Could I re shoe on fronts, not Barefoot slagging match please

T

thatsmygirl

Well-Known Member
Joined
22 May 2010
Messages
4,341
Visit site
As some of you know my lad has reverse rotated pedal bones and was lame in shoes. He's been barefoot for coming on 4 months and I ride in epics but the thing is I'm not 100% sure he's totally happy. He walks up sound on concrete and is ok in the sand but his eyes just tell me he's not quite happy with it all. Now my question is when/has his feet are getting better and toes are coming back and growing stronger could I re shoe. Has anybody been in my position and re shod after lameness like he had? The last thing I would want is to put shoes on his fronts and he goes lame again but I just wonder if he could manage as his feet are improving. It's his eyes they just don't look happy and seem to have lost his spark and I'm sure he's not 100% happy on his feet in myself if that makes sence
 
I am sure someone will tell you to look at his diet, and that might be worth doing, but if you've done all that and still he seems uncomfortable I'd say perhaps he'd be better/happier with front shoes, it may be that he's one of those horses that manage better that way.
 
I'd be tempted to ask the vet for some bute before you make a final decision. If he is in pain, you should be able to see a difference with the bute, which will help you come to your decision.
 
At the end of the day we have to do what makes our horses comfortable and if a set of shoes will do that then pop them back on.

You know why your doing it so really f hes happier in fronts then bang them on :)

My boy couldnt deal with work without front shoes way back when so I left his hinds bare and shod his fronts for over four years and he was fine :)

Hes bare all round at the minute and happy on all surfaces wen out a hack twoce a week, if I up the exercise in the spring and the feet dont keep up then fronts will go back on, hoping that ont be the case since they will have been off from July until spring (april) :)
 
Why don't you get a lameness work up done by the vet?

It may be nothing to do with his feet and you are just worrying because that seems like the obvious cause.

If his feet have improved that much, I wouldn't want to put shoes on. Was he not in a really bad way? Maybe he's just fed up with all the exercise and quite liked being on rest!

Bute trial is a good idea to see if he is any different.
 
Last edited:
are they going to keep the improvement/keep improving with shoes on though? As you know F had the same diagnosis and I have recently been frequently asked if I am putting shoes back on, er nope :p. But then I can tell he is very happy without

Have you had a body worker/chiro see him, all of Frank's apparent footiness issues have been linked to other problems occuring in his body really and we have had to keep on top of it as he is now using his body differently (and more evenly from when he was lame where he had developed one shoulder much bigger than the other). He also needs a saddle refit ;)

I also think you have been doing the trimming yourself? It may well be worth getting another opinion on his feet and movement? did you speak to Deborah at all?
 
What do the vet and farrier think?
Can you back off the work a bit , and see if doing a bit less helps, four months is not long for a horse with serious issues.
Would a set of X-rays be a good idea to see what's going on in the feet these are things I would be thinking.
One thing for sure if you shoe it will have to done by an really top notch farrier .
Not much help I know just the things I would thinking.
For a start I would give a week off work while I thought things through it he looks not happy you willbe right he is your horse you are right to rethink things if you feel this.
 
No barefooter would tell you to carry on if shoeing was a viable option. For whatever reason, sometimes shoes are necessary and they are part of horse care that should be seen as a useful tool. Obviously they are essential but if you need to then you must. It's the reality of horsemanship.

I believe that every horse would have a healthier foot if allowed rest from shoes. Not just me, many farriers, and farriery manuals too. Barefoot founding members were farriers! Your horse has had a good rest, his feet will be a better platform for shoes now anyway so as long as no other issues, go ahead.
 
Goldenstar x 2

4 months is nothing. I think you are being a little impatient tbh. Given that this lad was on death row he is doing FABULOUSLY WELL!!!

I also wonder if he is sore elsewhere in his body, due to the huge amounts of change his feet are going through. Id be having an ACPAT qualified physio to him and see if that soothes him.

Keep going mrs :)
 
Thanks guys I'm not going to make any rash decisions as he has come so far since he was on box rest/bute in shoes so it would be a last option to be honest and the last thing I would want is to re shoe and he goes backward and I have to work from square 1 again.
Bute trial is a good idea.
I would like to x ray again but not quite yet as it's only been around 4 months.
He walks lovely on concrete and trotted up lovely tonight, he's coped with the wet weather but it's just a niggling thought of mine that's annoying and getting to me.
Could he have to much calmag? Could this been making him dopey? He's on a naf big scoop twice a day.
Thing is he's not telling me he's footy or not showing it. He use to be quite a sharp horse but now it's like he's smoked to many joints :) back is up to date.
Full lameness work up could be a good idea as my vets are not anti barefoot either.

Maybe I'm worrying to much and on the other hand maybe he's chilled as his feet aren't hurting anymore like they did.
I don't know but it's niggling at me.
Ester I'm waiting for deborah to get back to me now with a date. Tbh his feet haven't been touched for a while as he couldn't cope with any form of trim or toe roll
 
Tiger tails thanks :)
some times i just wonder but no your right when I look back at what he was like he's a different horse.
It's just his eyes that look a bit sad looking
 
Why not get the vet to look at him?

Any chance he has ulcers that are preventing him from absorbing nutrients properly?

Given that he failed at barefoot the first time because of diet - I would be looking at that before reaching for the shoes that crippled him in the first place......
 
