Author: Georgia

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Q&A with FEI Dressage Star Ariel Boesener

Meet Ariel and Sedona
Breed: 12 year old Canadian Warmblood mare
Discipline: Dressage, FEI Juniors
Upcoming event: 2019 North American Youth Championship

 

We caught up with Canadian dressage rider Ariel Boesner to check in on how her mare is doing in Easy’s Performance Slippers®- the patented, FEI-approved, glue-on slipper.  Here’s what she had to say!

Q: Tell us about Sedona’s hoof condition.

A: Sedona has always had flat thoroughbred-like feet. Last Spring she was diagnosed with navicular and was very lame. We changed her shoes, and it got better so I could finally ride her after two months of lameness. Then our farrier tried her in glue-on shoes, which seemed to provide more comfort to her. But every time after the new shoes were put on, she would be off for a couple days.

Q: How did you find out about Easy’s Slipper®?

A: My Mom Paula was the one who found out about Easy’s Slipper® from Advanced Equine Comfort. They appeared to be the best glue-on shoes on the market, so we decided to try them out since Sedona was still very foot sensitive. We have been using the Slippers for three months now and the difference has been astounding.

Q: Since switching to Easy’s Slipper, how has Sedona performed in the show ring? What differences have you seen? 

A: The day after the show, Sedona is still completely sound, and we can ride. We have seen amazing differences in her feet with good growth quality of hoof strength and shape. In fact, at one of our shows this winter, Sedona lost a shoe in the warm up an hour before competition. So, we pulled the other front shoe off, and she went barefoot for the first time in her life. She stayed sound throughout the entire three-day show weekend. We were really amazed!

Q: What is your future plan for Sedona in terms of hoof management? 

A: Since seeing these great changes in Sedona’s feet and good, quality hoof growth, we are planning to keep her in Easy’s Slippers®, they really work for her!

Q: Any upcoming show plans? 

A: The Florida circuit is over, so we are headed back to Canada now. Next month, we will show our first CDI (Concours Dressage International) in the FEI Junior level at the Ottawa Dressage Festival!

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Easy’s Slipper® Helps Laminitic Pony

Farrier Steve Hamilton of Hamilton Horseshoeing in Illinois had a client with a Shetland cart pony suffering from grass laminitis. Babe was lame from the laminitis and had a very hard time moving about.

Steve had heard of Easy’s Slipper® and had his client order a pair to try out on Babe.

“The slippers were so easy to put on,” said Steve. “I love the holes where you can insert your glue tip. Because the slippers are clear, you can really see the glue going in and bonding. They were very easy to put on.”

When Steve applied the slippers, he started with a dry fit and saw that Babe noticeably relaxed and seemed to feel instant relief. Once the slippers were glued on, Steve couldn’t believe the difference they made. Immediately, her pain was relieved, and Babe was running and jumping in the pasture again. She now has the comfort to move easily and generate more blood flow to her feet.

“When I call Easy’s Slipper®, I get a call right back,” said Steve. “The customer service is amazing. I’ve got several other clients who want to try Easy’s Slipper®, and I’m excited to start using more of these fantastic glue-ons.”

Babe in her Easy’s Slipper®

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Lusitano Broodmare Becomes APSL Certified in Easy’s Performance Slipper™

Vanida Sacred Springs, a now 17-year-old Lusitano broodmare, arrived at Renaissance Farm in utero. She was imported from Interagro Farm, one of the most prestigious Lusitano Breeding farms in the world, located in Brazil.

Vanida was always eligible for inspection by the Associação Portuguesa de Criadores do Cavalo Puro Sangue Lusitano, The Lusitano Stud Book (APSL). In late August, the APSL judge came all the way from Portugal to the Virginia Horse Center in Lexington, VA, where Vanida was brought in for APSL inspection. She needed to be walk, trot and canter sound to pass.

Vanida just had a foal. And she has an old injury to her coffin bone, which causes intermittent lameness. Vanida wore a pair of Easy’s Performance Slipper™ Heart Bars to give her the best possible support and the best chance for passing her inspection. This wonderful mare is now officially an APSL mare, which she so deserves to be!

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A Happy Broodmare in Easy’s Slipper®

Last month, we were in Milton Keynes, UK, teaching farriers how to use Easy’s Slipper®. We even put the slippers on a few new clients!

This Thoroughbred broodmare is 17 years old and belongs to one of the local vets, Thorstern Feddern. She was sore footed on all four feet. Once she was in her Easy’s Slipper®, she happily walked around with no noticeable lameness. And five weeks later –she’s still enjoying her slippers.

