Would you be put off buying an 'unshod', barefoot horse?

List it as a positive in the advert. I've done this with the last few I've sold and I've never had anyone be sniffy about it. Personally I would see it as a benefit!
 
When we bought the Younger Appy the seller offered to have her shod before we picked her up, we declined the offer :). She is still unshod and will remain so. I would rather a new horse not be shod than as happened years ago, when a mare we bought needed her shoes replacing, we had the seller shoe her and their farrier made such a mess of the job that it took us twelve months to get her to behave for our farrier.
 
Another vote for would see it as a positive thing! My connie is unshod (took her front shoes off last summer) and has fantastic little feet. You have the option to put shoes on yourself but it's much harder to transition to being barefoot!
 
I don't care either way don't see it as a positive or a negative just a fact.

My horse came without shoes basically because his owner couldn't be bothered treating him right. He now has them on the front and he is much happier because of it.
 
Another who see's it as a positive, I'm not one of those nut job barefoot, thunderbrooks fanatics but I just don't believe horses/ponies need shoes (for what I do with them) so I wouldn't but one that needed them
 
If she's sound and working at the level you're looking to sell her as being able to do then why bother? If whoever buys her wants her shod then it's easy enough for them to do this themselves. If someone were to use a lack of shoes as a reason for deciding not to buy a horse that is perfectly sound and happy without then I'd think they were a bit weird tbh as if they want shoes on then they can get their own farrier to do it after buying. If she were a TB or something like that I'd say you may struggle a little more to find a buyer cos it's not "the done thing" (event though in the right hands / with time and effort/ if they weren't shod from a young age they can manage without shoes) but in a native pony it's quite common anyway and I doubt it would be frowned upon.

Going to admit I am now a barefoot "type" (I didn't used to be until about 2 1/2 yrs ago) and I would now go out of my way to find a horse that is already sound and in work without shoes on (or even better one who has never been shod). If I couldn't find a horse I liked that was barefoot and set up ready to go then I wouldn't discount a shod horse if I liked everything else about them, but it wouldn't be my first preference. I guess reading that back then people who prefer theirs shod may feel the same but it's a lot less time and effort to put a set of shoes on than it is to transition the majority of horses to barefoot.
 
Barefoot would be a bonus to me. All three of mine are unshod, and unless a horse really can't cope, that will always be my preference.
 
If buyers insist, I would agree to putting fronts on if they wanted it and had arranged a vetting, I would not mention it in advert, but you can show them Rockley hunting footage . I assume buyers think or may assume she can't be shod.
 
If it were a youngster or a native pony type then no but if a adult horse then probably.
Everyone I know who has gone barefoot with a horse over 14.2 has done so due to last resort resolution of chronic soundness problems.
I've also personally yet to see a fully functioning barefoot horse. Ones I've seen despite being managed meticulously with barefoot diets and following Rockley online advice have had constant issues such as abscesses. They need reconditioning roadwork each time they are brought back into work to harden feet.
Even the never been shod Dartmoor has to be ridden on the verges and soft areas due to the flinty ground we have here.
I love the principles of barefoot I really do but it seems very restrictive from what I've seen.
 
Sussexbythesea said:
If it were a youngster or a native pony type then no but if a adult horse then probably.
Everyone I know who has gone barefoot with a horse over 14.2 has done so due to last resort resolution of chronic soundness problems.
I've also personally yet to see a fully functioning barefoot horse. Ones I've seen despite being managed meticulously with barefoot diets and following Rockley online advice have had constant issues such as abscesses. They need reconditioning roadwork each time they are brought back into work to harden feet.
Even the never been shod Dartmoor has to be ridden on the verges and soft areas due to the flinty ground we have here.
I love the principles of barefoot I really do but it seems very restrictive from what I've seen.
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I'm sorry but this is a completely wrong picture.

I've already posted that I have BE evented, two to 1m15, five different horses. I have also hunted five, three which never evented, so that's seven performance horses in all.

I've three horses here and I'm struggling to remember the last abscess, it was years ago.

If you are genuinely seeing what you are seeing, those horses are either with people who are not managing them as they need to be managed, or they have a health problems which might cause them to need shoes.
 
My Ned is doing fine without shoes. I'm not riding him an awful lot, but he has hacked to a show and did really well while there! We did a 60 and 70cm class, so nothing massive, but he was fine.

However, I went to view an ex racer who was barefoot. It needed shoes, 100%! It was soo footsore, I felt awful! It was the reason I didn't buy. It was a really really sweet horse.
 
Sussexbythesea said:
If it were a youngster or a native pony type then no but if a adult horse then probably.
Everyone I know who has gone barefoot with a horse over 14.2 has done so due to last resort resolution of chronic soundness problems.
I've also personally yet to see a fully functioning barefoot horse. Ones I've seen despite being managed meticulously with barefoot diets and following Rockley online advice have had constant issues such as abscesses. They need reconditioning roadwork each time they are brought back into work to harden feet.
Even the never been shod Dartmoor has to be ridden on the verges and soft areas due to the flinty ground we have here.
I love the principles of barefoot I really do but it seems very restrictive from what I've seen.
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I have a tb here that was in full work and competing barefoot until a couple of months ago, he has never had an abscess although that may be jinxing things, he is currently in a full set as he started competing on grass and rather than risk him losing confidence he was shod so he can have studs, they will come back off once the season has ended, he lives out 24/7 in summer has no real management other than to keep him fit and no special diet, he did have poor feet when he first came here out of training but other than being sensible he has been treated like any other horse.
My own ISH has been barefoot most of the time with me, again no fussing with diet, he is not and never has been chronically unsound and has never had an abscess, I certainly don't find it restrictive, have an excellent farrier who is more than happy to work with barefeet, I never shoe ponies apart from the odd one that requires studs for competing and from my own point of view riding on the roads is so much nicer without them constantly slipping, I will only shoe if essential and normally just for the summer so they can have studs and never had an issue taking them off again as their feet remain good apart from the nail holes breaking away initially.
 
paddy555 said:
if she was a connie I wouldn't care if she was unshod but I would want her tested for HWSS. That would be far more important than whether she was shod.
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I see more & more adverts for Connie mares & stallions stating tested clear for HWSS & that's fab!

EKW said:
It would never have even crossed my mind to wonder why a young, unbroken/freshly broken horse/pony had no shoes on! Some people are cuckoo bananas!
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Snap :D

Sussexbythesea said:
If it were a youngster or a native pony type then no but if a adult horse then probably.
Everyone I know who has gone barefoot with a horse over 14.2 has done so due to last resort resolution of chronic soundness problems.
I've also personally yet to see a fully functioning barefoot horse. Ones I've seen despite being managed meticulously with barefoot diets and following Rockley online advice have had constant issues such as abscesses. They need reconditioning roadwork each time they are brought back into work to harden feet.
Even the never been shod Dartmoor has to be ridden on the verges and soft areas due to the flinty ground we have here.
I love the principles of barefoot I really do but it seems very restrictive from what I've seen.
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:(

I know a few TB's that hunt without shoes, hack miles, do all the things a shod horse can do with no real special treatment..
Admittedly i have natives who don't have shoes, but they are not fed any special diets or treated differently, yet they are 'fully functioning' too.
If my ponies NEEDED shoes, they'd get them, i'm not a barefoot preacher at all. However, i wish more people wouldn't just shove shoes on just because it's a 'horse' or because it's now an 'adult' pony/horse.
 
ycbm said:
I'm sorry but this is a completely wrong picture.

I've already posted that I have BE evented, two to 1m15, five different horses. I have also hunted five, three which never evented, so that's seven performance horses in all.

I've three horses here and I'm struggling to remember the last abscess, it was years ago.

If you are genuinely seeing what you are seeing, those horses are either with people who are not managing them as they need to be managed, or they have a health problems which might cause them to need shoes.
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I don't have completely the wrong picture I have the picture I have seen. I've read most of your posts on barefoot rehab over the years but I've "personally" yet to see a fully functioning sound barefoot horse capable of all work done by a shod horse. That's what I've seen with my own eyes, not something I've read on HHO.

All these people (apart from the Dartmoor who could be managed differently) avidly follow all the things you have ever recommended. Yes their horses probably do have other issues which is my point they've gone barefoot because they have issues. Therefore I would be cautious about a large mature horse that is unshod. But then again there are plenty of other reasons to be cautious when buying.

Like I say I'm all for it but it seems difficult to achieve successfully especially when you cannot manage your own land and facilities.
 
Sussexbythesea said:
I don't have completely the wrong picture I have the picture I have seen. I've read most of your posts on barefoot rehab over the years but I've "personally" yet to see a fully functioning sound barefoot horse capable of all work done by a shod horse. That's what I've seen with my own eyes, not something I've read on HHO.

All these people (apart from the Dartmoor who could be managed differently) avidly follow all the things you have ever recommended. Yes their horses probably do have other issues which is my point they've gone barefoot because they have issues. Therefore I would be cautious about a large mature horse that is unshod. But then again there are plenty of other reasons to be cautious when buying.

