genuine question re barefoot

whisp&willow

whisp&willow

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there seems to be a lot of barefootedness going on recently!

as a disclamer here: i dont have anything against barefoot/barefoot trimming. if it works for your horse and you are happy, then thats great! ;)

i just wondered are there any top competition horses/equine athletes at the top of their sport who are barefoot?

it is a genuine question, basically i just wondered. :)
 
I don't think so. That would be a step too far for most top riders.

When a horse like that breaks down they are retired from top competition and the rider will move onto a new one. Us working stiffs with one or two horses don't have that option.

Dressage riders appear to be investing in bizarre shoes at the moment [sigh].
 
thanks- i assumed that barefootedness would be rare amongst them.

although its interesting, because i would have thought that if any discipline would be more bare than another it would be dressage... although at the same time i would guess that many shoe to "enhance" or exaggerate movement?

i was more thinking that the health and "going" of the competition horse is paramount, and so what was their stance on the issue of feet?

be interesting to see if there are any out there competing unshod. :)
 
Here are some of the delights....(if it costs a fortune and is high tech -then it MUST be better than what nature designed and kept for millions of years
shakehead.gif


rocknrollshoes.jpg


dressageshoe.jpg


I know I sound like a fanatic but I'm not against shoes per se.

I'm against misinformation and un-necessary pain and early demise of horses for the simple want of appropriate diet and care.

They are STILL putting horses down due to navicular:(

I watch a beautiful horse hobble across the yard every day because of the pain in it's feet. Owner was ready to try barefoot but the vet said soles were too thin:( Misinformation..and so the horse is STILL hobbling:( When the owner rides, I feel physically sick.

Every horse has the potential to grow good feet given half a chance. You can see that 1 inch of growth from the coronet, pure and beautiful - that is fresh growth with no mistakes in it.
 
Oberon said:
Every horse has the potential to grow good feet given half a chance.
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I'm not 100% convinced this is the case. I think some horses have been so intensively 'bred' for a specific purpose that they have lost this ability.

I do think we will see more barefoot horses in competition in the coming years though :)
 
whisp&willow said:
.........................
i just wondered are there any top competition horses/equine athletes at the top of their sport who are barefoot?

it is a genuine question, basically i just wondered. :)
Click to expand...

I think there will be... when not sure but I think science will out eventually.
 
rhino said:
I'm not 100% convinced this is the case. I think some horses have been so intensively 'bred' for a specific purpose that they have lost this ability.

I do think we will see more barefoot horses in competition in the coming years though :)
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I disagree. I can't believe only a few hundered years of such breeding could change evolution of millions of years.

All the TB's with 'genetically terrible feet' who's owners have gone barefoot and grown beautiful feet will attest to that.

It would be nice to believe it wasn't us *******ing things up for the horses, but I feel that's what it is.
 
what are those shoes aiming to achieve? look rather weird to me! :confused:

i agree with you in that the horses foot was designed to carry it... therefore it is the perfect article (well for the most part!)

however i also understand that due to the work that we expect our horses to do (not natural) it is necessary to put shoes on to prevent excessive wear. (well thats how it works for me!)

im not pro or anti either way- but my ridden horse is shod, and i have no intention of changing that unless she is out of work. my youngster: well we will just have to wait and see what she's like when we reach that stage!

my main question was that if barefoot is the best, and creates the best way of going for the horse, then why are the professionals not on board? my only reasoning was that the likes of xc and sj- the need for grip etc??

just looking for other oppinions, and to find out if there are some competing who have bucked the trend. ;)
 
Several racehorses race unshod. Many horses compete dressage in Holland and Germany to Grand Prix unshod and in England, a lot of horses hunt barefoot.

There are often articles about barefoot horses - pm me and I'll send details or where to look.
 
You answered the question.

People firmly believe that hooves need protecting from work. That if we ride them they must have shoes. Horse owners believe this, vets believe this, farriers believe this and competitors believe this.

The opposite is true. Wild foals keep up with the herd doing 20 miles a day on their second day of life. Hooves are designed for work and abuse. They are amazing.

I've never heard of a barefoot horse (fed an appropriate diet) who has worn their hooves away.

Endurance horses, the barefoot police horses in the U.S. to name a couple....
 
whisp&willow said:
thats interesting housemouse. ;)

i had a feeling i'd seen some unshod racers, and had a feeling that there may be some dressage horses out there too.

for some reason i couldnt imagine many hunters/eventers being so! :o
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Rockley Farm is a hunting yard (before all the HHO cripples started going there for rehab).
 
Oberon said:
You answered the question.

People firmly believe that hooves need protecting from work. That if we ride them they must have shoes. Horse owners believe this, vets believe this, farriers believe this and competitors believe this.

The opposite is true. Wild foals keep up with the herd doing 20 miles a day on their second day of life. Hooves are designed for work and abuse. They are amazing.

I've never heard of a barefoot horse (fed an appropriate diet) who has worn their hooves away.