Right: Dave Giza working on the broodmares feet

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Coty Gets Back to Grazing in his Easy’s Slipper®

For years, Coty, an 18 hand Belgian draft horse, suffered from intermittent abscesses, causing lameness and severe coffin bone rotation. After trying traditional shoeing methods that failed to provide relief, farrier Marvin Howard suggested Coty try Easy’s Slipper®, a therapeutic glue-on slipper that provides shock absorption and vibration dissipation to improve joint and bone health.

Ben and JoEllen Van Gundy jumped at the opportunity to try a glue-on horseshoe that might provide some relief and therapeutic benefit. Coty has been wearing Easy’s Slipper® for about six months now and seeing great improvement. He is now able to put weight on both front feet and is out grazing every day. Ben and JoEllen are thrilled that he is “comfortable, mobile, grazing and eating normally,” they said.

“Coty doesn’t seem to be in any pain,” said Ben. “And we attribute that to Easy’s Slipper®. We believe that Easy’s Slipper® has extended his life and improved his quality of life dramatically, and we are very grateful to Sue Blair and her company.”

The slippers stay on Coty’s hooves for six weeks at a time, in the many different environmental conditions of the Van Gundy’s Rushville, Ohio farm. Conditions have varied from cold, snow, wet, rainy and muddy, and the slippers have stayed on. The Van Gundy’s farrier also notes that the slippers are very easy to apply.

“We are so happy that Coty is doing so well in his slippers,” said Sue Blair, founding CEO of Advanced Equine Comfort. “He now has relief from abscesses and the reduction of his chronic pain has allowed him to be a happier horse. I feel lucky to get to work with horses like Coty every day and provide them this sort of relief.”

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Advanced Equine Comfort Announces Easy’s Performance Slipper™ for Hind Feet

World’s first hind foot glue-on now available

June 7, 2018 – Highlands, NC – Today, Advanced Equine Comfort (AEC) announced the release of Easy’s Performance Slipper™ for hind feet. This marks the first ever glue-on on the market available for hind feet. The slippers have all the benefits of Easy’s Performance Slipper™ and benefit horses that need hoof support on all four feet.

Research and Development at AEC is currently studying the benefits of the hind slippers on horses with stifle join issues. After a six-month study, Anna (a Tennessee Walker) is more comfortable and flexible due to the shock absorption and vibration dissipation from the slipper.

“While you can never replace the synovial fluid in the stifle joint, you can enable a more fluid movement for the horse thanks to shoeing,” said Sue Blair, founder and CEO of Advanced Equine Comfort. “Anna is now 16 years old and has been wearing her custom Easy’s Performance Slipper™ for hind feet with measurable improvement.”

The slipper is designed specifically for the hind foot, which has a different shape from the front. AEC currently offers sizes 0 and 1, and will have 00 to 3 available soon.

To learn more visit advancedequinecomfort.com

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Easy’s Slipper® to be Featured at Glue-On Clinics throughout the U.K.

Advanced Equine Comfort’s U.K. distributing partner, Stromsholm Farrier Supplies, will be showcasing Easy’s Slipper® in glue-on clinics this summer. The clinics are for horse owners and farriers who want to transition out of steel and into glue-on slippers.

Established in 1972, Stromsholm Ltd has more than 40 years’ experience and is proud to have been awarded the Royal Warrant from her Majesty The Queen. Stromsholm has grown from selling horseshoe studs from the kitchen table, into the UK’s leading specialist both in hoof care and horseshoes.

Stromsholm offers a comprehensive range of horseshoes, including Easy’s Slipper® glue-on slippers, as well as many of the leading hoof care products available on the market today.

Summer Glue-On Events:

Glue-On Clinic, Shoemaking Competition & BBQ
When: 12 June – start @ 2.30pm

Where: Stromsholm South West (Equirap) The Forge Little Pastures, Ty-Freeman Lane, Gwehelog, Usk, NP15 1RD

Schedule:

Royal Welsh warm-up competition

Judge Andrew Bowyer AWCF

3-30pm – Apprentice shoemaking competition

1st & 2nd Year

4-30pm – 3rd & 4th Year

5-30pm – Open Shoemaking

7pm – Open 15 Minute Speed shoemaking class

7-45pm – Eagle Eye competition

Glue-On Clinic
When: 13 June – start @ 5pm
Where: Stromsholm Lambourn Race Division, Unit 9, Lowesden Works, Lambourn Woodlands, RG17 7RY

Glue-On Clinic
When: 14 June – start @ 5pm
Where: Bellow Hill Vet Centre, Woburn Sands Road, Bow Brickhill, Milton Keynes, Mk17 9JY

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Easy’s Slipper® Study at UF

Nicole Taylor, CDF intern and Sue Blair, CEO and Founder of Easy’s Slipper®

The story continues.