Cool, I just thought an extra pair of eyes/opinion might be useful, plus the slow mo vids can be quite informative :).

It was a group decision that Frank was body uncomfortable rather than foot uncomfortable and we were right ;)
 
Diet as far as I'm aware is ok and hasn't changed.
Think I will get the vet to look over him as she hasn't seen him since he was first x rayed etc so could be interesting.
He's not lame in anyway and really strided out when I trotted along the drive earlier in hand
( bare not booted) it don't seem to be on the flat more down hill but does this come back to the fact he's still really weak in that area?
 
I def think a few body treatments are in order here - not just back check...

calmag isnt the best form of magnesium you could be feeding tbh.


There is also the fact that if hes not in pain he's not living on hormone responses to pain all the time so may be more chilled naturally.

You are a worrier TMG - think you should self prescribe some valium :p
 
yup i have a whole collection of youtube videos from her of frank walking and trotting up the road... Mum moves straighter than I do ;) :D
 
Tigertails you do make me laugh :)
what you have just wrote is what I'm thinking or hoping about being more chilled.
He was a spinner and use to chuck everybody off when in training but I wouldn't want to go on the gallop with the problems in his feet either but has never done it with me on the roads.

Maybe I will get myself a calmer :)

but if it was pain he wouldn't trot up stunning would he?
 
I know how you feel, the first time I tried barefoot this happened and I went back to shoes and I thought I had made the right choice as my boy was happy straight away, but after a few months he went downhill again and was uncomfortable after shoeing!
His feet looked terrible and was not happy even on a danilon a day! So this time round barefoot I would use his boots more rather than shoe and he does have 1/2 a danilon a day for his ringbone!
We have just been through a stage of him looking a bit miserable but so have some of the shod horses as well, so perhaps its down to the weather, but he has perked up now and even walked ok over the frozen rutty bits to his field today!
I do sympathise with you as I do have days when I consider shoeing him, the trouble is I just know it will be a short term fix!
 
Oh brill ester, will ring her next week if I haven't heard back.

Ffionwinnie I also wonder if this is the case and would love him to say " yes mummy I'm much
happier now thanks" but unlikely. He's the best weight wise he's been since iv had him so I'm happy with that
 
thatsmygirl said:
Diet as far as I'm aware is ok
Click to expand...

Are you certain 100% that his diet is working for him? He is known to be sensitive......

I'll send you some ulcer info so you can have a think if that's a possibility.

If the vet can get his hoof testers out - you may get some answers that way.

Hopefully your vet won't refuse to look at the horse unless it gets shoes on (another barefoot rehab HHO member faced this problem this week :rolleyes:) and will give a fair and thorough examination.
 
Pines of Rome deep down due to his history with his feet I really don't want to shoes and hopefully somebody would give me food for thought so to speak and iv had a few good ideas. I can't speak to people at the yard anyway as they are all against barefoot and would just tell me to wack shoes back on.
Tbh he's not doing a great deal of work now due to the weather but it hasn't bothered him one bit he's quite chilled.
 
Ok oberbaubles thank you.
My vet suggested barefoot to me so hopefully she will be ok with it and give a fair trial.
I don't think he has ulcers he's not got any signs of them but will read your info with interest. I'm always open to new thoughts/ideas.

His diet is fast fibre/linseed/calmag/salt/equiminsadvance complete and a mug off spillers high fibre cubes and a mug off ers pellets which has put the weight back on him. Ab lib hay. The grass back in the summer never effected him and he was fab.
 
Was he better or the same before you introduced the ERS pellets again?

Could you chat to Equimins about trialling the Metabalance rather than the Advance Complete in view of the fact that he is known to be sensitive to diet?

Could you choose between the Spillers cubes and ERS pellets and just use one, rather than both?
 
thatsmygirl said:
Tigertails you do make me laugh :)
what you have just wrote is what I'm thinking or hoping about being more chilled.
He was a spinner and use to chuck everybody off when in training but I wouldn't want to go on the gallop with the problems in his feet either but has never done it with me on the roads.

Maybe I will get myself a calmer :)

but if it was pain he wouldn't trot up stunning would he?
Click to expand...


Ive got compressed discs in my neck thanks to a accident 3 months ago, walking around you wouldnt know it to look at me - Im still doing a very physical job, ridden tonight and was told I looked great - despite the fact i am HURTING across my shoulders and have a vile pinching sensation in my neck.

Muscle soreness doesnt always give you a nice big red flag like a head nod or lame. But it can make you feel tired and down - like i do :p
 
Iv spoke to equimins before they wont let me have the metabalance and have cut down selling it to the public. He's the same the ers hasn't effected him at all.
Tigertail oh bugger I'm sorry but I know what it's like, I broke my back 2 yrs ago and still living with the pain. It's not nice is it.
Iv only ever had the horses backs done so for a full body look at who would I get out?
 
has he been re-xrayed to see the status now?If the horse isn't happy he isn't happy and it is probably worth trying a set o shoes-you can always take them off again!
 
And yet other people still manage to get the Metabalance with no problems. It depends on who you speak to there ;)

They don't like to sell it willy nilly, but for a horse with problems (reverse coffin bone angle qualifies as a problem) Steve will be willing for you to try some.

Does he really need both the HF Cubes and the ERS pellets?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top