Barefoot - one will, one wont - any ideas?

[indie1282]

So I have two horses, owned both since foals, one is 10 the other 8. My 8 yo is barefoot and doing fine, not sore or footy and is happy to hack out with no problems. My 10 yo has fronts on currently but i cant seem to get him to go barefoot without him being footy even on concrete.

The barefoot one was shod in front when I broke him in but I found he slipped alot on the roads and he did pull shoes so took them off and started him barefoot and he was absolutely fine from the word go.

My shod one has been shod mostly in front but occasionally all round since being broken. I always take shoes off in winter and to put them in and out off their field the path is a mixture of stoney path, concrete and gravel and he is ok but he still wouldn't be happy enough to actually ride.

They are both managed the same - on a low sugar/starch diet with Mag Ox, Vit E and salt added to their feed. And i bought them both from the same breeder. If I use Keretex hardener it does seem to help alot, he practically marches out once ive used it a couple of times but I'm reluctant to keep using that on a regular basis.

If he needs to be shod then im happy to keep doing that for his benefit as I wont compromise on his comfort but just wondered if anyone else has any tips? His actual feet are in nice condition - no cracks or anything but he does has low heels which my farrier is working on raising gradually.

 

[Cortez]

Some horses don't need shoes, some do. It appears that you have one of each...

 

[LouisCat]

Leave the one unshod that is doing well and ekep front shoes on the one that needs them?

Not all horses suit being unshod or shod..

 

[MrsNorris]

What age were they started at? I think that if you start shoeing before the skeleton and feet are fully developed (at around 5 to 6) you probably stand less chance of going barefoot later. That is purely my opinion based on the theory that shoeing early will compromise the development of the hooves by restricting hoof mechanism and the proper stimulation of the digital cushion and lateral cartilages. Frog and sole stimulation is very important for good hoof development imo, and shoeing greatly reduces it. If your 8 year old came out of shoes almost straight away, he probably developed a better foot during those formative years and that could explain the differences you're seeing.

 

[bisou]

If you use the Keratex in spring, when the weather/ground changes, you shouldn't need to use it all summer for it to have an effect. If he's on/off shod it could be that his feet need time to adapt to being barefoot, and before they've adapted, the shoes are going back on, so he's bound to be sore when he is barefoot again. I took my horse's shoes off (fronts only) last August and she took all of winter to transition. Then we moved yards in March and she's still sore on stones/gravel, and it's worse if she's been trimmed recently. Hoof boots are an option to help him transition if you want to keep him barefoot. I'm no expert at all but if you're on Facebook, there's a group called Barefoot Horse Owners Group UK where people seem to really know their stuff

 

[splashgirl45]

not all horses are happy without shoes.....i tried with my mare who i bought age 15 months and she was footsore once i started doing more and competing, she was managed the same as a mare i acquired aged 13 who had been shod since she was 3, i tried her without shoes and she was fine and happily competed and hacked on all terrain. they are all individuals so maybe you will have to try hoof boots if you really are against shoeing...

 

[DD]

try boots

 

[TheHairyOne]

Horses for courses in some cases. 5 between my sister and i. All managed the same. 3 completely bare...2 cobs and a trakehner, one with fronts (tb) and kne all around summee and fronts winter (wb x). He cant cope with the very hard ground hacking in summer without backs and i like hacking.

 

[_Annie_]

try boots

This, absolutely ^ the transition period probably just needs a helping hand? I've got one of each too!

 

[ycbm]

Some horses need one or all three of yeast or copper and zinc, even though they are managed identically to other similar horses. I would try one of the no iron/no manganese supplements that also contain yeast.

 

[Sukistokes2]

Some horses need one or all three of yeast or copper and zinc, even though they are managed identically to other similar horses. I would try one of the no iron/no manganese supplements that also contain yeast.

What does this do?

 

[ycbm]

Yeast had two effects on the gut. It suppresses inflammation that is there, and it also prevents another method of inflammation from starting. There is a thread from long ago where someone actively involved in research into this explained it.

