Here's some help on going barefoot...

[Spotty_Pony]

Ok, my mum and I made our horses go barefoot, but my pony didn't cope very well; after about 3 months he was still hobbleing and became quite nappy. My mum's horse on the other hand, loved barefoot! He has strong blue feet (He's percheronX) but we put shoes back on both of them. My mum's horse keeps throwing his shoes and my pony is the best he's ever been! So, it suits different horses, no reason why you shouldn't try it though!

Apparently, having shoes on their feet restricts their frog from pumping blood to the heart- that's why you sometimes hear of horses randomly dropping down dead with a heart attack!

And, horses put 2/3 of their weight on their front feet- so you may want to wean them off slowly by putting front shoes on first.

We take the shoes off in winter when they're in light work, but we put Old Mac Boots on which work a dream- just make sure you get them fitted PROFESSIONALLY.

Hope this helped!
SP

[appaloosahoney]

Hi , My 16 year old appy has been barefoot for 7 months. I hack out in boa boots and school without. I cannot believe the difference it has made to her general going and it would seem to her temperament. She has always had terrible feet (not a normal appy thing) and due to recurrent uveitus is blind in one eye. Before I took her shoes off, she slid often, hated going down hills and was unhappy and becoming unsafe on the roads. I had reached the stage where really I had nothing to lose. She is now a joy to ride and school. I have no idea if going barefoot has caused this change but it has my vote!!

[Spotty_Pony]

Wow! My appaloosa did all of those things that you mentioned without shoes on. Weird! I wish he would be ok with out shoes... but I guess that horses are domesticated and do things that wild horses wouldn't, like riding on the roads ect. therefore, most horses can't cope without shoes. However, I'm definately for going barefoot! Hehe!

[Bay Mare]

but I guess that horses are domesticated and do things that wild horses wouldn't, like riding on the roads ect. therefore, most horses can't cope without shoes.

I've answered on your other thread but most domesticated horses COULD and DO do things like riding on the roads etc barefoot. There are barefoot horses who do endurance, BHS trec, hunting, sj, xc, dressage, hacking, racehorses etc etc etc

As I said on the other thread it's all about the trimming, transitioning and conditioning. Very often barefoot won't work or fails because the owner doesn't have the time or patience to spend going barefoot. They may not want to curtail their activities or to spend time looking after the foot.

Most horses could cope without shoes given the correct work, it's owners that often can't cope :)

[EnduranceAli]

Frayne has been getting increasingly nappy (bearing in mind she is only being exercised inhand at the moment). She is very footy over the stone track from the yard to the road - walks slowly with head down, trys to get on grass wherever possible. She is fine when she gets to the smooth tarmac. Yesterday she refused to come out of the indoor school - and it took 3 of us (and 2 other horses) over 15 minutes (with carrots and polos :rolleyes: ) to persuade her. She was fine when she first arrived, but since doing more work on hard surfaces she is getting worse by the day. Could this be caused by being barefoot - or is it more likely just a behavioural problem that has become worse in her new environment?

[Yann]

Very possible I'd say, in combination or otherwise, makes lots of sense for a horse to avoid anything that they might percieve as damaging to their feet. The easiest way to find out if it is would be to rig up some temporary foot protection or borrow some hoof boots and see if there's any difference, although the horse is bound to continue to be cautious at first.

[Spotty_Pony]

Could this be caused by being barefoot - or is it more likely just a behavioural problem that has become worse in her new environment?

I would do an experiment, put all of the shoes back on and give her a few weeks and possibly keep a diary of whether or not she improves. But, in my opinion, I would say it's her feet... (From experience) :) Hope this helps.

[Bling]

Some horses really do have more sensitive/delicate feet---probably because domestic breeding hasn't always selected for good feet. In the wild all the horses are indeed barefoot. The delicate ones don't survive. . .

[Spotty_Pony]

mmm...

[appaloosahoney]

Just received a briliant tip from the girl at simple systems, apparently spraying barefoot hooves with a 50/50 mix of cider vinegar and water (use a mister that you use for plants) prevents thrush - anyone else heard this one. I'll definately be trying that one out

[Bay Mare]

Just received a briliant tip from the girl at simple systems, apparently spraying barefoot hooves with a 50/50 mix of cider vinegar and water (use a mister that you use for plants) prevents thrush - anyone else heard this one. I'll definately be trying that one out


I don't tend to use it as a preventative but have used it for thrush very successfully. Borax also works well for some horses.

[horses4lf]

my horse is bare foot and loves it :)

[eml]

My horses generally go without shoes unless they have a particular need , generally the flat footed TB's although with good farriers even a lot of these can develop the foot enough to go unshod at least behind.

I do not claim to a be a 'barefoot' specialist, it was a sensible solution for ponies working on surfaces/fields only and for one horse who could only be shod when doped...we suspect first shoeing was traumatic and she was pricked as she is alright until nailing.

However I have been converted, this mare and several others compete at all disciplines incuding XC without shoeing however I would resort to shoes if the horse was footy unless the farrier suggested otherwise.

I may be old fashioned but I don't think using boots such as old macs are true 'barefoot' working. If your horse is so uncomfortable it becomes unwilling to walk on a track then I think you need to go back to shoeing, 'shoeless' only works with adequate quality, shape of hoof and work that wears the hoof less than it grows

Sorry in advance as I am not one for personal critisism but I would be ashamed if my horse 'hobbled' at all let alone for three months. That to me is dogma to the detriment of the horse not horsemanship natural or otherwise..sorry again just my view.