Easy’s Slipper® was named for a horse who arrived at the farm in 1998.  Her name was Fast ‘n Easy, a retired Quarter Horse racehorse, trained in dressage and was also a broodmare.  Her only offspring, Sweet Pea, who arrived with her and is now 23 years old, is the last of our original herd.  They had hoof issues from the start, thin soles, prone to abscesses. Sweet Pea continues to help in the development of the slippers.  In fact, there is one named for her!

The story resumes with a road trip to the University of Florida School of Veterinary Medicine for the conclusion of their nine-month study of Easy’s Slipper®.  Second year student Ellen Staples formulated and conducted the study.  (Dr. Alison Morton served as faculty adviser and Dr. Kimberly Trolinger-Meadows conducted the lameness exams and x-rays.)  Nine horses participated as the research herd.  Divided into three groups, they each rotated through barefoot, steel shoes, and Easy’s Slipper®.  The study looked at lameness and hoof growth.  Every four weeks the horses were evaluated using the Lameness Locator, measured for hoof growth and their hooves x-rayed.

We witnessed each of the nine horses in their lameness tests, and with monitors applied they were walked and jogged around the arena.  Then they had their slippers or shoes removed, hooves trimmed and measured, and then radiographed.  The amount of research materials gathered will take three months to compile and then be published in a variety of veterinarian journals.  Drs. Morton and Meadows shared that three studies actually came out of the original study.  Until the data is compiled, they were able to share anecdotally that Easy’s Slipper® made a tremendous difference for six of the horses and there was noticeable hoof growth.

We are honored that the U of F Veterinary School selected Easy’s Slipper® to study and anxiously await the published results.

Carpe Diem Farms is a 501 ©3 experiential educational foundation located in Highlands.

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Advanced Equine Comfort Launches Easy’s Performance Slipper™

New glue-on shoe to provide performance benefits to sport horses

Highlands, NC – Jan. 23, 2018 – Advanced Equine Comfort LLC today announced the launch of its newest glue-on horseshoe, Easy’s Performance Slipper™. No longer solely for therapeutic relief, Easy’s Performance Slipper™ is a more streamlined model of the original Easy’s Slipper®, providing the same patented hoof support, but with a newly contoured shape for peak performance in all types of riding disciplines.

Based on customer and farrier feedback, changes were made to the original Easy’s Slipper®, including:

    • Material was removed from the sides to reduce leverage

 

    • The cuff was thinned to provide more flexibility for ease of installation

 

    • Material was added to widen the sole surface at the toe to provide support for horses with less than well-connected growth at the toe

 

    • The back bar was increased in size to provide additional support to the heel

 

    • Vertical ribs were added to the inside of the cuff to provide space for equal dispersion of glue, as well as serving to keep any break in the glue bond from spreading

 

  • Cut marks were made to the rear of the cuff to offer guidance to nipper the cuff in the event the cuff is too tight at the heels

The material of Easy’s Performance Slipper™ remains the same thickness on the sole of the slipper to continue to provide the best shock absorption and shock vibration dissipation of any boot or glue-on presently on the market. The Easy’s Performance Slipper™ patent is pending the U.S., U.K. and 28 European communities. It is offered in all three original Easy’s Slipper® styles, including the open bottom rocker, closed bottom rocker and heart bar.

“We’ve listened to our customers from across the world, and the demand is for a sporty glue-on so that competition and riding horses can have all the benefits from a therapy slipper, along with superior riding performance,” said Sue Blair, founder and CEO, Advanced Equine Comfort. “We expect Easy’s Performance Slipper™ to gain mass appeal and be a real game-changer for the horseshoe industry.”

The original Easy’s Slipper® is still available, and continues to be the leading therapeutic glue-on slipper that provides shock absorption and vibration dissipation to improve joint and bone health. It is both FEI and USEF approved for competition.

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About Easy’s Slipper®

Easy’s Slipper®, from Advanced Equine Comfort LLC, is the therapeutic glue-on slipper that provides shock absorption and vibration dissipation to improve joint and bone health. Easy’s Slipper® encourages hoof growth and physical movement to grow healthier hooves and happier horses. The superior shock absorbency decreases stress on the bones, ligaments and joints, allowing natural flexing of the hoof, resulting in enhanced blood flow and increased oxygenation of the horse’s body. The built-in rocker can be easily adjusted by a farrier for the desired breakover for proper movement and soundness.

