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SABER-LEGGED: See: Sickle hocked.
SAFED: Describes a horseshoe which has the outer edge of the ground surface of the medial branch beveled. This is done to decrease the chance of it pulling another shoe or causing injury should the horse interfere.
SAGITTAL: [from the Latin sagitta, an arrow]: A sagittal plane divides the left side from the right. Hoof anatomy models are often cut into sagittal section. See also: Transversal.
SALINE: Containing a salt.
SANDCRACK: A hoof crack parallel to the horn tubules. May be superficial or penetrating, and can occur anywhere in the hoof wall.
SCAPLING: Fault of gait which results in the toe of a fore hoof striking the dorsal surface of the lateral hind hoof or leg.
SCIENTIFIC PROCESS: Systematic use of controlled experiments to try to prove AND disprove a given hypothesis.
SCLEROSIS: [from the Greek skleros, hard]: Hardening of soft tissues, especially nerves, due to disease.
SCOTCHED: Describes a horseshoe which has its outer edge sloped outward from the hoof surface down to the ground surface. This is usually done on draft horseshoes to give the horse a greater base of support and create the appearance of a larger hoof.
SDF: Superficial Digital Flexor Tendon. A tendon which runs down the back of the leg, splits below the fetlock, and attaches to the P I and P II. In the hind legs, the SDF acts primarily as a ligament of the stay apparatus.
SEALANT: See: Hoof sealant.
SEATING OUT: Sloping the inner part of the hoof-side of a horseshoe web away from the hoof. This is done to prevent the shoe from putting pressure on the sole.
SEEDY TOE: Spreading of the white line, usually most prevelant and obvious in the forward, toe area of the hoof. The condition may be caused by a number of factors, although it usually is a sequal to chronic laminitis.
SELENIUM: A nonmetallic element. Atomic number 34. Atomic weight 78.96. Selenium is a naturally occurring mineral nutrient which is deficient in nearly all US soil east of the Mississippi, and much of the rest of the nation. Selenium deficiency in horses has been implicated in suspensory ligament soreness, poor hoof growth and quality, and dull haircoat. Cascade, Maryland, farrier Henry Heymering suggests 4mg daily supplemental selenium for horses in selenium poor areas. Frogs discolored yellow are a sign of selenium deficiency.
SEMILUNAR CREST: The inner curve of the coffin bone where the deep digital flexor tendon attaches.
SENSITIVE FROG: Is filled with nerves and blood vessels that nourish the inner and outer structure of the lower limb.
SENSITIVE LAMINAE: Is a covering for the coffin bone and is located between the coffin bone and the horny wall.

SENSITIVE SOLE: A thin layer of tissue on the lower surface of the coffin bone just above the horny sole.
SEPSIS: The presence of disease-causing organisms or their toxins in the blood or tissues.
SEQUESTRUM: [from the Latin sequesto, to sever]: Portion of bone which has become detached in necrosis.
SERVICEABLY SOUND: Describes a horse who is capable of performing the work for which he is intended without becoming lame.
SESAMOID BONES: Are shaped like small pyramids and are attached by ligaments to the long pastern bones.
SESAMOIDITIS: The inflammation or dislocation of the proximal sesamoid bone(s). May involve an actual fracture of a sesamoid bone. Sesamoiditis can be the result of direct injury, uneven weightbearing, or fatigue. a.k.a: Popped sesamoid.
SET: Four horseshoes.
SET TOE: European term for rockered toe.
SHEARED HEELS: Failure of internal structures which normally bind the heels together. Allows the heels to flex apart more than normal, and can cause lameness. This term was sometimes used in the past to denote a jammed heel.
SHELLY WALL: Hoof wall that is thin and tends to split or flake away. It does not support the weight well.
SHIFT: To "shift the shoes" is an archaic term for a reset.
SHIM: A wedge (thicker at the toe).
SHIN SPLINTS: A slight bulge on the splint bone(s)
SHOEBOIL: An injury on the point of the elbow, such as a sore, abcess or bursitis, sometimes caused by heel of the front shoe.