[Yann]

No need to apologise :D

Boots are generally used as a means of getting the horse from the hobbling or not so good stage to the go anywhere do anything stage. They mean the horse can continue in normal work and the horse never actually has to hobble. Going barefoot in the sense normally used here isn't just a case of removing the shoes and seeing if the horse can manage - it's about doing all the right things to rehabilitate the feet, including the trim.

Rio couldn't be walked or ridden comfortably over stony ground when her shoes first came off and I used boots in order to carry on riding normally. 12 months later she's fine everywhere without. Tess was hobbling almost everywhere except the field when her front shoes first came off. 3 months later being ridden in boots and pads that's no longer the case either. It may take longer as she had very flat Tb feet, but I think it's reasonable to expect that one day she'll be just the same as Rio :)

[Ptaty70]

Well CW became shoeless 1.5 weeks ago and have ridden him out a lot since then. The track where the other shoeless horses have problems - shingle - gives him no troubles whatsoever! It's very compact, so was surprised the others were having problems - so I watched out for any soreness... nothing. Does this mean that he just has tough feet?? I expected some soreness after such a short amount of time, but there's been nothing. I contemplated boots at the beginning in case he became sore, but fingers crossed, I don't think I need anything. Am I just lucky???????

[eml]

As you may have gathered I am quite old fashioned in my views about 'barefoot', probably scared off by the more extreme trimmers.

I have an excellent remedial farrier who can trim to create breakover points where ever appropriate for horses with early arthritic problems, make my shoeless horses look 'shod ' for the showring with careful buffing but also is realistic enough to tell me when a horse needs shoes. This is generally due to poor hoof conformation that cannot be corrected by trimming alone as we are careful to feed to create good horn quality amongst other things! Often after six months of corrective shoeing however we have grown a correctly shaped foot and so can then go without shoes.

So someone convince me what is the difference between my shoeless and your 'barefoot' and what could my horses gain from this, particularly the flatfooted TB's.

[Ptaty70]

eml, I think that as long as your horses are happy and confident in their way of going and it fits into your routine it doesn't matter what kind of 'shoeless' you choose.

I only took his shoes off as it seemed senseless to put them on - I was just following a trend. If it so happens that the best thing to do will be to give them a breakover point and have a more 'shod' look, then that's fine - it's what I shall do. The jury is out at the mo.

I am new to 'no shoes' so I think that any kind of trim with no shoes is as fine as the next, again - if it suits the horse. I shall wait to see what suits CW. My farrier was the one who said he would be fine with no shoes, so I respect him more for that as I know I can trust him and he's not after making more money - with CW's interests at heart.

Didn't know that your kind of trimming was available, so thank you for giving me more information! (as I mentioned, I am new to this so thought there was just one way. Any more pearls of wisdom will be very well received!)

[CurlyWurlyRach]

Curlys barefoot.
I just done seethe point in nailing expensive lumps of steel to her pretty feet when she doesnt need them. We School on sand or grass for an hour a day, dont hack out as she naps + rears, the farrier says she looks just great, bit of flare atm but shes due a rasping next week :)

[Yann]

So someone convince me what is the difference between my shoeless and your 'barefoot' and what could my horses gain from this, particularly the flatfooted TB's.

Sometimes not a lot if you have a good clued up farrier :) From my own experiences of this I'd say the main difference was in the approach and philosophy. The non invasive schools of trimming tend to base their what they do on a very extensive and detailed knowledge of the internal workings of the hoof. Their training programmes may not be as long as those of farriers but all they study is hoof form and function, and the trim is always geared to improving what's there, not just maintaining the status quo. As well as the trim the owner will receive advice on what conditioning work the horse might require (possibly in hand) and things like feed, infection control and environment are taken into consideration as well. It might sound like a lot of flannel, but it does genuinely seem to work :D It can be quite a commitment in terms of time and effort though, which is certainly a downside, especially with working horses.

In terms of the flat footed Tb's, if they've ended up with long toes, flared feet and low underrun heels then barefooting should theoretically be able to address all of those things, which are very difficult to sort otherwise when shod. The result will generally be a horse with better movement which is less prone to back, tendon, foot, and concussion related problems. It does take a lot of work and time, but there are many many Tb's now that have been successfully transitioned who started with appalling feet, so farriers aren't necessarily correct when they say what they say about them :)

It's worth doing a search on here and generally about the subject, there are a lot of resources and many column miles posted :D

[Spotty_Pony]

I would be ashamed if my horse 'hobbled' at all let alone for three months. That to me is dogma to the detriment of the horse not horsemanship natural or otherwise...

Well, maybe you should of considered, first, what terrain I have to ride him on. I have to ride him on loose, sharp stones about 1 inch big and when wet, I have to ride on a gravely road. My pony also has over-sensitive feet and I am unable to jump him in paddocks with or without shoes. After winter he was unhappy, stubborn and nappy about being barefoot. A week with shoes back on, he was his old self again. He is shod by one of the best farriers in the North part of my country.

Please, I don't need your 'shame'.

Jo

[Yann]

I wouldn't personally consider it fair on my horse to ride it over terrain it couldn't manage, it can cause further harm to the feet and cause behavioural problems. That's why I use hoof boots when I have to, they actually provide superior protection to the feet anyway compared to shoes as they cover the sole as well as the base of the hoof wall.

[Spotty_Pony]

I used hoof boots too :)

[Yann]

You didn't say that, you said he was unhappy barefoot and you had to ride over sharp rocks :D

[Spotty_Pony]

Lol! Sorry! Yeah he was, cus we only put boots on the front feet? And the boots took a long time to put on! Lol