Why is my horse forging?

Forging — the clicking or clacking sound produced when the toe of a hind shoe strikes the heel or shoe of the front foot on the same side during movement — is one of the most common gait irregularities in everyday riding and one that has multiple possible causes that need to be distinguished from each other before the appropriate correction can be identified. The sound itself is consistent but the cause can be biomechanical, conformation-related, training-related, or farriery-related. The most common cause in horses that are otherwise going well is being on the forehand — carrying insufficient weight on the hindquarters and moving with the hind legs tracking up too far under the body while the front feet land and break over too slowly. The hind foot arrives at the location where the front foot recently was before the front foot has had time to clear. A horse in genuine self-carriage and collection rarely forges because the elevated front action and active hindquarter engagement that collection produces naturally separates the footfalls. Young horses in early training forge frequently and the cause is almost entirely the physical immaturity and lack of balance that characterize the early under-saddle period. This type of forging typically resolves progressively as the horse's training develops his balance, hindquarter strength, and self-carriage — it does not require specific intervention beyond correct training that addresses the underlying balance deficit. Fatigue produces forging in horses that are otherwise going cleanly because tired muscles cannot maintain the timing and elevation of the footfalls that prevent hind-to-front contact. A horse that forges specifically in the later portions of a long or demanding ride is giving clear information that the session's length has exceeded his current capacity. Farriery has a direct influence on forging and is worth evaluating if training and fitness adjustments do not resolve the problem. The length of the toe on the front feet directly affects how quickly the front foot breaks over and leaves the ground — a long toe that delays breakover gives the hind foot more time to catch up. Shortening the toe and rolling the toe of the front shoes to accelerate breakover is a farriery adjustment that reduces forging in horses whose hoof geometry is contributing to the problem.