new hoof. It promotes clean growth.

Now I am trimming the hoof back. You can see how long the toe is. Be careful not to take too much off the heel. Once it's gone it's gone.

You can see how much I trimmed off. Like I said its probably been 10 weeks or so since I last shod him.

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[CX5Ranch]

After trimming it is time for the rasp again. I start with the course side of the rasp and it quickly takes the high spots off. I use a circular motion both directions to keep the hoof flat.

I believe the most important step to shoeing is getting the hoof flat. It is the foundation that the shoe sits on. If there is any high spots the shoe will wobble. It wont take long and it will fall right off.

After flattening the hoof, you have to create a bevel just behind what I call the nail line. It is the yellow line around the edge. Anything inside this line is live hoof. Anything outside is dead hoof. The dead is where the nails go. The bevel allows some room between the live hoof area and the shoe. If the shoe is nailed right against the live sole, your horse will be extremely sore. Kinda like I was after buying my elk tag the other day.

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[CX5Ranch]

When the foot is flat and the bevel is created, I grab a shoe and see how it fits. I am putting a rim shoe on the fronts. The hollow area middle of the shoe fills with dirt and gives a little traction on rocky areas.

This shoe needed closed up a bit. Couple wacks on the anvil and it fits pretty good.

checking everything fits good..

And I stick it with a couple nails to hold it for shaping the hoof.

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[CX5Ranch]

A lot of guys really worry themselves with nailing the shoe on. They are always worried about hurting the horse. What you have to do is visualize where the nail is headed. If it stays in the dead hoof then you're fine. It takes a little practice but, for me, learning how to nail was way easier than learning how to flatten the hoof

After nailing the shoe on, I put it on the stand and cut the excess hoof off to fit the hoof up nice. Some guys call this dubbing the foot off. Like I said I'm not a professional. I just have to think there has to be somebody worse than me right!

And there it is minus a few more nails. I like to finish the hoof with just 2 nails. It is much easier to work the rasp around without all those nails hanging out.

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[CX5Ranch]

Got this little honey ginnin'

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[CX5Ranch]

Got a real crew going this year LOL! I was gonna pack Joe up heavy today on a 10 mile ride. But...I forgot the panniers in my barn. HA!

We did get to do some swimming with the horses. Joe got in about chest deep a time or two. No problems from him. The dang horse flies like to ate us alive

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[CX5Ranch]

Joemule better eat his wheaties. We leave Tuesday at noon. 21 hours straight through. Taking 5 head.

Destination promise land

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[CX5Ranch]

Headed west!

Just leaving the house

Colby Kansas stopping for some taco John's! That's a mistake you dont figure out for a little while

Joe is riding along good. He has never been this far from home

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[rlmmarine]

Good luck keep us posted

 

[CX5Ranch]

Joe says where the heck are we

Denver!

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[robby denning]

I love this thread CX5!

I started shoeing back in '05, Just paid my farrier to give me a few lessons. It was so worth it to learn it. Saves me some money and just as important, gave me the confidence and skill to take care of them in the backcountry too. Before I could shoe, if we lost one back there, all forward motion ceased. At least I can get by.

thanks for the thread

 

[huntsman22]

You went right on by the ranch, without even honking your horn..... An hour east of Denver.

 

[30338]

Great thread. I had the pleasure of riding an 8 year old broke horse a couple nights back hunting bears. I was the 3rd in line and that horse crossed creeks, jumped logs, plowed through nasty brush grabbing at everything and never once was startled. I am no horse guy, but that was just a pleasure and felt really safe traveling 3 miles up to a bear lookout spot. I think your mules and horses would be very much like that one it looks like. Almost making me think about one.