The primary function of a horse’s boots is to protect its lower legs or hooves from trauma and injuries. But at the same time, the type of shoes your horse needs depends on various factors such as horse conformation, breed, or activity.
For instance, boots needed for show jumping would not be suitable for traveling or vice versa. Therefore it is essential to know the needs and requirements of your horse to make the right decision.
To help you choose the perfect jumping boots for your horse, we have listed below the five best horse boots for jumping. Plus, we have made a practical buying guide to help you determine your horse boot types.
Let’s get started.
Quick Picks
Before diving deep into details, here are our top picks for the best jumping boots for horses.
Best overall: Our today’s winner for best jumping boots for horses is Kavallerie Dressage. These modern boots with advanced 3D mesh construction keep your horse’s legs cool in hot summers. Plus, its hard shell is shock absorbent making it a safe choice for your horse and preventing them from strikes and bangs.
Other features include simple on and off application, easy to clean, breathable material, lightweight, and more. Kavallerie Dressage jumping boots for horses is indeed a great addition to your tack collection.
Best budget option: Shires Arma Neoprene Brushing Boots is horses’ most affordable jumping boots. They are inexpensive and equal in quality to any other high-end boot in the market. Its features include ergonomic fit, shock-absorbent, and adjustable double touch closure. Above all, it is available in various colors and sizes, making it suitable for all types of horses.
Best Horse Boots for Jumping
Are you looking for horse boots, the ones that are safe and meet your riding discipline? We have prepared a list of the best five jumping boots for horses made of high-quality material and provide greater protection to your horse while showjumping or walking.
1. Kavallerie Dressage
Kavallerie Dressage is known for its elegant boot designs and high-quality horse products. The Kavallerie 3-D boots air-mesh exterior allows the heat to dissipate through the micro-perforation. This modern feature is beneficial for horses as it reduces the chances of injuries such as inflammation or damage to other soft tissues.
The brand is famous for introducing some of the coolest and futuristic looking pairs of horse jumping boots. Also, their stylish designs never compromise the well-being and safety of your horse.
This high–end product comes with shock-absorbent technology that helps protect the horse legs from substantial blows during showjumping or rough walk.
Another amazing feature is its triple elastic strap for closure that makes it relatively easy for your horse to wear and take off. These pairs offer a strong grip and keep the horse leg in place while performing or riding at different tracks—making it an all-purpose field boots.
Horse owners who use these boots are impressed by their looks and how they support their horse’s legs during dressage training and galloping.
Undoubtedly, Kavallerie Dressage 3-D boots are prepared with superior material and are one of the best jumping boots available in the market right now, hence way too expensive as well.
Honestly, these pairs of jumping boots are the most expensive on our list but compared to their great quality and protection against tendon injuries; we would say the product is worth the price.
Pros
- Available in two colors (black and white)
- 3D Air mesh construction
- Lightweight
- Shock absorbent
- Easy to clean
Cons
- Quite expensive
- Only available in one size
2. Shires Arma Neoprene
These pairs of jumping boots for horses are designed for daily use. They are the best brushing boots for horses. Shires Arma Neoprene shockproof design gives your horse the ultimate protection from scuffs and blows. Additionally, its double touch close fastening offers excellent support to your horses’ legs. Also, an adjustable strap makes it very easy to wear and take off.
These horse jumping boots have neoprene construction and have contoured strike pads for an ergonomic fit.
The feature that any horse owner will like most about these brushing boots; they are easy to clean, meaning no fussy cleaning. However, the boot sizing is a way off, as many customers complain about getting huge boots even if they order cobs size, which is very disappointing!
But still a fantastic product for the price.
Pros
- Available in different colors
- Shock absorbent
- Adjustable straps
- Good fit
- Breathable
Cons
- Bad sizing
- Poor packaging
3. TGW RIDING Horse
TWG Riding Sports Medicine shoes make a great range of jumping boots for horses. These super cute pairs of boots are available in many brilliant colors, from bright red to vibrant green to dark black.
Also, the boots come in three different sizes (small, medium, and large), so you can select the one that fits your four-legged friend perfectly. TWG’s horse jumping boots have a soft neoprene outer shell that offers maximum support and protection to horse tendons and ligaments.
Additionally, these riding boots are designed to cover all sides of your horse legs and have a strap that goes beneath the fetlock joint — it gives your horse excellent support and fit.
Moreover, these boots are double stitched, which enhances their durability. Therefore, you can use these boots both during training and competition. Plus, its lightweight allows free movement of limbs while working.
Pros
- Triple Velcro closure
- Different color and size options
- Lightweight
- Durable against mud and water
- Double-stitched for quality
Cons
- Sizing issues
- Straps may become non-sticky after sometime
4. HORZE Chicago
Need inexpensive horse jumping boots that are also best at protecting your horse ligaments from damage? Then opt for Horze Chicago fetlock shoes; their compact design, lightweight, and adjustable strap make them perfect tendon boots for showjumping and riding.