Cooper and zinc in a 1:3 ratio counteracts excess iron and manganese. Most UK grazing seems to have high iron. High iron blocks the uptake of copper. Too little copper prevents insulin being used correctly. That weakens feet.

I feed my horses 500mg of copper and 1500mg of zinc a day and they still measure at the very top of acceptable levels of iron and manganese in the blood My water supply is full of both, and so is the land.

 

[paddy555]

. I'm no expert at all but if you're on Facebook, there's a group called Barefoot Horse Owners Group UK where people seem to really know their stuff

I found that is a terrible group. They are obsessed with keeping horses barefoot when some in fact cannot cope and would be better off shod.. The mention of shoes is forbidden. Some of the advice given is lousy and in fact downright dangerous. i found them fanatical in fact the worst of the barefoot fanatics.

Some horses just don't make it. I have had barefoot horses for very many years. One didn't make it. He was never shod and fine as a 4yo. Went over gravel at a trot very happily. Then it all changed. I found out at 13 he was cushings and looking back had been since around 5. That explained it all. I booted for everything and managed to get him to cope unbooted on the concrete and gravel yard but that was, and is, all he could ever manage.

 

[NZJenny]

I am in the same boat and as others have said - some can, some can't.

I successfully barefooted two horses for 11 years, endurance rode both - one through to 100 mile level.

I purchased a TB/Clydie cross at 18 months of age and she was in the same paddock and same feed as the other two. She was started under saddle at three, and after 14 or 15 months of being ridden, got shod. She just wasn't confident on her feet and with shoes on is a different horse.

A year ago I was in the "every" horse camp and have had to eat some humble pie!

Re some of the BF facebook groups - I have left every BF FB page I have joined (even while I was barefooting). Sadly unless you are doing it "their" way, I found they could be quite narrow minded.

IMHO - Do what you think is best for the horse.

 

[splashgirl45]

I am in the same boat and as others have said - some can, some can't.

I successfully barefooted two horses for 11 years, endurance rode both - one through to 100 mile level.

I purchased a TB/Clydie cross at 18 months of age and she was in the same paddock and same feed as the other two. She was started under saddle at three, and after 14 or 15 months of being ridden, got shod. She just wasn't confident on her feet and with shoes on is a different horse.

A year ago I was in the "every" horse camp and have had to eat some humble pie!

Re some of the BF facebook groups - I have left every BF FB page I have joined (even while I was barefooting). Sadly unless you are doing it "their" way, I found they could be quite narrow minded.

IMHO - Do what you think is best for the horse.

you are so right, some people get fanatical and insist that barefoot is the natural way...the natural way is not to ride the horse!!!!!! you have had the same sort of experience as i did and i desperately wanted to keep mine without shoes but she couldnt cope...all horses are individual and we have to do what is best for each and every one of them especially if we want to ride them...

 

[scats]

My mare is unshod- copes fine with everything including hacking, schooling and competing. The sports horse (who is 7/8 Tb) , despite numerous attempts, can't cope without fronts on. We've tried doing it in the winter when the ground is soft, but to no avail. So he has fronts on, end of. If he throws a show he wears a hoof boot til the farrier can get out.

 

[indie1282]

Yeah I've noticed that sone of the groups can be fanatical! I think I'll carry on with shoeing and accept he isnt able to go without - I won't compromise his comfort just to go barefoot.We have all off road riding at my yard in the woods so nice and soft but some of the bigger tracks are a sand/gravel mix which is where he struggles. I may give hoof boots a go at some point though!

 

[splashgirl45]

glad you are listening to your horse and not the fanatics.....it would be great if they could all do without shoes but life isnt that easy!!!!

 

[ycbm]

Damn! I've got a footie one today! Cob five days off work due to my cataract operation and he definitely felt some stones he didn't feel on Saturday. I'll work his stockings off now I'm back riding and if that doesn't work he's heading for a muzzle, I'm warning him!

QHx on same food plus a pound of cubes a day, hasn't worked for three months due to a sarcoid on the girth, is still rock solid.

They certainly are all individuals