Barefoot vs Shoes

[Olliepoppy]

What are your thoughts on going barefoot? My 6 year old cob has a full set of shoes and to my knowledge has never been barefoot (I've only had him 3 months). He is mainly field ridden just now as is green and still learning to accept all the horse eating monsters out in the big bad world. Even when he moves up to road work he will still just be a happy hacker. Has anyone gone barefoot and had problems? Thanks in advance

 

[Nugget La Poneh]

Providing the current horn growth, and subsequent diet is right, you should have no real difference between the two. However, some horses can have a bad transition back to bare feet, but if you do your research, take on board the advise from the likes of cptrayes, amandp et al. here as well as a read of http://rockleyfarm.blogspot.co.uk/ then you should be fine. I've seen open level eventers go round barefoot (and done better on the terrain sometimes that studded horses), and there are several top level competitors (like princesssparkle and her sister who do dressage) that have gone down the BF route
Be aware though, you will get obsessed by it all

 

[Olliepoppy]

Thanks, he has good feet and is just on grass at present with carrots and nettles thrown in. Will continue the research...

 

[Exploding Chestnuts]

Thanks, he has good feet and is just on grass at present with carrots and nettles thrown in. Will continue the research...

Thing is, while some transition with no problems, others do, so for this reason the diet is often supplemented with minerals and the feed is basically hi fibre lo sugar, no molasses and really no carrots [sugar again].
Depends on the grass, stalky and dry is better than green and lush.

 

[Meowy Catkin]

My 6 year old cob has a full set of shoes and to my knowledge has never been barefoot

Of course he has been - he wasn't born with shoes on!

Researching diet, looking at Rockley's work etc.. is very wise, but it is essential that you have a pro BF Farrier or you might need to find a trimmer.

 

[Goldenstar]

The only issue you might have is when you start hacking out you will have to be able to work as much as you need not as much as the feet need .
I have a six year old he was doing great BF but I have just shod him as I need to work harder than the gradual build up that works best for BF .
He was very naughty and was lunged for an hour and then ridden to remind of his manners of course this threw all the gradual increase in work for the feet out of the window .
I then needed to go at him and do what ever I needed without considering the gradual conditioning of the feet so he was shod .
If you want to try BF do your research and learning and get started there's loads of threads on here the Rockley site and others if you google , the Phoenix horse forum is good too .
I used the feet first book by Nic Barker a lot when I was getting by brain around how I was going to manage it all.
I take my horses in and out of shoes to suit what I am up too this one will now be shod until mid march then he'll go onto a shoeing break and work without them the difference will be he'll have another winters work under his belt and it will be more easy to manage work to feet .
If would not keep any of my mine shod on the sort of work you describe but you just have to see if it works for you if it does not ,you put the shoes back on .
Be cautious though don't risk working the horse with sore feet and giving it a dislike of hacking when you start .
I would be leading your horse on Tarmac daily if he were mine in your situation .

 

[Pingypo]

Since he is still young he should still be able to adapt well to the change whereas an older horse that has been shod all his life may not because his hooves will not be hard enough and may be more sensitive, although not always the case!!

If you are planning to ride on the softer ground for a while then this should give him time to gradually get used to it before riding on hard ground, which should be introduced gradually.

Make sure you have a farrier with lots of knowledge and experience on BF, a good diet for him and then I think the way to find out is to try! A friend wanted to try her horse BF and did all the research etc. She got the shoes off and rode in sand arena but the horse was very tender and sensitive and even just walking in hand across the gravel proved uncomfortable for him.

I think you need to try BF with your horse to find out if he will cope ok or not - you can always put shoes back on!!!

Have fun making up your mind

 

[WindyStacks]

My horse has just gone barefoot 2.5 weeks ago after around 4 years in shoes. It was hard for him last week and he was pottery and footsore. Then at the weekend he had to stay in the box due to unforseen circumstances and when I led him out last night - much to my surprise, rather than potter around the edge of the paths on the grass, he STRODE over the slightly pebbly farm path, STRAIGHT across the gravel area near his field (he usually chooses to tip-toe around the edge) and by this time I was wondering why I'd bothered to put boots on his fronts at all for the walk.

IF he's pottery or sore today then I'm going to look VERY hard at restricting his grazing further because last night you wouldn't have known he was sore just before the weekend!

 

[Olliepoppy]

Hmm.. It's all sounding a bit complex at the moment! I'm still getting to know him and his quirks so may leave it for a while. I don't want to be trying to figure out if he's playing up on a road hack because a) he's taking the pee, b) he's genuinely spooked or c) he's got sore feet! Maybe once I get the road hacking sorted and he's less green... Thanks for all the advice/comments

 

[Exploding Chestnuts]

Start the feeding regime anyway to ensure he has the best of hoof quality and it will help him in general health, it is not so difficult, you have to remember that posts on here represent problems, not easy transitions.
There are lots of benefits, obviously cheaper, though you may need to manage him more carefully [but not always], long term health, and no lost shoes.
It is obvious if he has sore feet, just the way he walks in from the field tells you, and when he is ridden, change of surfaces, it is very interesting to see how the feet develop.

 

[Hobbits Mate]

Thought idea of BF good so tried gradual working with my highland. We do lots of roadwork, endurance and distance - he cried, I hated myself for putting him through pain and gave in. Dont shoe all year round, give him time without metalwork so he can enjoy au natural for a time... It works for some but if horse a cob or heavy and workload high, I found I was loosing mine and his enjoyment of getting out. As always, it's great if it works but there are downsides.

