Looking at a barefoot horse? question pls?

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indie999

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HI

Looking at a 10 year old horse with view to buy, always been barefoot never shoes on. Now owner reassured me unless I am doing 5 miles road work I wont need shoes on as its feet are rock solid.

However although the road is probably a few hundred yards of tarmac we do have a lot of flint along some of our bridleways and this is my concern. I took old boys shoes off now retired and he took a chunk out of his hoof in the field, I realise the holes in his hooves caused weakness which are gradually being trimmed out.Farrier said the chunk was fine and since having them trimmed his hooves look lovely. But he was always shod.

But I am worried if I purchased the barefoot horse am I going to have difficulty getting shoes on it as its never been shoed. I am finding a lot of horses are not being shoed I think its financial too?

I dont know if I should abandon the viewing because the horse is not used to being hot shoed? What do you think? I know there is another thread running on barefoot and found it confusing.
 
dont just abandon it now it could be perfect! if it wont be hot shoed then buy hoof boots? they are cheaper in the long run anyway and the horse can go about its business as usual :) my horse is not barefoot an probably never will be due to the poor quality of his feet but it'll be cheaper anyway if you dont have them shod :)
 
My advice would be to do your own research. God knows there is so much of it out there. Don't be pressured but don't be scared either.

It will be a learning curve I"m sure but if he's coped all his life with no shoes on then good grief, why put him through shoeing? Get some boots. Last ages and are brilliant.

Not every horse needs shoes... not every shod horse can go bf. It's not rocket science, it's much easier to manage and if you have a good farrier/trimmer then you'll be plain sailing.

Flint and rocks aren't a problem to bf horses - they can get footy but you learn to manage it just like you would anything else.

I think if you feel scared, don't do it. You're not prepared. Go and look for something you feel comfortable with... and give me the details of this horse... I might want it :D
 
Thanks very much I suppose I am very into the natural way if possible.
If the feet look good and I will see what the terrain is like where it is currently. I did look at a barefoot horse a few weeks back and yes its feet were so solid(I got a hoof pick and banged them hard to see if he did anything but didnt)! He seemed really friendly etc etc

I would rather not shoe as I am only hacking 2-3 times a week but I know we have a lot of flint around. But the boots sound good idea...where do I get those and what are they called ie brand? pls

Thanks for the replies. ps I mean my old cob had nail holes not holes!
 
2-3 times a week is more than manageable... mine does more than that and he is a rehabbing navi/lami case! He strides out most days without a flinch.. much depends on grass - he's sensitive to it just like some people are sensitive to sugar (diabetes).

Boots.... ah, lots to choose from. Old Mac's, Cavallos, Renegades, just google hoofboots and then marvel at the array of amazing creations... just for hooves!!! If only there were more... like shoe shopping but for your horse.

We already do this for rugs & saddles and bridles etc. So why not boots?
 
Boots for hacking over the stoney ground should see you fine. We have some barefoot horses and some shod horses. Believe me using a trimmer for the barefoot ones is not a cheap option, but for us its worth it and a price we are willing to pay. Good luck with the viewing.
 
I agree that you should only do what you and the horse are comfortable with indie and we can only give examples of barefoot horses that cope with doing the miles so you can see it is possible.

Taz has been barefoot for 11 years and we did miles on roads as she was driven as well as ridden. We also did endurance foa while. If she started to wear the feet faster that growth then we put boots on ..... old macs origionally and now we have boa boots.

Bonney was shod when we got her and were told she had been tried barefoot and failed ...... however she has now been barefoot for 8 years. She prefers not to go on gravelly ground but does ok on roads, she too sometimes has boots on but she does not do as many miles as Taz.

imo if th ehorse has never been shod and has coped with being ridden to date than hacks 2-3 times a week should be no problem at all :cool: I think it would be a shame to shoe him now.
 
Go for it! i have a horse that has to be shod due to poor foot conformation and have 2 others that are barefoot. i do alot of road work and have never had problems. if they are prone to foot abcess, whole lot easier to deal with if not shod as well. Also boils down to how good your farrier is.Mine is fantastic and feels a horse will find its natural balance if unshod.The only draw back is, they do tend to slide more in muddy ground. I would always opt for barefoot!
 
There are lots of different makes of boots, best to go to a hire site or a site that sell a lot of different ones and offer sale or return,basically some feet are round and some are oval,, you may not need boots, and I would proceed without at first.
Look at the Rockley site and you will see quite a few feet, but of course they are dealing with some of the worst cases.
You are jumping the gun a bit, does the horse suit in every other way.
Of course cost saving on shoeing is great,[but 2 boots are over £100], also no lost shoes and tearing the hoof wall, you may be wise to feed a mineral and vitamin supplement for unshod horses.
 
indie999 said:
HI

What do you think? I know there is another thread running on barefoot and found it confusing.
Click to expand...
There seem to be a lot of extreme views against barefoot riding, and every time a question is asked about trimming in particular , there is an outpouring of what can only be described as venom, as though anyone going for barefoot is out to abuse and cause hurt to their horses, it is best to ignore people like that as they are beyond reason.
 
You are jumping the gun a bit, does the horse suit in every other way.


Really pathetic I know but I have not seen the horse yet going tommorow and am worried that it has not ever had shoes on! In case! but reading this sounds fine to me.

If it doesnt need shoes thats fine we are going hacking, but I suppose traditionally all the horses I have been around have shoes on! If I decided to proceed I would get a second opionion anyway. My farrier is very good. The reason I posted this as its not the first one i have looked at without shoes on. In a lot of the adverts or when I question the owner the horse has never been with shoes. I suppose its nice to know it could have shoes on if need be.

But this is really informative. I suppose I was expecting someone to go NO dont buy it or even contemplate it. I have lookd at so many. I could get there and it may not be the one!
 
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