6 months into our barefoot journey

[ycbm]

Interesting thank you for that, as I have been quite concerned with the lack of beefing up! Her frogs are improving as the central sulcus has opened up and is much shallower now. Will try not to worry quite so much now .



Ah I'm glad I'm not the only one with dissapointing frogs then , I keep trying to remind myself that if shes sound and happy then that's all I can ask!

I'm going out now but I'll photograph mine for you later.

 

[HappyHollyDays]

Alex the photos of the angle of her feet are amazing, what a difference. I have to admit it was quite a hard thing to do especially when you see how sore they are to start with but it is worth it in the end. Anyone contemplating it just be strong and persevere.

All the horses at the yard here in Germany are barefoot and I have been going round as you have been staring at feet on a regular basis. I had the farrier look at DP's feet two days ago and he was pleased with them. The frogs are now on the floor, the walls are strong and look very uniform in shape and I've pressed the soles quite hard and they aren't in the slightest bit spongy. I was surprised at the start to see his frogs shedding naturally as they dropped, not something I've seen before and the whole underside of the foot is a different colour. We are now 7 months in and I'm pleased with the progress. We are both travelling back to the UK tomorrow, he arrives on Monday and I have to find a good barefoot trimmer in the Cotswolds so if anyone knows of one please let me know.

 

[HufflyPuffly]

Wow when you see those pictures side by side you can really see the angle difference now! No wonder she was going lame - you definately did the right thing despite vet and farrier

It goes to show that our horses do alot of compensating when we are trying to make them a shape they shouldn't be.

Bet you can't wait for that list bit of "bad angle" to grow out on her toes!

I was so exicited when the nail holes went and now I'm the same again waiting for the last slipper bit to go!

I was so led by the vet and farrier who said she will not cope without shoes and her feet would collapse (farrier more than vet), but in reality it was shoes that were restricting her...

I'm going out now but I'll photograph mine for you later.

Yes please, thank you .

Alex the photos of the angle of her feet are amazing, what a difference. I have to admit it was quite a hard thing to do especially when you see how sore they are to start with but it is worth it in the end. Anyone contemplating it just be strong and persevere.

All the horses at the yard here in Germany are barefoot and I have been going round as you have been staring at feet on a regular basis. I had the farrier look at DP's feet two days ago and he was pleased with them. The frogs are now on the floor, the walls are strong and look very uniform in shape and I've pressed the soles quite hard and they aren't in the slightest bit spongy. I was surprised at the start to see his frogs shedding naturally as they dropped, not something I've seen before and the whole underside of the foot is a different colour. We are now 7 months in and I'm pleased with the progress. We are both travelling back to the UK tomorrow, he arrives on Monday and I have to find a good barefoot trimmer in the Cotswolds so if anyone knows of one please let me know.

She was extremely sore when I tried a few years ago, but this time aside from being footsore on stones she's not been too bad thankfully! Still booting if we atempt difficult terrian and we may always need to boot with her other issues, but I'm so glad I took the chance!

That's brilliant to hear that barefoot is seen in other countries, really interesting thank you for sharing . Cannot help with a trimmer as I'm north west (Manchester), but I found mine by researching the recommended trimmer lists I found online.

 

[JillA]

I was so led by the vet and farrier who said she will not cope without shoes and her feet would collapse (farrier more than vet), but in reality it was shoes that were restricting her...
.

Same as my experience - and from a farrier who claims to do barefoot as well. I have a livery who really needs her shoes off, she never goes anywhere but the field and the school, and is only ridden about once a week in the school but the owners are so relying on the farriers advice that she keeps having the damn things replaced month in and month out. And now she is off work lame and STILL has shoes on

 

[ycbm]

http://s1308.photobucket.com/user/y...160618_105855_zpsmkf3ouec.jpg.html?sort=3&o=0


OK. This is not a good foot. The frog is too narrow and far too short. The toe looks far too long. And the hoof wall is too long. The foot is nicely proportional to a light boned horse, it's just the tiny frog that makes it look so huge!

BUT he is rock crunching. And every time I try to make it 'better' he puts it right back where it is now in double quick time. The more I leave it alone, the better his landing is and the more rock crunching he gets.

A good hoof is a hoof on a truly sound horse, no matter what it looks like.

Happy to answer any questions about workload, food etc. All four feet are the same.

 

[HufflyPuffly]

Same as my experience - and from a farrier who claims to do barefoot as well. I have a livery who really needs her shoes off, she never goes anywhere but the field and the school, and is only ridden about once a week in the school but the owners are so relying on the farriers advice that she keeps having the damn things replaced month in and month out. And now she is off work lame and STILL has shoes on

Aw poor thing, is it a case of just not questioning the routine or is the farrier pushing that she needs to continue to have shoes?

I'm still sad about how let down I feel by my professionals... But hey ho I have a sound pony now, albeit with slightly odd looking tooties .

http://s1308.photobucket.com/user/y...160618_105855_zpsmkf3ouec.jpg.html?sort=3&o=0


OK. This is not a good foot. The frog is too narrow and far too short. The toe looks far too long. And the hoof wall is too long. The foot is nicely proportional to a light boned horse, it's just the tiny frog that makes it look so huge!

BUT he is rock crunching. And every time I try to make it 'better' he puts it right back where it is now in double quick time. The more I leave it alone, the better his landing is and the more rock crunching he gets.

A good hoof is a hoof on a truly sound horse, no matter what it looks like.

Happy to answer any questions about workload, food etc. All four feet are the same.

Fascinating thank you, what's his workload as Doodle is only in light hacking duties which is what I'd assumed was contributing to the lack of frog!

 

[ester]

You know what strikes me about the comparison pics, that the hoof is no longer narrower at the bottom than it is at the top

 

[HufflyPuffly]

You know what strikes me about the comparison pics, that the hoof is no longer narrower at the bottom than it is at the top

Now that is not something I'd noticed! I guess that comes with a better/wider heel and digital cushion?

Doodle now feels so good on her feet she was willing to pop a fence today, she's not wanted to do that in years . I know she's 23 and has cushings and still slightly dodge feet, but today I felt like we were both ten years younger as we bombed about bareback and happy .

 

[ycbm]

I'm still sad about how let down I feel by my professionals... But hey ho I have a sound pony now, albeit with slightly odd looking tooties .



Fascinating thank you, what's his workload as Doodle is only in light hacking duties which is what I'd assumed was contributing to the lack of frog!

Oh I was mad for five years after I discovered that I had been misled for decades by farriers who told me that horses had to wear shoes. I've got over it now.

Alex, the horse is in light work, an EPSM case, but I keep him on a concrete yard for one hour a day or so, to keep him 'trimmed'. He was, until I broke my wrist, hacked once a week for forty minutes on roads with steep hills, and schooled on a surface for forty minutes twice a week. His frogs never touch the ground in winter, but can do in summer, though they don't at the moment. He has to have the clefts treated every single day in winter or they go far too deep. I use sudocrem because I love the smell!

I would be very unhappy with his feet, except for the fact that he gets sounder and sounder and now walks across one inch stones on a concrete/tarmac surface without even noticing.

He has a mineral balanced no sugar diet and is on 15 hours a day, overnight, wild hill meadow (a foot deep in grass!).

 

[Leo Walker]

Oh I was mad for five years after I discovered that I had been misled for decades by farriers who told me that horses had to wear shoes. I've got over it now.

Alex, the horse is in light work, an EPSM case, but I keep him on a concrete yard for one hour a day or so, to keep him 'trimmed'. He was, until I broke my wrist, hacked once a week for forty minutes on roads with steep hills, and schooled on a surface for forty minutes twice a week. His frogs never touch the ground in winter, but can do in summer, though they don't at the moment. He has to have the clefts treated every single day in winter or they go far too deep. I use sudocrem because I love the smell!

I would be very unhappy with his feet, except for the fact that he gets sounder and sounder and now walks across one inch stones on a concrete/tarmac surface without even noticing.

He has a mineral balanced no sugar diet and is on 15 hours a day, overnight, wild hill meadow (a foot deep in grass!).

If hes sound then thats all that matters but I would have a heart attack if my boys feet looked like that! They just look really long to me. Mine did the same when I tried to let him self trim. He grows way to much hoof for the work I do, so hes trimmed sympathetically when the hood wall gets a bit long, have you tried that with him especially as hes in light work?

 

[ycbm]

If hes sound then thats all that matters but I would have a heart attack if my boys feet looked like that! They just look really long to me. Mine did the same when I tried to let him self trim. He grows way to much hoof for the work I do, so hes trimmed sympathetically when the hood wall gets a bit long, have you tried that with him especially as hes in light work?

Oh I know! I'm so embarrassed to be seen as a hoof 'guru' and post a photo of a foot like that . I've only done it to help Alex

I've tried everything. Every change I try to make, he puts them back like that inside of a week.

When I finally decided to stop arguing with him, he went from flat landing to heel first landing, ouchie on bad stones to rock crunching, and in the last month has broken half an inch back off his toes.

Sometimes, they just do know best. My other six year old has the hugest frogs and shortest toes person could dream of!

 

[HufflyPuffly]

Yes I'm greatful to you for sharing and it shows sometimes they do know best!

My baby horse has beautiful feet but appears to be brewing an abscess , she has the best feet of all of them yet has still managed to injure them! Hoping it resolves soon...