A Tennessee Walking Horse earns his keep with a smooth, four-beat running walk, and that gait depends on four clean, comfortable feet. Sand from a ring, gravel from a driveway, and mud from a pasture all pack into the sole as he travels, and because his stride is long and overreaching, the hind feet in particular can pick up and press in debris.
Ask for the foot calmly and stand in the safe zone
Work on a flat, dry surface with the horse tied or held, and begin at the left front. Stand at his shoulder facing his tail, run your hand down the back of the leg to the fetlock, and lean lightly into his shoulder so he unweights that leg before you squeeze the fetlock and lift. Walking Horses are generally willing and people-oriented, but a tall individual can set a foot down with real weight if he is startled, so keep your movements quiet and your own feet out from under his.
At the hind end, position yourself at his hip, slide your hand down, and lift the foot up and slightly back while your body stays at his flank.
Heel to toe, with attention to the hind feet
Place the hoof pick at the heel and pull it forward toward the toe on every stroke. That direction pushes packed material out of the grooves beside the frog instead of wedging it deeper toward the heel bulbs. Clean one frog groove, then the other, then sweep the sole, shaking the loosened dirt free so you can judge what is actually hoof and what is still packed ground.
A Walking Horse's hind hoof lands well up under his body in stride, and small stones can lodge at the shoe's edge or in the groove where arena footing has been compacted. Run a thumb along the outline of each shoe as well as the pick, feeling for a bent branch, a risen nail head, or grit packed so hard it needs a stiff brush after picking. Do not dig into the frog itself or pry at the central groove; clean beside it and leave the tissue intact.
Connect what you find to how he travels
A horse who was gliding last week and feels rough or short-strided today may simply have a stone bruise brewing or a shoe starting to work loose. While each foot is up, check for a shoe that shifts under hand pressure, heat in one hoof wall compared with its pair, a sour smell and blackened, ragged frog that suggests a thrushy foot needing a drier routine, or a tender spot where he flinches as the pick crosses the sole.
If you find a puncture, a nail anywhere in the sole, or sudden strong heat with reluctance to bear weight, stop riding plans, keep the foot clean, and call your veterinarian that day. A loose or twisted shoe is a farrier call before the next ride, since a gaited horse traveling at speed on a shifting shoe can tear hoof wall when it finally goes.
Build the check around his riding schedule
Pick before saddling so nothing hard is sealed under the foot when he starts traveling, and again as soon as you come in, while you can still connect anything you find to the footing he just crossed. Horses kept on pasture benefit from an evening pick at feeding, when wet ground has had all day to soften and pack the grooves.
When a trainer, family member, and feeder all handle the same horse across a week, KinsLe Care Teams can put those pre-ride and evening hoof checks on this Walking Horse's duty list, with the person who did them marking each check complete and timestamped.