SHOE TONGS: A tool used by farriers at the anvil for holding and shapeing hot horseshoes.
SICKLE HOCKED: A conformation fault in which the horse stands with his hind limbs bent more than normal at the hock, placing the hooves farther forward than ideal. Extreme sickle hocks can be considered an unsoundness. a.k.a: Saber-legged.
SIDE BONE: The ossification of one or both lateral cartilages within the horse's hoof. This sometimes causes lameness, but may be considered a normal part of the aging process in some horses.
SIDE CLIP: Quarter clips. Particularly those placed near the middle of the quarter, on the sides of the hoof.
SIMONDS: Brand of rasps and other farrier products from 1832 to the present.
SINKER: A grave case of founder in which laminitis has destroyed so many of the laminae that the bone column is no longer suspended and begins to sink within the hoof.
SIRE: A horse's paternal ancestor (father).
SLICK: A flat horseshoe with nothing on it.
SLOPING: Sloping hooves are those with a low angle to the ground, usually 50 degrees or less.
SLOPING PASTERN: A sloping pastern is one that is lower than 50 degrees.
SMITHY: smithy:(1) The building or shop in which a blacksmith or farrier works and keeps his tools. (2) Incorrectly used as a synonym for the blacksmith or horseshoer, which is a bit like calling an auto mechanic a garage.
SNOWBALL HAMMER: A combination hoofpick and hammer often carried aboard coaches. Used to break up and remove packed snow and ice from the horse's hooves.
SOLAR: The bottom aspect of the horse's hoof.
SOUND: Describes a horse who is not lame, and has no conditions or defects likely to lead to lameness in the future.
SPAVIN: [from the Old French espavent]: Any swelling or abnormal growth in or on the hock. A "bog spavin" is a soft swelling on the medial and/or dorsal surface of the hock. A "blood spavin" is an enlarged vein, and a harmless blemish. A "bone spavin" is an exostosis on any of the tarsal bones. Large bone spavins are called "jack spavins". "Blind" or "occult spavins" are exostosises not visible on the exterior of the hock.
SPECIALIZED SHOEING: Shoeing a specific specialized breed or type of horse.
SPEED CUTTING: (1) A gait fault which results in the interference of lateral limbs at the canter or gallop. (2) High scalping by trotters. (3) Used to denote knee hitting in some texts circa 1900.
SPIKE: Spike: One of the five basic hoof shapes listed in the eagle eye approach suggested by Scott Simpson, CJF. The Spike pattern is generally square, with straight quarters and sharply turned in heels. The widest point of the foot is midway between the toe and heels.
SPLAY-FOOTED: The toes of the front hooves are turned outward and the weight is thrown to the inside.
SPLINT: Exostosis on the ligament which attaches a splint bone to the cannon bone, forming a bump on the leg. Splints are usually caused by trauma or heavy stress on the legs of a young horse. Lameness may be evident during the "green" phase, but when ossification is complete, the splint is considered a blemish.
SPLINT BONE: Either of the two long, slender bones which run along the back of each cannon bone. The splint bones are attached to the cannon bone by ligaments which eventually ossify and fuse the bones together. The inner splint bone is the second metacar pal in the fore limbs and the second metatarsal in the hinds. The outer splint bone is the fourth metacarpal in the fores and the fourth metatarsal in the hinds.
SPRUNG SHOE: A shoe that is nailed on the hoof and then is caught by something that forces it apart. The shoe is spread wider that the hoof.
SQUARE TOE: A horseshoe shaped so that the toe of the shoe does not follow the curve of the hoof but is instead made square, and usually fit with the toe of the hoof extending out over the shoe. Square toed shoes are usually used on hind hooves to center and speed up breakover, and/or to prevent damage to the foreleg and its shoe should the horse overreach.
STABBING: Toe-first landing of a hind foot which causes it to stab into soft turf.
STAG: Male horse castrated after developing secondary sex characteristics.
STALLION: Adult male sexually mature, ungelded horse.
