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  Discussion on Davis protective splint boots
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Member:
Imogen

Posted on Saturday, Jan 31, 2004 - 3:46 pm:

A quick plug for Davis (an American company) protective splint boots which go on the front legs and have metal buckles that the velcro straps go through before returning to fix on the boot.

They are soft but rubber/plasticky, not made of material and incredibly tough. They are fantastic and have saved both my horses from wire injuries when out hunting whereas expensive neoprene etc. would be trashed first time out and wouldn't save the legs.

I think from looking at the Davis website that these boots are actually intended for western horses when they are being trained to do cutting out etc. but I tell you, they are the BUSINESS for general protection when jumping solid cross country fences or wire.

(and for the hind legs I recommend Berney Brothers own brand Irish brushing boots cost 55 euros a pair including postage - they are also jolly nearly indestructible for all of you who are sick of buying snazzy looking things that come back full of holes within a couple of weeks)

The problem: our local tack shop doesn't stock Davis any more and my current pair are getting too old.

I went to the Davis website and eventually got an email back from a "contacts specialist" working on contract for them telling me that Shires (a big tack retailer) sell them in the UK (no point in trying to buy them online in the US because the postage costs would be more than the boots!). So I went to the Shires website - it's slow, with a useless search function and they don't reply to email.

Does anyone (preferably in Europe/UK) know a tack shop that sells them? Or does anyone have experience of dealing with Shires by phone? Are they any good? I really resent getting stuck in call centre wonderland when I'm paying an international call to phone the UK in the first place...

All the best, thanks for any tips you may have

Imogen
Member:
Imogen

Posted on Saturday, Feb 28, 2004 - 12:30 pm:

An update. Fellow board-member Cheryl Anderson very kindly bought me a pair of these in Canada and brought them over to Ireland (she's visiting family and horse-hunting) where she posted them to me. Wonderful! Thank you Cheryl and I hope you found the horse of your dreams.

But... when I unpacked the boots, although they look the same shape, closures etc. on close inspection the actual protective material is a shoddy imitation of what Davis used to sell and would never stand up to a wire cut. I am going to try to contact Davis directly (they have a marketing lady on an outsource contract who replies to website enquiries) and find out what happened to a previously wonderful product (want to bet outsourcing was involved...?).

It just goes to show that as with human shoes, when you find something that really WORKS - buy several extra pairs immediately. Don't wait.

All the best

Imogen
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