Does a horse need to be shod for XC?

[**Krista**]

Does a horse need to be shod for XC?

Reason i'm asking is Dev is only shod at the front and is barefoot behind.. Ill be doing XC pretty regularly when i get him so i was wondering what everyone else did...

[Colorado Sunset]

no, but id recommend it. I know theres a lot of people on here who will give you the whys for barefoot better than i can and there are a lot of arguments and cases that do show horses can cope with no shoes at all in high level eventing. However, if your horse has shoes on the front and you will be competing in a variety of weathers, surfaces, etc, i would have him shod and put studs in, just in case.

[Just.Jump]

Do some research on barefoot horses, and you'll find they can do just as good/better than shod horses do, for many many reasons. I would say just remove the shoes altogether, but it's your choice. Do look it up though, there are plenty of pictures as proof, known ones are of eventing horses, just to proove that in your specific case, barefoot is a very good option. Shoes can effect the horses takeoff and turning quality as well. I could blabber on all day, but I'll let you form your own opinion. :cool:

[Holly B]

OK, slightly biased answer coming up from a barefoot fan :rolleyes: but personally I'd either a) leave him how he is i.e. shod in front only but put studs in for extra grip or b) take them off completely. Unshod hooves actually give a lot of grip, though I'd be wary of competing on very soft and slippy going. Or, I suppose, there's option c) use boots e.g. Old Macs when he is ridden and take them off when he's in the field or whatever. There's some types I think that you can put studs in aswell. I don't know, having never used them, but it might be possible to use boots only on the front hooves. You could use them when the going is more slippery, but leave them off if you think he'll be fine and the ground is firm enough. :)

[MelanieD]

You don't have to have shoes all around to do XC. The only problem with not having back shoes is not being able to use studs but unshod feet have much better grip than shod feet anyway so you probably wouldn't need studs. Unless you have opinions about keeping horses barefoot (I'm one that does, and my horse jumps much better without shoes) then keep him as he is and see how it goes, you can always have back shoes put on if you find he isn't coping or try taking the front ones off as well if you want!

[Funky MeerKAT]

From experience I personaly would never event without shoes and studs, the thought is scary!! But it really depends what level you are doing, if the jumps are under 90cm it would probably be OK, but i just know that my horses feel much for secure with shoes and studs.

[**Krista**]

OK, sorry barefoot fans but i wont be going naked with him!! So if i get him shod on the back, do i put studs on behind or in front or both?

[charlotte+jill!]

My horse is shod allround, we event and i hardly ever go XC without studs alround, one in each foot. It helps him and gives him more confidance, and there for he is more bold and less worried, just what you need for XC.

Just one thing though when you start using studs you'll start an ever growing collection :D lol!

[**Krista**]

Gosh there is so much to know about.. so what type of studs do you all use?

[charlotte+jill!]

Hee hee, well you can get a simple stud kit for about £20 has all your kit with the simple wet and dry studs. We also have road studs, more pointy short ones, and longer pointy ones. Theres loads out there....... the self tapping ones are really good and quick......... but anywhere that sells them should help you out with any questions you have :)

[eventerbabe]

Gosh there is so much to know about.. so what type of studs do you all use?
i seem to remember the big, long square studs are best used in the wet, the smaller, more pointy ones in drier conditions. been yonks since i used them though!! tbh, i wouldn't bother with studs if its just a local competition. i did a lot of xc with my pony and i never used studs on him, too worried he might injure me when i fell off!! which was a regular occurence :rolleyes:

[**Krista**]

He he.. yep thats prob going to happen a fair bit.. i guess i'll play it by ear. we'll have a course at the yard so i'll know it pretty well so i'm sure i'll be able to use my judgement whatever happens!!

[Bay Mare]

From experience I personaly would never event without shoes and studs, the thought is scary!! But it really depends what level you are doing, if the jumps are under 90cm it would probably be OK, but i just know that my horses feel much for secure with shoes and studs.


Check out the Enlightened Equitation Barefoot forum (http://www.enlightenedequitation.com/members/forums/index.php?showtopic=2444). If you go to pages 2 onwards you'll see that she's not exactly doing diddy jumps!

[charlotte+jill!]

Bay mare, i think whether you have you horse barefoot or shod is a personal thing which you must work out which is best for your horse. My little mare was perfectally happy barefoot, she wasnt the best jumper being a marey mare! :rolleyes: but was happy barefoot.

Whereas my horse now Scooby, i have him shod and personally he wouldnt suit his competitive carrer unshod as without studs on slippery or odd ground he isnt as brave and wont give 100%. But with those studs popped in hes alot more confident in himself. If he wasnt competing/when he retires his shoes will most prob be hung up too.

[Just.Jump]

While it is personal preference, a well known fact in the barefoot circle is that shoes, and moreso when there are studs involved, slow down a horses turning and pushing off. So if your in XC or SJ and you know you need to go fast (like a jump off or if you realize you've been going much too slow in the XC phase of eventing) it will give you a slower time. Plus, imagine how much nicer the takeuoff and landing points would be if, for instance, everybody went barefoot at a competition in the rain! There wouldn't be huge, muddy, slippery, and generally chopped up ground on those points.

It's your choice, but for most horses, giving barefoot a try wouldn't hurt them at all. If anything, the transition period may be har,d but afterwards it should be great.

Here's food for thought: a great, fabulously trained XC horse is going for a jump, everything is fine and perfect. Rider position is great, horse postion is great, but the horse still comes down in a wreck over the jump. Or in SJ, (I've seen it in a televised Spruce Meadows comp. a week or two ago, the double slalome) you get the horse and rider going well but for some reason the horse gets up into the air and right after takeoff it all goes bad. This one horse jumped into the air and just seemed to slow as soon as he left the ground, he almost landed on top of it, knowcked down two or three bars. Whiel we can never be certain in these cases of perfect positions, what it it is, in fact, the shoes and heavy duty studs? They could, in fact, be messing up a horses mental ability to judge how or when to take off. They can't feel through that metal, so it's a perfectly viable reason.

BayMare, you posted a GREAT link! Gives me hope that more people will see that going barefoot is goooooood :D

[charlotte+jill!]

Time is an issue is me and Scooby ............ we're too fast sooooo i dread to think what Scooby would be like without shoes if what your saying is true.(which i can see the reasons behind it, so i can easily see it being true)

If there was rain everyone barefoot, landing and takeoff would still get clopped up and would still be slippy cos its mud! And the horses would be still exurting a force onto a surface that is going to give way.