A simple mystery revealed: why are Dr. Strasser's toe angle recommendations about 45 degrees for front hooves and about 55 degrees for hind hooves?

These photographs are not perfect demonstrations, though I laid flat out on the ground to take these photos of coffin bones, from Dr. Strasser's personal collection. Measure actual coffin bones for yourself. When the bottom is ground parallel, the front edge of the coffin bone will be very close to that specified angle. The hoof is simply trimmed to follow the internal structures. These measurements are the same for every horse, because their coffin bones do not change.

©2006 by The Horse's Hoof. All rights reserved. No part of these publications may be reproduced by any means whatsoever without the written permission of the publisher and/or authors. The information contained within these articles is intended for educational purposes only, and not for diagnosing or medicinally prescribing in any way. Readers are cautioned to seek expert advice from a qualified health professional before pursuing any form of treatment on their animals. Opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the publisher.