BAREFOOTERS HELP PLS!

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Brambridge04

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If a horse was shod once in its life, around 6-7 weeks ago, would it immediately go lame when shoes taken off? or Footy or what ever the correct term is...
 
My guess would be that the horse's diet is making it go footy now, not having been shod (I'm assuming it is barefoot now). My Tb was shod for 3 months but fine when shoes were removed. rich grass or food can ake a horse go footy in hours.
 
One reason could be sole trimming to be shod. He may need some protection on stony or wherever he is 'footy' if this is a reason.
 
Brambridge04 said:
If a horse was shod once in its life, around 6-7 weeks ago, would it immediately go lame when shoes taken off? or Footy or what ever the correct term is...
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It could easily - depending on how well it had been shod and trimmed for that shoeing.

Having deshod a number of horses with:

nails through their soles rather than the hoof wall
heels so contracted the back of the foot can't bear weight properly
soles esp near the toe scalped to paper thinness
heels cut down below the hard sole plane

I used to be amazed at how quickly shoeing can damage a foot, but not any more.
 
Get her fitted for boots and you should be fine to hack out straight away :). My personnal preference is for Old Macs G2, they seem to never come off.
 
Brambridge04 said:
It will be for 2 to 3 weeks tops. X
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If she is footy without shoes (and the feet have not been excessively trimmed) then diet is most likely the reason and probably grass at this time of year. Being footy is an early sign of possible laminitis so before re-shoeing you should consider correcting her diet, possibly restricting grass (or looking carefully at any hard feed she has).
 
Brambridge04 said:
It will be for 2 to 3 weeks tops. X
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If this is in case of kicking, you only need to remove the hinds [unless she rears, which is not likely], and she is less likely to be footy behind. The grass contains sugars which increase sensitivity, and is probably the main reason why people give up riding without shoes. It often takes a while for the hoof to adapt to work, that is to say they will be OK in the field, with no rider, and selecting the easiest route.
I am feeding mine extra vits and minerals, and taking him off grass for 4-6 hours per day, his 1/3 haynet is soaked for an hour to remove sugars.
He is walking on a roads and tracks for 40 minutes. Obviously it is cheaper to go unshod, but as far as I can tell many horses need careful management to go barefoot [ie riding] in summer.
Be aware that shoe-ing will mask footy-ness, that is why so many
people shoe their horses as it seems to be an instant fix.
 
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canteron said:
Could you just remove the back feet and leave the fronts on?

The fronts are normally the most sensitive.
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Ooh steady on! No need to remove the FEET!

Sorry, I'll get my coat :D

I'd agree with her needing the diet addressed. If she was footy before shoeing, then you've just masked that footiness, not cured it.
 
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