There's more thinking involved in this trade than most people realize.
Take a little more?
Leave a little more?
Change something this cycle?
Or leave it alone and watch?
What is the horse telling you? What are the feet telling you? What happened last time?
Sometimes the hardest decision is knowing when not to change something.
Most of those decisions happen quietly. What looks like a few minutes of work is often backed by years of experience, observation, and judgment.
The COBIT was developed by farrier Ross Smith to add measurable, repeatable information to those decisions.
Not to replace your experience. To give you another perspective.
Give the horse a voice in the conversation.
What if the horse could help you find its center of balance?
The COBIT is a farrier developed tool that provides measurable, repeatable, information to support hoof balance, breakover, & heel placement decisions.
Another perspective. Another tool in your tool box.
Listening to the horse, finding balance. Real Impact.
The horse knows where its center of balance is. When they balance on the COBIT, you can see it, and this is how you establish a reference point - specific for that horse.
long toe low heel〰️tendon & ligament issues〰️navicular〰️caudal heel pain〰️laminitis & founder〰️mystery lameness
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long toe low heel〰️tendon & ligament issues〰️navicular〰️caudal heel pain〰️laminitis & founder〰️mystery lameness 〰️
The COBIT is a farrier tool.
The COBIT is a simple tool that helps farriers locate correct breakover and placement of the buttress of the heels in relation to center of balance. There’s nothing wrong with your eyes - the COBIT sharpens what you already see.
Center of balance, as found by the COBIT is between center of rotation and the extensor process of P3. Point of balance is an external landmark. Center of balance is horse specific. The slots on the COBIT provide BENCHMARKS to work from on different size feet.
Use the COBIT as a reference for hoof balance
The COBIT gives you valuable information about the coffin bone, and provides measurable, horse specific information that can help guide trimming & shoeing decisions. It can be used independently or alongside radiographs when additional diagnostic information is needed.
Use the COBIT as a guide to find CENTER OF BALANCE
Similar to Point of Balance, BUT, Center of Balance, as found by the COBIT, is horse specific - different feet, injury, pathology, age, distortion…
Use the COBIT as a teaching tool
Explain, demonstrate & confirm what you already know
The COBIT sees through distortion
taking out the guesswork when something isn’t right
Shoe with confidence
Rooted in purpose, shaped by vision, driven by results. The COBIT can be used as a guide for trimming & shoeing, to check and verify, and is IDEAL for problem horses … aka… the ones that don’t have feet that match the text book.
When the foot is distorted the COBIT helps you find the truth. All farriers encounter feet that are hard to read. We all take pride in our work.
- Studies Have Shown -
1 cm extra toe length = 50 kg more pull on the deep flexor tendon for every step
A large number of lameness cases are caused by breakover set too far forward.
customize to a horse's specific trimming & shoeing needs〰️enhance performance〰️improve hoof health〰️ prevent joint & soft tissue issues〰️stay sound longer
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customize to a horse's specific trimming & shoeing needs〰️enhance performance〰️improve hoof health〰️ prevent joint & soft tissue issues〰️stay sound longer 〰️
What we see on the outside of a foot does not always reflect what is actually going on.
Adding a COBIT to your toolbox gives you an edge, for those horses that need something a little different. Read what other people are saying.
“My horses have never been so sound and free moving. They will not be shod without the COBIT.” Rusty Rae Woodward
“The Center of Balance Indicating Tool is a game changer in proper horseshoeing.” Dale Clearwater - Canada’s 2023 WGH
“I believe in the COBIT. It’s consistent and I use it on many different horses across disciplines.”
Lars Baron - Farrier
In an effort to NOT have to x-ray a problem horse every time, we went on a mission to x-ray every horse we could. We did the good footed as well as the bad footed ones, the lame ones, & the sound ones. That’s how we developed the COBIT.
We are horse people. Two of us are farriers. One of us invented the COBIT. That was Ross. We support people who do feet. Ross does demonstrations & clinics, and we sell COBITs. Ross Smith Enterprises incorporated 2021 Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Canada
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Upcoming Events
Clinic - Sundre, Alberta
Fall 2027 - dates tba
Clinics are ideal for farriers, people who do their own & all walks of horse people interested in educating themselves about hoof care. Classroom session includes basic anatomy, common lameness issues, conformation, posture, biomechanics, development of, theory behind the COBIT and how it works.
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Drop Us A Line
We love to hear from you. If you attended a past event, and are using the COBIT, or if you are new here and interested in learning more, let us know.
Farriers & those of you who do your own - We want you to ask questions, so you get the most out of your COBIT
Follow us on social media to stay connected &
Subscribe to our Newsletter
Access Clinic Registration First in our Newsletter - good to know :)
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Lessons & Clinics
Public & private options available.
If you are interested in getting people together to learn how to use the COBIT please use the form below to start the conversation.
Local farriers are welcome to reach out any time to set up an informal meet, talk about a problem horse, or come shoe a horse. Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan
