Eventing barefoot

[kassieg]

Has anyone evented barefoot ?
I'm hoping to event my mare next year as a 5 year old . I'm probably not going to start eventing till May time & I've decided not to go BE this year as I'm saving for a mortgage !

Im not stupid I know I would have to be very fussy with ground etc but I was wanting some good stories to re assure me that its possible

Her feet are so fab that I don't really want to put shoes on if I can help it, I know I will have to in the long run as she gets more established I will need studs to move up the levels but I would like to leave them off as long as possible

My farrier has said that he thinks he would be able to shoe her for the season then take them off for winter... Has anyone done this?

 

[TheMule]

My very sure footed mare evented at BE novice level with no shoes. However, my 5yr old is shod for the season because she has v tough feet but is no where near as surefooted and does tend to slip so I need studs.

Horses for courses, try it and see!

 

[cptrayes]

Lots of people event barefoot.

I rode two at novice and three more at lower levels.

I was never picky about the ground, I ran whatever..

 

[kassieg]

That's really positive we certainly won't be doing novice anytime soon.

Is there anything to watch out for ? Tbh I'm more worried about the sj than xc cause that's where have to turn tighter

 

[Loubidy]

Yes, but will be getting shoes next year for studs as slipped more than once..

 

[maccachic]

Found I had better traction than others with shoes / studs on soft / hard slippery going. However it did take a while as his feet were unbalanced to start and he didn't have much traction, once I got a decent trimmer and feet sorted he hasn't slipped once.

 

[rising_promise]

Yes, evented previous horse at BE100 without shoes. She had beautiful feet and was very surefooted. Never slipped and never felt unsafe.

Also, been down the route (same horse) of taking shoes off in October and putting them back on in March. In fact, one year I just didn't bother putting them back on as felt she didn't need them, hence the barefoot eventing!

My current horse (ex racehorse TB) had her shoes off 4 weeks ago. She is coping remarkably well without them. Having a holiday for a couple of months at the moment as had had a busy year but I've just bought some hoof boots and will be bringing her back into work in 2 weeks time with the plan of hopefully keeping her without shoes until March. The change in her feet is dramatic already so I'm hoping a 5/6 month break will improve them no end.

 

[smellsofhorse]

I've heard of horses eventing up the novice barefoot.
Which careful management.

The only issue is studs.
I suppose that goes with being fussy and very careful with ground conditions.

 

[Orangehorse]

There are some that do advanced.

 

[kassieg]

Ive decided I'm going to start the season without shoes & do a few events & see how she goes

Weve been xc schooling once & jumped all of the 80 & quite a bit of the 90 barefoot & she didnt slip at all so hopefully we will manage !

 

[cptrayes]

I've heard of horses eventing up the novice barefoot.
Which careful management.

The only issue is studs.
I suppose that goes with being fussy and very careful with ground conditions.

Not at all. I've evented two at novice on all ground conditions. I entered four weeks in advance, I ran, full stop.

 

[LucyPriory]

For a very sweet video of a low level ODE see the 7th Sept 2013 entry on http : / / barefoothorseblog.blogspot.com

 

[Leg_end]

I'm planning to event my lad next season. Probably max 90 but I'd like to do some 100s on him in the future.

I've done lots of jump schooling on grass and he's been ok with tight turns on slippery grass (hard ground, early morning with dew). The only times he has slipped was when he wasn't paying attention and was unbalanced and even then my instructor didn't notice (I was just overly conscious of it).

As long as you keep them balanced then you will be fine.

 

[ClobellsandBaubles]

Just out of curiosity those that are careful with the ground... what sort of going would you avoid? Is the purpose to avoid slipping or concussion?

 

[wench]

Not done eventing without shoes, but two with shoes. One was very sure footed, and never slipped. He didnt really need studs in at all. Coupes with the fact he had the potential to double barrel something if it got too close I generally left them off.

On the flip side I had another one that needed studding for all three phases

 

[Holly B]

Just out of curiosity those that are careful with the ground... what sort of going would you avoid? Is the purpose to avoid slipping or concussion?

It's slipping that could potentially be an issue - for the simple reason that barefoot hooves can't take studs! (As a general rule, I've found that my own barefoot horses slip far less than a shod but un-studded horse on slippery or muddy going). It seems to vary quite a lot from horse to horse as to how well they can cope with slippery ground, however.

Concussion doesn't really worry me and should actually be much less of an issue for a barefoot horse - horses' hooves are naturally designed to absorb some of the impact of movement but attaching solid metal shoes increases concussion and the jarring effect on landing so I think personally I'd be willing to compete on much harder ground with a barefoot horse than I'd dare risk with a shod horse.

 

[LucyPriory]

It's slipping that could potentially be an issue - for the simple reason that barefoot hooves can't take studs! (As a general rule, I've found that my own barefoot horses slip far less than a shod but un-studded horse on slippery or muddy going). It seems to vary quite a lot from horse to horse as to how well they can cope with slippery ground, however.

Concussion doesn't really worry me and should actually be much less of an issue for a barefoot horse - horses' hooves are naturally designed to absorb some of the impact of movement but attaching solid metal shoes increases concussion and the jarring effect on landing so I think personally I'd be willing to compete on much harder ground with a barefoot horse than I'd dare risk with a shod horse.

I agree with this. I tend to find a horse with a good foot and decent rider rarely slips, even on grass. That's why I posted link to video earlier - the partnership in the video got time faults - for going too fast

 

[ClobellsandBaubles]

Thank you I had suspected as much I have show-jumped on grass on a barefoot horse before and found that hard ground but with slightly damp greasy grass was the worst for slipping.

 

[MissTyc]

I do it,

it's the dressage phase I struggle with the most and frequently wish I had studs. Then by the end of the day I've forgotten about it again. SJ is normally OK as more space and you can steady up if you need to ...