Barefoot diet

[sidsmum]

I have an older cob who is currently barefoot and is living on a track which is all rather different to what I have previously been used to! Although I'm always told that his feet are wonderful, he is ouchy on uneven surfaces. I have invested in boots for him which stops the footiness, but am wondering whether I need to change his diet a little.

He currently gets linseed, speedibeet and hifi original. From reading/browsing I'm wondering whether I need to change the hifi to the molasses free version, or swap it for a non alfalfa chaff.

What would people suggest? Just to add, he also has salt and a good assortment of herbs including biotin which the yard owner provides on the track.

Thank you in advance!

 

[Cragrat]

I'm not up on the chaffs - how much is he getting? I wouldn't have thought a small amount, as a tiny percentage of his overall diet, would make a huge difference.

The overall mineral content and ratio's are very important - is the forage tested?

Also, how long has he been barefoot and how long has he been on the track?

 

[sidsmum]

He gets a Stubbs scoop so it's not a huge amount you are right.

I'm not sure of the hay has been tested but I know it's rye free. I've been reading through all the articles on the Forage Plus website which are quite informative, but I'm wary of supplementing with extra minerals or vitamins if he doesn't need them, so it might be worth looking at. And he has only been barefoot and on a track since August so I guess it's still early days. I'm just comparing him to my other cob who is coping amazingly - no boots, no tenderness. I know they are all individuals but I can't help but compare!

 

[Gloi]

Try a barefoot friendly mineral supplement like the Progressive Earth Pro Hoof one.

 

[HappyHollyDays]

To give you a bit of a comparison my laminitic prone Connie came out of shoes in June after 10 years in them due to concussion and as I was injured I left them off. He is now absolutely fine on smooth surfaces but still reacts slightly if he treads on a stone which isn’t smooth. The surface out to his field is crushed hardcore and he strides out on that now but I still think with him it’s early days and he does have a pair of Cavallos which he wore in the field a few times and which I will use once he comes back into work. Diet wise both my boys are on low sugar/low starch diets and always have been, in summer they get a handful of HoneyChop Lite and Healthy and I add salt, a liver supplement as we are on high iron soil and they also get 4feet Plus both from Science Supplements plus soaked hay. In the winter I swap to Pure Easy. My EMS pony who is also barefoot with incredibly thin soles has improved even more since adding the LiverAid.

I had a Forage plus test done and got all the minerals they suggested and also used their balancer but it didn’t seem to help at all so I swapped to Science Supplements 2 years ago and have had much better results. Unfortunately it can sometimes be a bit of trial and error which can get a tad expensive as it takes at least 6 months to see the improvement in their feet.

 

[paddy555]

what does he eat on the track? is it a track system with lots of grasses and other vegetation that he can constantly browse or a system where his diet is predominantly hay.

I would be feeding a good supplement and also a good dose of vit E.