 

[Olliepoppy]

Start the feeding regime anyway to ensure he has the best of hoof quality and it will help him in general health, it is not so difficult, you have to remember that posts on here represent problems, not easy transitions.
There are lots of benefits, obviously cheaper, though you may need to manage him more carefully [but not always], long term health, and no lost shoes.
It is obvious if he has sore feet, just the way he walks in from the field tells you, and when he is ridden, change of surfaces, it is very interesting to see how the feet develop.

If I were to give him any hard feed just now he would me unmanageable! He is on grass/odd nettles and about 2 carrots a day as reward for good behaviour but if he eats too much he turns into Tigger!

 

[Olliepoppy]

All food for thought, will research, ask my farriers advice and maybe let him go barefoot over the winter when he won't be out and about so much, it's all a work in progress!

 

[Exploding Chestnuts]

If I were to give him any hard feed just now he would me unmanageable! He is on grass/odd nettles and about 2 carrots a day as reward for good behaviour but if he eats too much he turns into Tigger!

Lush grass and carrots are full of sugars so if you can restrict intake of sugar andreplace with hi fibre forage eg some soaked hay he won t go fizzy, what I was referring to was minerals which are fed with some non molassed chaff eg dengie chaff, feed damp. There are lo sugar treats available.

 

[Dizzle]

My pony is shoeless, she is trimmed by a farrier (who does an amazing job), if she was uncomfortable without shoes I will put them on. She's a native and at the moment happy without, I don't stick to a strict regime with her but does what ever suits us best.

 

[jm2k]

First mistake people make is to just whip the shoes off, expect horse to go barefoot, wonder why he is sore and tender to walk then shove shoes back on claiming horse cant go barefoot!
All horses CAN go barefoot, whether riding on roads, competing, need remedial work - it just has to be managed properly and use hoof boots if or when needed!

First thing to do is address feeding! Inside out. Remove all sugars, starches (below 5%), cereals, molasses, haylage and crap which tbh, horses shouldnt really be fed anyway as a High Fibre diet is always more natural. Even feed recommended for laminitics are not really suitable as they have too high sugar/starch contents so look and read the packaging. This should be your diet anyway, whether going barefoot or not. but if you start now several weeks BEFORE you think of removing shoes, you are ahead of your aim and your horses diet will be improved regardless.
Second, get a decent trimmer to evaluate feet, address and issues and concerns, and obtain an accurate hoof measurement from a fresh trim to see what size he is to get some boots to aid the transition period if needed.
Third, based on hoof size, check what boots would fit him and buy some second hand on ebay. Ive never bought brand new and £50 a pair second hand is superb value.
Fourth, dont expect miracles and think this is a long term goal which can and will be successful as it can and will be worth it!

Think - if you were walking on gravel with working boots on, it would be rock hard, if you put trainers on its easy, if you go barefoot its painful. (Shoes, hoofboots, barefoot)
If you were to remove the working boots and go straight barefoot, it would be very sore, but your feet would accustom to it over time and the soles of your feet would slowly toughen up and get harder, but it would be comfier for you to wear trainers inbetween?
You would slowly increase the time you walk barefoot, and lessen the time you use your trainers, until your bare all the time, then just use your trainers if going out for a very long walk or up the mountain forest? Apply the same principle with horses hooves.
(i actually call my horses hoof boots his trainers!)
Some horses, especially Arabs or cobs have traditionally more sold hooves, other breeds such as TB's have notoriously thin soles and are more sensitive and need to be accustomed to the transition more slowly, so bear this in mind.

I compete 30km on Arabs barefoot never been shod.
My TB had his shoes pulled off 3 years ago. I compete ODE (even in grass and the rain XC and Sj last weekend without a slip) and SJ on him barefoot and he also does 22km rides barefoot. If he goes longer distances or up the mountain, he has his trainers on for the couple of hours we are out, then removed so he is 99% always barefoot. Again, breed is known for underrun/low heels and this makes it harder and longer a process but we are getting there!

My trimmer comes ever 6 weeks and i do a very light rasp on the TB if he happens to wear his boots to ensure a very tight fit. I would only do this when very comfortable and aware of the hoof shape and what you are doing after training from the trimmer. When new to barefoot, getting the trimmer more frequent until the hoof is established is much more beneficial.

Your horse will also show a much more elevated gait if barefoot compared to shod as videos on youtube show as they dont have the added weight of the steel shoe on them

Slowly people are realising there is so much more benefit to the horse being barefoot but the die hard traditionalist who refuse to accept modern awareness and proven research are the ones lagging behind as well as the ones who do not try the transition and expect miracles immediately which is absurd.

Honestly, get your feeding sorted out now, then bite the bullet, you will be glad you did.
There are many barefoot groups on facebook who can give you a wealth of advice from trial and error experienced people rather than a general forum. But its good to see there are some barefoot advocates on here when only 2 years ago, there were none

PS to add - the horses live in 30 acres open grazing which is very lush in summer, sparce in winter then fed adlib hay. Current diet is: micronised linseed, unmoll beet, alfa oil chaff, lysine and cider apple vinegar. Some grass nuts added to the ones competing for a little extra boost before a show so very basic feeding indeed.

 

[Olliepoppy]

jm2k.. thanks for putting it into laymans terms! It's so easy to get bogged down by information overload and apparent complexity. Being a complete ignoramus on this subject excuse me when I say I'm still confused about the feed.. do I need to get his field grass checked for sugars/starch/fibre?? (If so, who does the testing?) He is only on this plus a couple of carrots a day (and the very occasional polo)