Whats the best time of year to go barefoot

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Daisy2

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I have two horses one is already barefoot and wears boots. I am thinking of also doing the same for my mare. She does not have any problems and does well with her shoes, I just want to give her the chance to be free of shoes also, I was planning on this over the winter but have now had second thoughts because I am worried about hard frosts and the effect it would have on sensitive soles. She lives out 24/7. I know she will initially find it hard anyway because she does not move until the farrier has renewed her shoes bless
 
I don't think there is such a thing as best time. I started barefoot in autumn time and just turned away for winter through all that hard frost and snow. It actually toughened them up nicely. I started riding the following January on the roads.
 
"What's the best time of year to go barefoot?"

Summertime of course, pinched-looking purple toes is SUCH an unattractive look, especially if they don't tone with your nail varnish.
 
My TB had her shoes taken off last Friday. She is out of work for winter and will hopefully start again in spring. I had a barefoot timmer to her who thinks she should be fine without shoes, but might need boots in Spring when I start walking her out. I changed her diet a couple of months earlier as I had already made the decision to go barefoot due to lameness problems.
 
I think now is a pretty good time to go for it, esp if your grass is done growing too as that will help you get a handle on the diet before spring hits and the grass messes it up again! I found that the crunchy snow was brilliant for scrubbing and cleaning frogs too. The wet ground will keep any sensitive souls comfy and give them a chance to toughen up. If your mare is so sensitive even when the farrier is just between taking a shoe off and putting one on then I would suggest you take an even closer look at her diet as this will help enormously when she has her shoes off. What works for some horses doesn't always work for others are some are, for some reason, far more sensitive to their diets than others. Make sure that any hint of thrush is knocked on its head too as that will hold her back. Best of luck! (ohh, and take lots of pics, you won't believe the changes!).
 
Daisy2 said:
I have two horses one is already barefoot and wears boots. I am thinking of also doing the same for my mare. She does not have any problems and does well with her shoes, I just want to give her the chance to be free of shoes also, I was planning on this over the winter but have now had second thoughts because I am worried about hard frosts and the effect it would have on sensitive soles. She lives out 24/7. I know she will initially find it hard anyway because she does not move until the farrier has renewed her shoes bless
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I don't believe there is a best time but I would say winter is the easiest time. Hard frosts and ground shouldn't be a problem if you are able to provide boots for the transition and your farrier avoids touching the frog or sole.

The biggest problem with going barefoot is when horses are fed an inappropriate diet and access to too much high sugar grass (such as spring and during frosts). Too much sugar in the diet weakens the lamina, which makes the horse 'footy' (suprisingly;)).
ALL sensitive horses suffer with this but shod horses don't tend to feel it.

It's still possible to take the shoes off in spring and during frosty weather, but if you are new to transitioning a horse, it can make things a bit more fraught for the owner :p

If she is sore when being shod then I would invest in some boots (and possibly pads if she needs it) before you take the shoes off. No horse should be in pain during the transition and boots will prevent this.
 
Thanks for the replies so I suppose I could take off the shoes now, I was just worried about frozen rough hard ground and protruding poached bits but I suppose as long as she does'nt gallop around which she does not then maybe I will go for it now. Her diet is really basic, forage be it pasture or hay and sugarbeet with a little supps and vits, she is a good doer so don't tend to feed much else. My farrier said that some NAF hoof hardener had good reviews. The farrier I use also measures the foot and sells the boots direct so all can be done in one go. Feeling a little nervous about even though I already have and manage a barefoot horse because they are all different and partly because there is no clinical reason do so as there was with other horse, that was his last chance and since going shoeless we have had an amazing time. He wore out his boots in one season and I have just bought new ones!
 
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