2019

Boots on all 4, finally got to try the mudstraps too!
He had some trim changes in late Feb (see blog about that directive from Jeannie Waldron), and our early March ride with all 4 revealed some rubs sadly, in particular a nasty one on his right hind after 6miles. I had not been riding using gaiters – so that may be a very easy fix. The hinds are still the right size, but now the fronts are a very tight fit on the heel at the end of the trim cycle. The rubs that presented on his fronts were very minor after almost 11 miles (again no gaiter used) so a heat stretch might be all that is needed there. As we don’t have a whole lot of time/miles to play with the fit right now, he is in shoes for the next few months to deal with the rocky trails -I don’t want him to have those issues in the midst of a 3-day camping ride/trip… I am keeping the Scoots, as they are super easy and will work if something happens to a shoe, as well as that we will go back to play with these and how to eliminate rubs after getting through Old Dominion.

Update Dec 2018

Sully has a set of Scoot Boots for front and hind, and now the manufacturer has released mud straps which look to be amazing for preventing the loss of a boot like we had at Gobble in the 1′ deep mud!  Looking forward to putting them to the test this year…we certainly have enough mud to deal with!!

Other than that incident, Sully has done well in the scoots!  For our intro ride at Fort Valley I had Scoot Skins glued on behind.  Unfortunately he is a rather slim foot so they are too short to use long term but performed great in the rocks and mud of FV.

Update Aug 2018

Well, if you follow my blog you know that Prophecy was retired in March and thus my Size 4s have just kinda sat around…

Enter my new guy, Sully…who has MUCH different feet than Prophecy, and not a favorable shape currently for boot fit in any brand while he transitions out of shoes, but I’ve been working with Stacy @ Heartland Scoot Boots (on Facebook) and we have gotten him into Size 2 slims up front.  They also look like they will work well on the hinds, so that is a bonus for if/when he goes to front shoes that we have hind boots already.

I plan to take them on a real test ride later this month and will update again! 🙂

Update Feb 2018 And here they are on the day after a trim with the mods – A bit tighter to put on, and really hard to get the RF off!  I was advised since his hooves were “wet” it make things fit tighter.  I’ll keep on eye on things and may remove the tape mod if it gets too snug… He moved out great tho when I tossed him in the round pen for a few.

Update Jan 2018

As I am getting ready to use these more and start conditioning soon, I decided to do the collar modification on the boots where you use vet-wrap and duct tape to create the padding instead of the snap-on trail gaiter (slimmer and slicker to help with any possibility of rubs).  Lots of info posted in the Heartland Scoot Boot Facebook Page.

Here is how mine look now –  I will try them out on him soon to see how they fit again and post some new pics 🙂

Here’s a pic of them being used during some ground work to check fit in Dec 2017, after probably 4 months of not using them at all.

Update 7/11/17

As of July we haven’t used them much!  I’ve been trying to keep conditioning barefoot to toughen up his feet and we haven’t hauled away to rides that are so rocky that I would put boots on.  I do pop them on here and there and they always fit, even with the change in trim style he has undergone to reshape his hoof and reduce the flaring tendencies.  I’m always happy with how easy they are to get on and off, and clean!

Original Post

I have been eyeing boots for Prophecy for many months now, trying to figure out what brand would have the right fit for his wider than long or almost round hooves.  He showed some sensitivity over the summer while treating his WLD to any rocky surfaces (gravel driveway, rocks on trail) and while it did improve this fall I know he needs the extra protection.  I’d love to keep him barefoot, but that was quickly becoming a less likely event with needing to start conditioning in rocky terrain here and the lack of funds for boots.  I searched for used Renegade recommended size and tried an Easy Boot fit kit to figure out which size to look for, however one front fit nicely, the other, not so much.  I have read reviews of the Scoot Boots and a greenbean team member got a pair for her mare that she has been providing me reviews on how they work for them.  These seemed like a great fit for ease of use and sizing for us and I was on the hunt for a used set, if nothing more than as ‘off season’ boots and backups to shoes if lost.  Then, I received a set of Scoot Boots for Prophecy for his front feet out of the kindness of the company’s owner/founder in Australia.

I am providing my reviews to just get more info out there on these boots, as I know many are curious about them! I was not asked to do so.

Of course I immediately the changed the strap to blue from the black it came with (as well as other colors and repair components), which was very simple to do.  I took them to the barn the next day and tried them out.  Very easy to pop them on, no mallet needed! Simple to hook the straps on the screws using a hoof pick (or by hand), and set the pastern straps with 2 fingers clearance.  No cable to adjust, no gaiter to fold and keep out of the way.

He took a few funny steps when we first walked away to the round pen, but adjusted quickly and we headed out on the trail and over driveway rocks without hesitation.  We’ve done a few short rides in them and used them when lunging to warm up.  I finally saw an extended trot out of him when moving in the round pen!

We have even used them in a lesson to help get him used to then.  Now almost 3 weeks post trim they are still looking like a good fit (based on the spacing recommendation on the website) and while a little tougher to get on due to his growth, still relatively simple and come off easily.

I will continue to use these with the trail gaiters as they break in, but no rubbing so far.  This coming weekend we will be going to an intro ride and get to try them out on a longer distance; fairly easy footing, but he seems to appreciate the protection so I will use them 🙂