A special committee on shoeing and hoof care that was formed coming out of the Welfare and Safety of the Racehorse Summit held in October 2006 is calling for a ban of toe grabs with a height greater than four millimeters on the front shoes of Thoroughbred racehorses.

The committee began meeting in January to follow through on the Welfare and Safety Summit recommendation to ban certain horseshoes that research has shown to be detrimental to the soundness and safety of racehorses. In recommending a ban of toe grabs greater than four millimeters, the committee is focused on the use of “regular” and “high” (or Quarter Horse) toe grabs, which have a 6.4- and 9.5-millimeter toe grab, respectively.

Research by Dr. Sue Stover of the University of California-Davis has demonstrated that high toe grabs on front shoes make a Thoroughbred 16 times more likely to suffer a catastrophic injury while racing.

The California Horse Racing Board passed a rule prohibiting toe grabs in February 2006 and is scheduled to discuss enforcement of it at its Feb. 22 meeting. On Jan. 23, however, a majority of CHRB members voted against enforcing the regulation