Questions . . .
How do you clean B4 Boots? 
Do B4 boots cause rubs?
How long do B4 boots last?
Can B4 Boots be repaired?
Is there any way to make B4 boots last longer?
What do I do with my old worn out B4 boots? 
Can I just use B4 boots on my horse’s front hooves?
Can I use a B4 boot as a spare shoe when my horse loses a shoe?
Can I use B4 boots on any breed of horse or equid?
Do I need any tools to put on a B4 boot?
Can I use B4 Boots for Speed Events or Jumping/Cross Country?

How do you clean B4 Boots? 

After riding your horse, you can simply hose the boots off to get most of the dirt off of the boot.   Seed heads and burrs might stick to the neoprene bell and the straps.  You will have to pick the burrs off by hand, wear gloves!   The seed head will gradually soften and fall out of the neoprene bell and straps.  Hosing will not remove them.  Let the boots dry.
If you want to really clean your boots, you can wash them in your washing machine.   Don’t add any soap; just put the boot without the neoprene bell in the washing machine.  Wash the neoprene bell portion separately from the sole of the boot as the Velcro will tear up the neoprene bell. 
If you are at a ride and don’t have a lot of water available, you can let the boots soak in a bucket and then use a brush to scrub them clean.  Then rinse them in another bucket.  You can also let the boots dry and brush them off.   If you have been in deep mud and the mud is caked on, you will most likely need water to get them clean enough to reuse.  
If you are riding back to back rides, it is very important to make sure the inside of the neoprene bell is clean and free of mud or you can cause a rub.
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Do B4 boots cause rubs?

If used properly B4 boots do not normally cause rubs, however, it is best to get your horse used to boots before taking them out on a 25 or 50 mile ride. 
Any hoof boot can cause a rub especially if used improperly.  Not all boots work for every horse.   If you pull on the straps in an attempt to tighten them, you can cause a rub.  If you don’t make sure the neoprene bell is clean, especially the part that is in contact with the skin above the heel bulbs,  you can cause a rub.   At multi-day rides we have found it important to not only clean the neoprene bell, but we also wash the horse’s heel bulbs with a neutral pH cleaner.  The cheap facial cleansing scrubs that are ph balanced work very well for this.
 Some horses have more sensitive skin and are more likely to develop irritation or a rub.  Horses with white socks will show irritation more readily than horse’s with dark colored legs.
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How long do B4 boots last?

It all depends on how much you ride your horse and how your horse travels and the terrain you ride on.  If your horse doesn’t travel cleanly, in other words your horse interferes side to side or forges, there will be telltale wear on the boot and the boot will wear out faster.   Some horses drag their toes and will wear a hole in the toe of the boot rather quickly.   Normal wear and tear can also have hole worn in the boot at the toe at the break over point, but this usually happens after many miles of riding.
If you ride a lot on asphalt, tar and chip or gravel roads, B4 boots won’t last as long, but neither will horse shoes.     We can’t give exact mileage as individual results will vary from horse to horse and rider to rider.
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Can B4 Boots be repaired?

Some parts of a B4 boot can be  can be repaired/replaced.  If a strap comes off of a B4 boot, a new strap can be put back on as long as the tab holding the strap did not rip.  We can also put new side velcros on the sole if they get torn or wear too much.  Neoprene bells can easily be replaced . If you wear out the sole of your boot, the neoprene bell can be used on a new sole portion.  If the sole wears out and the straps, side velcros, toe Velcro , and plastic toe grommets are still in good shape those items can be recycled and put on another new sole.    WE have been able to reuse straps, side velcros and toe velcros on several boot different boot soles.  Some of the neoprene bells have lasted since we first started making boots in 2005.
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Is there any way to make B4 boots last longer?

You can make B4 boots last longer by rotating the boots kind of like you rotate the tires on a car.  If your horse takes the same size boot on all four hooves, rotate the boots from back to front and side to side.  There is no left or right in B4 boots nor a front or back.  If you have a horse that takes one size on the front and a different size on the rear, then rotate the boots from side to side within the pair.  You rotate the boots to keep the wear from occurring in the same place all the time.
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What do I do with my old worn out B4 boots? 

If any of the parts on your B4 boot are still in good shape, we can put those parts on a new sole for you.  This will let you get a new boots for a lower cost.   We are hoping to recycle the sole of the boot into yard mulch or arena footing.  When we take the old boots apart, we remove the metal rivets and recycle them.    We haven’t figured out how to recycle the old straps, but hope to in the future.
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Can I just use B4 boots on my horse’s front hooves?

Yes, you can just use B4 boots on just the front hooves.  Most horses will do fine this way.  Sometimes you will run into a horse that won’t be balanced if only using boots on the front hooves.  Those horses will need boots on all four hooves.   Best example of this is a gaited horse that will preferentially trot when you only put boots on the front hooves.  If you put boots all the way around on this type of horse then they usually balance back up and gait like they normally did before. 
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Can I use a B4 boot as a spare shoe when my horse loses a shoe?

Yes, B4 boots work great for this and we have had some people become B4 Boot users because their horse lost a shoe and then they were able to continue their ride using a B4 boot.  You only need to put the B4 boot on the hoof that lost the shoe.  Do not put a boot over a shoe on the other hoof that still has a shoe.  Some people do this thinking they are balancing the horse but all this does is throw the horse out of balance again.  Never use a B4 boot over a shoe.  Not only can it destroy the B4 boot and your B4 boot warranty.  It is very hard to get the B4 boot off of the shod hoof.
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Can I use B4 boots on any breed of horse or equid?

Yes, you can use B4 boots on any breed of horse or equid  as long as we have a size large enough or small enough for them.   People have successfully used B4 boots on TWHs, Standardbreds, Paso Finos, Arabians, Rocky Mountain Horses,  Tiger Horses, and mules to name a few.
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Do I need any tools to put on a B4 boot?

NO!  No tools are necessary to put on a B4 boot.  You can even put on a B4 boot while wearing gloves.  NEVER EVER use a hammer to put the B4 boot on.  If you need to use a hammer or rubber mallet to apply a B4 boot, then the boot does not fit and you need a larger size.   You do not need  any tools to remove the B4 boot either.  The boot will either fall off on its own when you undo the straps and the neoprene bell or you just give a push with your thumb or the palm of your hand and the boot will pop off.   
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Can I use B4 Boots for Speed Events or Jumping/Cross Country?

If you use B4 boots for speed events like barrel racing, flat racing or pole bending for example, it will void your warranty.   You can canter and gallop your horse in the B4 boot.
Do not use the B4 boot for Cross Country, stadium jumping or fox hunting it will void the warranty.  You can use the B4 boot for doing a few jumps in the paddock or pasture or jumping logs or creeks while trail riding.
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