Visit www.advancedequinecomfort.com to learn more, and like us on Facebook at facebook.com/easysslipper

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USEF and FEI Approve Easy’s Slipper® for Competition

Slipper gains approval from highest governing bodies of the equestrian sport

Highlands, NC – Jan. 25, 2017 – Advanced Equine Comfort LLC today announced the USEF and FEI approval of Easy’s Slipper®, the ultimate therapeutic glue-on slipper for riding, driving and competition.

Arielle Blackstone, founder of The Transition Vaulters of Renaissance Farm, secured USEF and FEI approval for a recent major competition. Blackstone’s vaulting horse Mavi won second place in the International Vaulting Competition, performing with improved confidence from Easy’s Slipper®.
“Soundness is critical for a vaulting horse like Mavi [a 13 year old, 17.3 hand, Percheron mare],” said Blackstone. “When we go to competitions, each vaulting round at the show requires six minutes of quality canter. If you have a horse that’s going in eight classes in a given day, that’s a lot of cantering. I know Mavi wouldn’t be sound without Easy’s Slipper®. She’d probably be dismissed from competition after the lameness check if she didn’t have them on, especially when competing at the higher levels. The slipper is really helping with the quality of Mavi’s gaits. It’s given us a competitive edge in the show arena, and every horse on our vaulting team wears Easy’s Slipper®.”

“What was once only a therapeutic slipper, Easy’s Slipper® is now a riding slipper and approved for show use,” said Sue Blair, founder and CEO, Advanced Equine Comfort. “There’s proof in the science. Our slipper provides more shock absorption and vibration dissipation than any product out there, which truly helps these competition horses. We are thrilled to have USEF and FEI designation.”

To learn more about The Transition Vaulters team, read the full story.

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About Easy’s Slipper®

Easy’s Slipper®, from Advanced Equine Comfort LLC, is the therapeutic glue-on slipper that provides shock absorption and vibration dissipation to improve joint and bone health. Easy’s Slipper® encourages hoof growth and physical movement to grow healthier hooves and happier horses. The superior shock absorbency decreases stress on the bones, ligaments and joints, allowing natural flexing of the hoof, resulting in enhanced blood flow and increased oxygenation of the horse’s body. The built-in rocker can be easily adjusted by a farrier for the desired breakover for proper movement and soundness.

Visit www.advancedequinecomfort.com to learn more, and like us on Facebook at facebook.com/easysslipper

About The Transition Vaulters

The Transition Vaulters were founded by Mother and Daughter, Maria and Arielle Blackstone, in 2008 after moving to Tennessee from Rhode Island in 2004. In 1996, Maria founded Rhode Island’s first and only Vaulting team, the In Harmony Vaulters. Arielle started vaulting with the team when she was only 7 years old. After the move to Tennessee and finishing the renovations on the farm and 100 yr. old farm house, they realized there was a lack of vaulting in the area and decided to create their own team again. Soon the team started growing and progressing, so in April of 2012, Arielle bought Mavourneen, a 17.3 hand black Percheron mare from California. Mavi, as she is lovingly called around the barn, had already competed at Nationals in Colorado in 2011. She was just what the team needed. The team competed that June at their first Regional Vaulting Competition in Lexington, VA and in 2013 at a local competition. At the regional competition  they joined forces with Volunteer Vaulting to create a composite team, the TNT Vaulters, and won first place in their barrel team freestyle. Arielle and Allison from Volunteer Vaulting also competed in the first CVI, international competition, on the east coast. The Transition Vaulters are planning an even bigger and better year. The Transition Vaulters love doing demonstrations and educating people about this incredible sport.

Visit renaissancefarmtn.com/vaulting to learn more.

About USEF

United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) serves as the National Governing Body for Equestrian Sport. US Equestrian is dedicated to uniting the equestrian community, honoring achievement, and serving as guardians of equestrian sport. Since its inception in 1917, US Equestrian has been dedicated to pursuing excellence and promoting growth, all while providing and maintaining a safe and level playing field for both its equine and human athletes.

Visit usef.org to learn more.

About FEI

The FEI promotes equestrianism in all its forms and encourages the development of the FEI equestrian disciplines throughout the world. Fair play, equality, complicity with the animal and respect for the environment and the horse are the core values of the FEI.

Visit fei.org to learn more.