STALLJACK: A miniature anvil with a built-on stand. Used by platers to shape light horseshoes without setting down the hoof.
STANDARD: Brand of horseshoes from 1890 until around 1940.
STAY APPARATUS: The configuration of anatomical structures which allow the horse to remain in the standing position with extremely little muscular effort.
STEEL: An alloy of iron and carbon.The carbon in steel, usually between 0.2 and 2.0% allows it to be hardened and tempered. Modern steels often contain additional elements for other qualities as well.
STICKER: A light, sharp form of heel calk often used on the lateral side of hind race horseshoes.
STIFLE SHOE: A horseshoe designed to prevent the horse from bearing full weight on the shod foot. In older texts, the stifle shoe is called a patten shoe.
STIFLED: A stifled horse suffers from recurring, temporary immobilization of the hock due to the locking of the patella. This condition can be corrected through surgery.
STOCKS: A large framework used to immobilize a horse and hold the hoof in position for shoeing. Shoeing stocks are commonly used for heavy draft horses, and sometimes for unmanageable smaller horses.
STRAIGHT BEHIND: A horse that is "straight behind" has less than normal angulation of the hock and stifle joints. Also called "post legged."
STRAIGHT PASTERN: A straight pastern often means that there is too little angle between the pastern and the cannon bone - a pastern that is higher than 60 degrees to the ground in an adult horse.
STRATUM MEDIUM: The inner unpigmented layer of hoof wall.
STRAWBERRY: See: Bruise.
STUBBY: One of the five basic hoof shapes listed in the eagle eye approach suggested by Scott Simpson, CJF. The Stubby pattern is generally round, but wider than it is long. The widest part of the hoof will be about midway between the toe and heels.
STUD: A stallion used for breeding.
STUD MULE: Uncastrated male mule (mules are usually sterile).
STUMPY: Stumpy hooves are unusually upright hooves - more than 60 degrees.
SULCUS: 1) The deep narrow space on either side of the frog, between the side of the frog and the bars. 2) The sometimes deep and narrow groove that bisects the frog, starting at the back of the frog and running toward the point, becoming progressivley narrower. Not all frogs have this middle groove.
SUPERFICIAL CRACK: Any kind of hoof crack which does not expose sensitive tissues or cause lameness. a.k.a: Surface crack.
SUPERFICIAL FLEXOR TENDON: Functions differently in the front and hind legs. In front, the SFT passes down the back of the leg and bifurcates (divides) below the fetlock and attaches to the bottom end of the long pastern and upper end of the short pastern bone at the pastern joint. At the sesamoids, it passes over and forms a collar around the deep flexor tendon. It is most frequently the tendon that develops tendinitis or bowed tendon syndrome.
The SFT of the hind leg functions mostly as a ligament in the "stay apparatus" of the limb. The SFT passes through the center of a small muscle mass from the back of the femur and attaches to the point of the hock. Below the hock there is no muscular effect on the tendon, it acts completly as a ligament.
SURFACE CRACK: See: Superficial Crack.
SUSPENSORY LIGAMENT: Is attached to the cannon bone between the two splint bones.
SWEDGE BLOCK: A molding tool which straps onto the anvil and/or fits into its hardie hole. Different swedge blocks can be used to modify barstock which can then be forged into rim shoes, polo plates, and other shoes with special cross-sections. a.k.a: Swage block.
SWEDGED SHOE: Any of a number of horseshoe styles which have the ground side molded into a traction modifying pattern. Most feature a deep groove which runs the whole way around the shoe.
SWEENY: Deterioration of the muscles in a horse's shoulder due to nerve damage.
SWELLED HEEL: The heel of a horseshoe which is folded up onto the hoof surface of the shoe. The hoof surface is then leveled. Swelled heels raise the heels of the hoof without creating as much traction as blocked heels or heel calks.
SYNOVIAL FLUID: [from the Greek syn, with; and Latin ovum, egg]: A very slippery, oil-like substance which is produced by the body to lubricate the joints and tendons.

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