Shoes or boots?

kaiserchief

kaiserchief

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Up until the middle of last summer, Kai has been barefoot trimmed and he's been fine. Unfortunately last year, he (and most of the other barefoot horses on the yard) developed flare in the white lines and started gathering gravel. I was forever getting off whilst out riding to pick out his feet and he was getting footsore. He had some time off with hoof bruising and then with an abscess. He also developed a sore back from holding himself to protect his feet.

My trimmer was unable to suggest anything to manage it other than to keep packing the holes with hoof stuff so I switched to a farrier who did a lovely job of trimming his feet, but because of the damage already there, I asked for him to be shod on the fronts. He's also had physio, saddle checks and a vet check and is now absolutely sound and going beautifully.

He had his fourth set of shoes last week and whilst he was a good boy to have the old ones removed, his feet trimmed and the new set sized (didn't bat an eyelid at the smoke this time which has been a problem before), when the farrier went to nail in the first nail, Kai reared and sent us both flying. Luckily my farrier is wonderful, didn't get cross, just dusted himself off, checked everything was ok and carried on.

Kai's never been amazing with his feet but has been getting so much better and I'm now worrying about his next appointment (even though it's not until the end of March!) Should I persevere with the front shoes as his feet are looking so much better and we're cracking on well now with our ridden work (and maybe stick some Sedalin in him beforehand to calm him down?) or would I be better off asking the farrier to just trim, and stick hoof boots on to hack?

If I go with boots, what boots are best? He's only 13hh and pretty fine - his feet are very dainty!

Thanks in advance :)
 
Interesting that all horses developed flare... Has there been any change in food or management or bedding?

Not sure about which boots but call up a boot retailer and they will help.

Shoes or boots, at the end of the day what matters is a sound horse but I would also look into why the hooves changed if you wanted to stay barefoot.

My horse kept getting holes in her white line and so I took her off alfalfa and they have improve beyond belief.

Now, interestingly I also changed bedding from straw to bedrap and I wonder if taking her off straw and all the preservatives in it that has also helped...
 
I had the same thought as Tallyho - what changed for all the horses to have the same problem?

As to the shoes/boot question - do you want to go the barefoot route, or do you want to continue in shoes? If it is barefoot you are aiming for, then boots all the way. That way you can use them as necessary while conditioning his hooves with the ultimate aim being to have a BF pony.

Good luck.
 
Interestingly, Bedrap is oilseed rape straw (which is treated with just as many chemicals whilst growing if not more than barley or wheat), which is then chemically cleaned then chopped to make a hugely profitable horse bedding. Big bale of rape straw-£10, big bale of other straw- £25, small bag of bedrap (£8-£9???) Neither would effect feet unless deep littered ie wet.

In my opinion OP you would be best to stick to the shoeing- my horse was similar to your pony and would be generally good with the farrier and then throw a quick rear, or get funny about a back foot- turned out she was bored/wanted a wee- I would feed her hay at the front just to get her out of the habit and she is now fine (without the hay!)- Boots limit where, how fast and when you can ride and are not as 'supportive' as shoes, and the bit that concerns me is the bad back-pony needs to use his body correctly to prevent other issues.
 
It really depends on what suits him best and sounds like you've a good farrier who is patient enough to let him settle. You could try using a horselyx to distract him before resorting to Sedalin.
If you do try boots I'd recommend the Easyboot Black Country gloves, but also heard good things about Mac 2s & equine fusion jogging boots.
Equine podiatry supplies website are good & easy to deal with if you need to return but there are boot exchange and sale pages on Facebook that are worth a look. You can get barely used boots on there.
Good luck whatever you decide.
 
Thanks all for your thoughts, I really appreciate it! :)

I'm sure he got the flare due to the rich grazing at my yard although I did everything I could to manage it - he was out muzzled overnight and in on soaked (and rinsed) hay during the day, ridden at least 5 times a week.

To be honest, I don't really care whether he's shod or barefoot, I just want to enjoy him and be able to take him out bombing about - he really enjoys his work and I want to do more with him this year. My farrier is ace, so whether I leave the shoes on or not, I will keep using him.

Have any of you ever used Zylkene as a calmer? A friend suggested it today and I'm thinking that it may take the edge off him for the next shoeing, which combined with a horselyx might make his life more pleasant and mine and the farrier's safer...?
 
Hmmm... has to be something else then as our horses are out on rich beef grazing and have amazing feet! It's down to the individual at the end of the day.

Like you say, a sound horse is essential to work them properly and athletically to prevent other issues so I'd agree with above and work on the shoeing issues.
 
serenityjane said:
Interestingly, Bedrap is oilseed rape straw (which is treated with just as many chemicals whilst growing if not more than barley or wheat), which is then chemically cleaned then chopped to make a hugely profitable horse bedding. Big bale of rape straw-£10, big bale of other straw- £25, small bag of bedrap (£8-£9???) Neither would effect feet unless deep littered ie wet.

In my opinion OP you would be best to stick to the shoeing- my horse was similar to your pony and would be generally good with the farrier and then throw a quick rear, or get funny about a back foot- turned out she was bored/wanted a wee- I would feed her hay at the front just to get her out of the habit and she is now fine (without the hay!)- Boots limit where, how fast and when you can ride and are not as 'supportive' as shoes, and the bit that concerns me is the bad back-pony needs to use his body correctly to prevent other issues.
Click to expand...

How are shoes 'supportive' they affect the blood flow to the hoof and just cover up problems rather than cure them, I have a TB who had horrible feet, farrier suggested wedges, didn't help in the slightest, his feet felt cold to the touch, he reached a stage where his feet wouldn't hold shoes he was that bad, 3 yrs on and my TB is happily BF, feet warm to the touch and feet looking good.
You are what you eat and getting the diet right is paramount in going BF,
 
serenityjane said:
Interestingly, Bedrap is oilseed rape straw (which is treated with just as many chemicals whilst growing if not more than barley or wheat), which is then chemically cleaned then chopped to make a hugely profitable horse bedding. Big bale of rape straw-£10, big bale of other straw- £25, small bag of bedrap (£8-£9???) Neither would effect feet unless deep littered ie wet.

In my opinion OP you would be best to stick to the shoeing- my horse was similar to your pony and would be generally good with the farrier and then throw a quick rear, or get funny about a back foot- turned out she was bored/wanted a wee- I would feed her hay at the front just to get her out of the habit and she is now fine (without the hay!)- Boots limit where, how fast and when you can ride and are not as 'supportive' as shoes, and the bit that concerns me is the bad back-pony needs to use his body correctly to prevent other issues.
Click to expand...

Sorry but deep litter does not equal wet!! :D

Boots do not limit anything IMO, all that is just in the mind.
 
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