After having an exciting and rewarding career in racing, we decided to retire Prinzac at the age of 14 years. He was in great shape and still in the top three. We wanted him to live the life of ease that he deserved, but that wasn't the case. He developed a crack in his right front foot. We tried expert farriers and a very expensive farrier but nothing worked until we met John Buzzard and his Cytek Horseshoeing method.

Today the crack that was in Prinzac's foot is all gone and he is completely sound. Now, we have peace of mind knowing that our Prinzac is enjoying his retirement. Thanks to John Buzzard and Cytek, he is comfortable and happy and we are so glad to share this experience with other owners.

I began using Cytek horseshoeing in the summer of 2003 when a new boarder came to my barn. Sly, an 18 year-old Thoroughbred, had a racing injury to his front right hoof. Without Cytek, he would be lame today. The injury still exists, but with Cytek shoes he can be ridden as a normal horse. He can even jump. When his Cytek farrier, John Buzard, would come to the barn, he would take the time to educate me about horse anatomy and the benefits of the Cytek System. Since then, I have all my horses shod using Cytek and every one of them has improved!

In 2005, I started a horse rescue, Hope Rising Youth Ranch. Every horse that has come to my barn has had terrible feet but found relief with Cytek. Stormy, a 14-year-old Quarter Horse, came to my barn with four medicine boots and lame on every foot. Cytek has him walking pain free again. Chief, an 18-year-old Appaloosa, came to my barn with Navicular disease. He was getting weekly shots of cortisone. Now, Cytek has him walking pain free again without cortisone. Fancy, a 9-year-old Rocky Mountain, came to my barn totally foundered. By the third setting, Fancy had "new" feet and now walks pain free. Every horse rescue that has come to our barn has had BAD feet! Cytek has fixed them ALL!

Jamie Colder, my Cytek Ferrier, drives over an hour to our barn every 4 weeks. His absolute dedication and clear concern for these horses is like no other I have seen! Without him and the Cytek System, my rescues would not know how it is to walk pain free. With every horse that is adopted from our ranch, part of our Adoption Agreement is that the new owners continue using the Cytek Horseshoeing System.

Jade is a beautiful cart horse but several years ago she foundered, abscessing in both front feet. She was in agony for over a month; and I was in agony along with her. We spent all our days down at the stream. Many nights I spent in her stall keeping her company while she lay stretched out flat with her head in my lap. I cried a lot those nights.

I read a lot about founder and consulted with several vets and farriers. Everyone seemed to think Jade would never ride a trail or pull a cart again. My reading definitely indicated a connection between founder and excessive weight gain. I put her on a diet of beet pulp and limited hay and she was off grain since foundering. After five weeks, Jade was at least walking much better. She was still extremely tender and slightly off on her right front. I had a vet out to check her, do a blood test, and take x-rays - if the x-rays showed rotation she would certainly never work again. As she finished examining Jade, almost as an afterthought, the vet suggested that I try Cytek shoes on her.

The blood test came back good but the x-rays indeed showed rotation in both front feet. I had, of course, heard of Cytek shoeing before and had considered it for Jade, but at the time I had decided, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it", and continued with what was working. But now, with little else to hope for, I decided to give the Cytek shoes a try.

My local Cytek Farrier, John Buzzard, came as soon as he could after I called him. He quickly showed me where the abscesses had come out and he went to work putting front shoes on her. I was watching Jade's face as I held her and I'm sure I could detect the exact moment when she began to feel the pain go away. When John was finished and I walked her off, she was putting her feet down normally with no tenderness at all. He said I could start riding her anytime.

I couldn't believe my ears-actually start riding her now!! Well I did just that. I took her in the trailer out to my favorite trail and rode. She did wonderfully, and this time if there were tears, they were tears of joy, not sorrow. She is fine now and incidentally, much more slender-she has probably lost 150 pounds on her new diet. You can see where she foundered in her hoof growth, but when that goes away you will never know what happened to her.

I figure that if Cytek shoes did so much good for Jade, they would be good for any horse. Done right, it is not radical at all. If you are at all dissatisfied with conventional shoeing, and most people are at one time or another, it is well worth a try. You'll be glad you did.

When I purchased Walter there were three different sizes of shoe on him and all way too large. His front hooves were long and pan-caked, having the largest shoes. Because his back hooves were too long and narrow, he carried his feet too far forward which dropped his hind quarters down. Walter's gait was terrible to say the least. Over the course of a year using Cytek shoes, his front hooves were reduced three sizes and his back hooves two sizes. With the Cytek system, Walter's front and back legs are now positioned where they are supposed to be and his gait is much smoother and faster.

Sea Bisquit was foundered on her front feet. Her previous owner said I might get one good year of riding if she didn't go lame. Knowing she was a very good horse for beginners or just about anyone to ride, I bought her rather than seeing her destroyed. Her hooves were large, pan-caked and splitting. She moved slowly and heavily on her front legs bringing her feet down hard in her gaits. I tried conventional rim-shoes on her several times but the foundered hooves grew so fast it was as if she had never been shod. The splitting wouldn't stop. Since starting her with Cytek shoes, Sea Bisquit's hooves have been down-sized several times. The spitting is gone and she is faster, smoother and stronger in her gaits. Its been 2 ½ years since I bought Sea Bisquit and with Cytek shoes I expect we will be riding her for a few more years.

Amber is a naturally gaited Missouri Fox Trotter. Her hooves are small and hard. They seem to stay in good condition when she is pastured and not being ridden. With regular rim shoes on her I would only get three to four weeks before they would fall off. There was very little room outside the white line to place a nail to secure the shoe. Since we could only use two or three nails, the shoe could not stay on for any length of time. Switching to Cytek shoes it was possible to use more nails and the heels of her hooves were able to grow correctly. After a couple of shoeings with Cytek, the hoof wall grew thick enough to place four nails in a shoe. It has been two years using Cytek and now Amber can go eight to ten weeks between shoeings.

I bought Coco eight years ago at an auction. Six months later she foundered badly. She was in excruciating pain but still had a lot of heart. I thought, if she can do this, so can I. We got through the initial phase using traditional methods. She could walk again without too much discomfort but she didn't want to trot or canter. So we did what she was capable of and were grateful for that.

Two and a half years ago Casey Sturgeon came to our barn to shoe some of the other horses and I learned about Cytek Horseshoeing. Casey explained the system and I listened and then watched as he trimmed a mare who was still recovering from founder after foaling. He took the mare, hobbling from the stall. When he was finished, she trotted to the end of the aisle and back. She was as surprised as I was to see the transformation in her ability to walk and move without pain.

I asked Casey to look at Coco who hadn't been willing to more than walk in four years. Casey pulled her shoes. I was nervous. What was I doing? She was at least alive. Was I going to set her back? But after seeing the immediate improvement in the mare, I had to try. Casey trimmed a lot of toe, changing the breakover to a more natural one, then, he put the shoes on. Coco trotted out of the barn. I was so surprised my eyes filled with tears of joy. I think Coco was surprised too.

When we went for our "walk" the next day, she broke into her first canter in four years. I cried as she happily cantered around me. In the two and a half years since the change from rim to Cytek shoes, we have actually been able to ride. Though at 26, she now has some other health problems, I know Coco is comfortable in her feet. I don't know where we would be without Casey and his fellow Cytek farriers. They are a Godsend to horse people who want the best for their horses and aren't afraid to try a "new" idea to keep their horses moving as nature intended.

Thanks Casey and gang for showing up when you did.