Good reasons NOT to go barefooted???

The effect of roadwork on my lad's feet concerned me when we first went barefoot.

I called my trimmer in a panic "I've broken my horse - he has no heels!" She looked at him, laughed at me, and said "look again in a few days". In a few days it was all back and now he does huge miles without wearing them at all.

Over time the growth rate has slowed as the hooves has become accustomed and conditioned to the wear - now he grows enough for what he does and there is never excess hoof wall. The hoof is a high quality - not the poorer fast growing stuff that he threw out when he was first unshod.

Now trimming 4 hooves makes me feel like I've done some real work - in the first year they were like rasping parmesan cheese, now they are like teak.

Hooves are incredibly adaptive - if given the right environment, fed well, and not over-trimmed.
 
Mine had his shoes off for a couple of years, but it worried me a lot. I had real nightmares about competing in a grass arena and slipping over. He was almost 100% but I was probably too cautious with using hoof boots and decided that I couldn't give him the necessary consistenancy of work to be barefoot, so a couple of years ago had his shoes put back on, (but removed for a few weeks in the winter) but said that once I stopped showing I would have them off again. At the same time, I really believe that had he not had that time without shoes he would have been lame by now as he had a real toe first landing. I knew that something wasn't quite right, but didn't know what.

I think that time has nearly come to have his shoes off for good. I found that when barefoot even on wet grass he had plenty of grip for flat work and his feet looked much, much better without shoes than with. I hope that he lasts me a long time, so for his long term health and soundness he will be going back to barefoot.
 
I have a barefoot tb! And his white hind hooves are best of the four, he easily does an hour walking and trotting on the road without hind boots.

Since my horse has been fed magnesium oxide there is a very marked difference in the quality of hoof horn, the top inch and a half has a totally different angle, no ridges and is nice and strong.

For a horse that was shod every five weeks, he was sound on a smooth hard surface the day the shoes came off!

My biggest worry at the moment is that we’re booked in for a Mary King xc clinic next month and I just worry she’ll comment on the fact we don’t have shoes let alone studs! (Although might distract her from the fact we can’t actually jump either!)

We’ve had our first pair of hoof boots (easy boot gloves) for five weeks now and they have stayed put: cantering in long grass, jumping logs, though streams, wet ground, road work and several ‘tb’ moments that involve a lot of leg waving!!
 
Star has now been shoeless for 9 months. Previously, she suffered from chronic thrush, with incredibly deep clefts in her feet, contracted heels and small, narrow frogs.

Although we still have a ways to go, her feet have pinged open, the thrush is a fraction of what it used to be and the clefts in her feet are slowly becoming more shallow. I am hoping that as the overall health of her feet improve, the thrush will continue to improve.

I too worry about grassy rings, and am thinking hard about strategies for tomorrow's show. It's set to rain tonight and the grass will be short and wet....... Take it easy, it's about looking good in the showring, not winning races. :D

I totally agree with the poster who said the horse is the expert on their feet. So true.

Good luck.
 
if it works for you fantastic :)

worked well for my mare - had to wear front boots occasionally if doing stoney tracks - but i ended up putting shoes back on for studs/competing...

its the same as all horsesy stuff - will work well for some - wont for others - and you'll be given lots of conflicting advice on all of it - ahh - the wonderful world of horses :D
 
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