12/17/2025
“Just rasp the toe! Once you know what the toe length should be, you just rasp the dorsal wall to get there.”
Often said sarcastically, but it reveals a genuine misunderstanding.
This mornings “Comment to concept”
The misunderstanding
That “toe length” is a single linear target that can be achieved by shortening the dorsal wall, independent of:
• Heel height
• Phalangeal alignment
• Hoof capsule orientation
This is two-dimensional thinking applied to a three-dimensional system.
The biomechanical concept
When considering biomechanical efficiency, we are not aligning a single point.
We are trying to bring multiple functional points into relationship:
• Point of Breakover (PoB)
• PPSH
• CoR
• Centre of Pressure (CoP)
These points do not exist in isolation.
They move relative to one another as a function of:
• Heel-to-toe height ratio
• Phalangeal alignment
• Hoof capsule orientation to the ground
Changing toe length alone only moves one variable along a single plane!!
Why rasping the toe is often the wrong lever
In a hoof with a broken-back phalangeal alignment:
• The centre of rotation of the distal limb is displaced caudally
• The functional PoB is also displaced caudally relative to the hoof capsule
• The CoP remains misaligned, even if “base proportions” look correct in 2D
In this situation:
• Shortening the toe does not realign the system
• Excessive dorsal wall removal simply alters capsule thickness and mass
• The moment arm remains, because the geometry has not been corrected
In many cases, restoring base proportions and reducing distal limb moments is achieved by restoring heel height, not by destroying toe.
This is why toe length cannot be discussed absent of alignment.
Why this is a 3-D problem
Heel height changes:
• Phalangeal orientation
• The spatial position of the distal joints
• The relative location of PoB and CoP in all three planes
Toe rasping mainly changes:
• One linear distance along the ground plane
They are not mechanically equivalent interventions.
A simple trigonometry fact
In a right-angled triangle:
A small change in angle produces a large change in horizontal distance when the hypotenuse is long.
Applied to the hoof:
• The phalanges form an angled structure
• Raising the heels slightly changes the angle
• That angular change shifts the horizontal position of the centre of rotation and PoB far more effectively than removing a similar amount of toe length
This is why changing alignment often realigns moments more efficiently than shortening the toe! (Image below showing elevation shortens level arm).
What the research supports
• Distal limb moments are governed by lever arms and joint orientation, not by absolute toe length (Eliashar et al., 2004).
• Breakover timing and tendon strain are influenced by both toe length and heel height, via changes in limb geometry (Clayton et al., 2011).
• Phalangeal alignment fundamentally alters where forces act relative to the hoof capsule, affecting efficiency and load distribution (Clayton & Back, 2013).
• External reference points and templates can be used to establish functional efficiency when alignment is appropriate, without mandatory radiography (Dyson, 2011).
Take-home message
Toe length is an outcome, not a prescription.
Without addressing alignment and heel-to-toe proportions, rasping the toe is a 2-D solution to a 3-D problem.
Join me tomorrow 11am GMT where I will outline the considerations and physics of toe length.
https://equineeducationhub.thinkific.com/courses/toelength