Endurance horses, the barefoot police horses in the U.S. to name a couple....
Click to expand...


i find that interesting. ;) even on tarmac?! what would be an apropriate diet?
 
I'm not a competition rider, more a happy hacker dabbling in driving, I had my boy barefoot for nigh on a year, he coped well his feet looked balanced, he has almost a club foot, boxy at best, he stopped tripping, he is only back in shoes because he went very footsore on gravel, I had a barefoot expert out to assess both our horses, the mare ,a TBxCB was said to be unsuitable, my boy was deemed perfect for barefoot. What really P's me off is his needing to be shod again is down to my need to feed him sugary treats, he was happier in himself barefoot, I know its better for him, so why can't I resist feeding him carrots, apples etc, the sugar excess is probably why he is so bolshy.
Kick some sense into me someone PLEASE
 
whisp&willow said:
i find that interesting. ;) even on tarmac?! what would be an apropriate diet?
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Even on tarmac:)

An appropriate diet is high fibre and low sugar/starch with plenty of minerals - simple but not sexy.

Excessive sugar attacks the lamina and starts to weaken the connection of hoof wall to coffin bone - hence sore horses.

If you have a look at the Abaco Barbs - a feral bunch of horses in Hawaii. They moved from crappy, sparse grazing on hard terrain to lush, soft grazing on a plantation with easy access to water. They stood around all day and ate - and their feet all went splat and they started getting laminitis (virtually unheard of in wild horses).

Hooves NEED abuse:)
 
whisp&willow said:
i couldnt imagine many hunters/eventers being so! :o
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I hunt with three others regularly and sometimes five others. Sorry Changes, here's that photo you hate again :)

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NT0fwAL6x3I/TqgvYrwHFtI/AAAAAAAAAxU/Dl96zmLxBSk/s1600/radar+hedge.jpg

One horse that I know of has evented Advanced in this country without shoes. There are Intermediates without shoes. There are now quite a few at teh lower levels with no shoes and I've done Novice on two and Intro/PN on four others. Not every rider believes that they cannot event without studs. Plenty of very competitive long distance horses have no shoes. Some GP dressage horses have no shoes but some riders really believe that shoes improve the paces. Personally, I would rather shoes were banned for dressage and see the horses with the best natural paces win, now that it is only ever on artificial surfaces.


CPT
 
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Oberon said:
Even on tarmac:)

An appropriate diet is high fibre and low sugar/starch with plenty of minerals - simple but not sexy.

Excessive sugar attacks the lamina and starts to weaken the connection of hoof wall to coffin bone - hence sore horses.

If you have a look at the Abaco Barbs - a feral bunch of horses in Hawaii. They moved from crappy, sparse grazing on hard terrain to lush, soft grazing on a plantation with easy access to water. They stood around all day and ate - and their feet all went splat and they started getting laminitis (virtually unheard of in wild horses).

Hooves NEED abuse:)
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Spot on, Oberon.
People also are unaware that cereal is not a natural food for a horse. Even if one waded into a wheat field, the amount of grain that would actually be digested is tiny due to the vary hard outer coating, so it would just pass through teh gut. Added to which that origianl cereals were not great grain bearers, the cereal content in todays feed is way above what a horse has developed to digest. We also know from experience that horses prefer the shorter grasses and tend to leave the tall grasses that are in seed.
 
Oberon said:
Hooves NEED abuse:)
Click to expand...

Wish some of the farriers round me would agree to this. Since we moved the new farrier refused to touch his feet and said if we did any more work on the roads he would wear his feet away :(. I know his feet are looking well with all the work we have been doing and the farrier at home always agreed his feet looked good and he was comfortable so leave him as he is and just roll his toes. Sorry to hijack your post OP but I'm just frustrated and a little unsure of where to go next if I cant find a supportive farrier.

Oh and OP he competes in dressage sj and xc no problems without shoes, never had a problem with grip, although we are deffinatly not comnpeting to any decent level its not his feet holding us back :).
 
dafthoss said:
Wish some of the farriers round me would agree to this. Since we moved the new farrier refused to touch his feet and said if we did any more work on the roads he would wear his feet away :(. I know his feet are looking well with all the work we have been doing and the farrier at home always agreed his feet looked good and he was comfortable so leave him as he is and just roll his toes. Sorry to hijack your post OP but I'm just frustrated and a little unsure of where to go next if I cant find a supportive farrier.

Oh and OP he competes in dressage sj and xc no problems without shoes, never had a problem with grip, although we are deffinatly not comnpeting to any decent level its not his feet holding us back :).
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If you're doing enough work you may be lucky enough to be self trimming. You can safely and easily learn how to touch up a mustang roll yourself.
 
Yes he is self trimming really I cant remember the last time he had a proper trim that wasnt just rolling his toes. I am rather tempted to have a go but just not sure if I want to take the plunge and be doing his feet :confused: :( I think I would be to worried about doing it wrong.
 
I think you come on posts, call people names and declare anyone with a certificate must be right because 'they're the expert'. And I meant mad as in angry because you often become aggressive on posts.
 
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