In addition, these jumping boots contain hard outer shells that protect the horse fetlocks from knocking or striking during jumping. Also, the inner neoprene lining of the Horze boots prevents the horse from rubbing or any other discomfort.
Moreover, these boots’ soft neoprene lining gives exceptional comfort and support to the equine while working for hours on trail or ring. These boots feature a strong hook and loop closure that keeps the boot in its place and provides a secure walk even in muddy conditions.
Compared to others, these boots are simple yet have an elegant design and are available in a wide range of colors. However, their non-breathable material and thin lining will cause the horse legs to absorb more heat, causing them more prone to injuries such as tendons and other soft tissue damage.
Pros
- Available in different size
- Very easy to clean
- Lightweight
- Adjustable straps
Cons
- Thick neoprene lining cause more heat retention
- No air vents
5. Classic Rope Company Neoprene Skid Boot
These stylish skid boots from a Classic Rope Company are a great choice for every horse. The skid boots have a simple closure system that makes the pairs safe and easy to wear and remove.
The Classic boot’s flexible design and smooth neoprene material best fit and allow maximum protection to your horse. Furthermore, its smooth Neolite texture is abrasion-resistant. With that said, these skid boots are costly for their quality.
Pros
- Abrasion-resistant
- No-turn rolls
- Easy on and off application
Cons
- Quite expensive for the quality
- Only available in one size and color
- No air vents
How to Choose Horse Jumping Boots
There are a few things to consider while purchasing jumping boots for your horse.
Material
Look for all-purpose horse boots with their outer shells made of leather or neoprene and lined with wool, fleece, or neoprene. The boots should contain Velcro closures to give good support to your horse.
However, the wood and fleece boots feel pretty comfortable on your horse feet but require extra care during wet weather. Also, it would be great if you buy horse boots that are good at holding moisture.
The purpose of horse boots is to protect the equines from lower leg injuries. For that reason, consider buying boots with mesh linings. Mesh lining makes the boots very breathable, which prevents your horse legs from heating and makes them less vulnerable to tendon damage or other soft tissue injuries.
Plus, mesh lining boots are light in weight and quick-drying, which gives your horse comfort and lowers the chances of rubbing.
Size
Another important factor to consider while purchasing jumping boots for your horse is the correct sizing. Typically horse boots are available in three sizes: small, medium, and large. However, very few boots are also manufactured to fit ponies and extra-large equines.
Most horse boot companies, mainly those that manufacture support wraps, offer a sizing chart to their customers with their product packaging. Generally, the horse’s weight, height, and breed, combined with the circumference of its leg, gives you an accurate estimation of your horse’s boot size.
Usually, many equines need smaller size shoes on their front legs and one size larger shoes for their hind legs.
Fit
Make sure that the jumping boots you are buying for your horses must fit them nicely. Typically, there should be one finger distance between the horse leg and the boots — snug fit. The boot should not be too small or too big; otherwise, dirt will go inside and cause rubbing or slide downward, influencing the horse movements.
In fact, if the shoes are too tight, then it may damage the horse’s ligament. Likewise, check the length of your horse boots as well. If the boots are too long and cover the back of the horse’s knees, it will disrupt the normal movement.
However, the boot should be long enough to cover the cannon bone as well as the fetlock area of your horse.
FAQs
Let’s quickly answer some of your queries.
While buying new protective boots for your horse, consider a few things to get the right one. There is a possibility that you may need to buy more than one shoe type for different activities.
First, decide what riding activity you need to boot for, such as trail riding, jumping, or doing flatwork? If you’re heading for jumping, then your horse needs more solid shoes, as in jumping, your horse is more prone to hard leg stick injury than any other riding discipline. On the other hand, your horse will do fine in flatwork riding while wearing splint boots.
The second important thing to keep in mind is the boot material. Horse boots are available in different materials such as leather, neoprene, fleece, or PVC. Choose boots that are light in weight but made of strong material.
Other things include; water retaining capacity, breathable material, soft inner lining, etc.
Ice boots are leg wraps designed especially for horses to give cold therapy to their lower legs in case of injury or inflammation. Cold therapy helps wounds heal quickly and reduce the pain and swelling from the legs after a heavy workout.
Similar to human nails, the horse hooves do not have any pain receptors; that’s why nailing a shoe into horse hooves doesn’t hurt. But a horseshoe that is improperly mounted will definitely hurt the horse. Because incorrectly mounted shoes can cause friction between the frog and the soft tissues of the horse soles, which causes pain and results in lameness.
This depends on the health of your horse hooves, the type of terrain equine ride upon, the speed, and the time you spend horse riding. If the horse hooves do not have optimal barefoot health, you need to boot your horse with all four hooves.
However, it is proven that only the horse front hooves need protection, whereas the back legs are comfortable without. But if your healthy-footed horse is going on a long ride upon rough terrain, then he probably needs boots on all four hooves.
Conclusion
Today, many horse leg boots are available in the market, with options ranging from size to type and colors. We have enlisted the five best jumping boots for horses for your ease. You can select the boots based on your horse riding activities.
However, many equestrians consider horse boots a good practice to protect the horse from sudden injuries.
