Very nervous - bf support please!

Oberon said:
Barefooters see most hooves as being far too long - we are used to see short hooves (as nature intended).

So when a more traditional minded hoof care professional (who sees the longer hooves as normal) sees the shorter hooves of a working barefoot horse - there can be an instant assumption the hooves have been 'worn away'.

You have to look at the solar view to know if this is true or not.

The only times I have ever seen a horse wearing hooves down quicker than the rate of growth is when:

The diet is not right (so the horse isn't producing good quality tissue)
The work has been increased too quickly for the condition of the hooves
Thrush in the frog is causing the horse to walk on his toes too much

Otherwise I have NEVER seen a horse wear their hooves down to a catastrophic level.
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Exactly this -

And if in doubt you can always stick boots on :D
 
Buddy'sMum said:
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Seriously? Beam me up!!

My last farrier told me that my foal would grow up with wonky legs unless I moved him to a completely flat field!!
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I don't think this view is rare even among some breeders. The sad thing is it is totally the opposite of what foals and youngsters need to develop their lateral cartilages.
Coddling youngsters does them no favours in the hoof development department.

Fingers crossed NellRosk
 
amandap said:
The sad thing is it is totally the opposite of what foals and youngsters need to develop their lateral cartilages.
Coddling youngsters does them no favours in the hoof development department.
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Completely agree.

And how do all those Welsh Mountain ponies and mustangs manage with their wonky legs? ;-)
 
Good luck with it all, I'm doing exactly the same, fronts came off mid August & built up bit by bit to 30 mins in hand on the road. Just bought some hoof boots as about to get back on board & Liz at hoofbootique was brilliant, I had in mind what I wanted but after sending photos & measurements she suggested easyboot epics & the first set worked!
I keep having the odd wobble though, this week he was a little lame after thrush got a bit much & had caused a squishy heel with a bit of pus ( I was away for a couple of days & other peeps were caring for him) but its back under control now & he was landing heel first again yesterday! Thank goodness for this forum for support & encouragement.
 
BFN said:
Good luck with it all, I'm doing exactly the same, fronts came off mid August & built up bit by bit to 30 mins in hand on the road. Just bought some hoof boots as about to get back on board & Liz at hoofbootique was brilliant, I had in mind what I wanted but after sending photos & measurements she suggested easyboot epics & the first set worked!
I keep having the odd wobble though, this week he was a little lame after thrush got a bit much & had caused a squishy heel with a bit of pus ( I was away for a couple of days & other peeps were caring for him) but its back under control now & he was landing heel first again yesterday! Thank goodness for this forum for support & encouragement.
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Thanks BFN, good luck to you too! It's all very exciting isn't it :D ooh I've heard good things about hoofboutique, if he starts getting ouchy I'll get some from there. So far he's fine! Think my farrier was just trying to put me off going bf by saying his soles were very thin :S
 
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