Like I say I'm all for it but it seems difficult to achieve successfully especially when you cannot manage your own land and facilities.
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We have loads of them around here. My horse does pleasure rides, jumps, hacks for miles, all shoeless and always has done. So does my friends mare, and over half the horses at my current yard are barefoot and in full work. Personally I did nothing special for my horse to 'go barefoot' just ensure she's well fed and regularly trimmed. I'm just amazed it's such an issue in places.
 
Sussexbythesea said:
I don't have completely the wrong picture I have the picture I have seen. I've read most of your posts on barefoot rehab over the years but I've "personally" yet to see a fully functioning sound barefoot horse capable of all work done by a shod horse. That's what I've seen with my own eyes, not something I've read on HHO.

All these people (apart from the Dartmoor who could be managed differently) avidly follow all the things you have ever recommended. Yes their horses probably do have other issues which is my point they've gone barefoot because they have issues. Therefore I would be cautious about a large mature horse that is unshod. But then again there are plenty of other reasons to be cautious when buying.

Like I say I'm all for it but it seems difficult to achieve successfully especially when you cannot manage your own land and facilities.
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I can see your point.
I'm pro unshod where possible but also see many unshod horses whose owners are adament they are fully sound (tbf the same can be said for shod) whereby it is clear from the way they are moving there are issues. Not obviously nodding but the kind of bilateral soreness issues that crop up.
Anyone can say they have done XYZ level of competing on their barefoot horse and yes they would be correct. But reading between the lines on the scoresheet you have to wonder what the problems were.
Some horses are easy unshod. Some take extensive management to keep happy unshod. There are some disciplines where to be competitive and a reasonable level you would be a fool to think unshod was a genuine proposition.
 
Shadowdancing said:
We have loads of them around here. My horse does pleasure rides, jumps, hacks for miles, all shoeless and always has done. So does my friends mare, and over half the horses at my current yard are barefoot and in full work. Personally I did nothing special for my horse to 'go barefoot' just ensure she's well fed and regularly trimmed. I'm just amazed it's such an issue in places.
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Im getting the feeling people are taking my experience personally (which to be fair is limited as I know of very few unshod horses). It's just my view based on what I've "seen" not what I've read. Please you really don't need to get so defensive.

I don't know if it's a regional thing - I can't see where people live on my iPad. Maybe Sussex soils don't support it very well? Maybe the terrain is not conducive or maybe we're all stuck in the past? 😀.
 
Sussexbythesea said:
Im getting the feeling people are taking my experience personally (which to be fair is limited as I know of very few unshod horses). It's just my view based on what I've "seen" not what I've read. Please you really don't need to get so defensive.

I don't know if it's a regional thing - I can't see where people live on my iPad. Maybe Sussex soils don't support it very well? Maybe the terrain is not conducive or maybe we're all stuck in the past? ��.
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Yes I was actually wondering if your location might be an issue. Not taking personally, but we're totally the opposite round here. Very wet, lots of clay soils... are you chalky, sandy there by chance? My geography is not great...
 
Sussexbythesea said:
Like I say I'm all for it but it seems difficult to achieve successfully especially when you cannot manage your own land and facilities.
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This can be true of some horses. It can be true of all horses in some places. And some horses are as easy as pie to manage barefoot, and some places are ideal. Mine is ideal with the exception of our iron and manganese levels, which I continue to struggle with.

I'm losing count of the number of people with footie horses who I am recommending to test for Cushings in fairly young horses which are coming back with a positive.

I'm beginning to wonder if being overweight precipitates Cushings, there seems to be such an epidemic of it.

And yes, if you compete barefoot at higher levels you may well have to damp down your competitive urges. You can't short cut on balance by studding up, and losing marks in a slick grass dressage arena is just a given, because you simply can't keep the power on around a corner on an unstudded horse. For me, that was a price well worth paying for the changes I saw in my horses' feet :)
 
I consider myself quite open minded on the barefoot / shoeing argument. My two (big hunter type boys, who do riding club and hacking) are shod - one because he has terrible feet and the other because he needs remedial shoeing (I toyed with barefoot at the time but thought I'd give remedial shoeing a go first and could then go barefoot if that didn't work, but it has done for the last 9 years). If they didn't need shoes I'd definitely be considering barefoot (from a financial point of view if nothing else!) and if I was to be looking for a horse now I certainly wouldn't be put off a barefoot horse, especially one so young with feet that are that good.
 
Another here who should point out that none of my horses are unshod due to soundness issues, or any other issues for that matter. All three (including the retired boy) have been worked in the same way as any other horse, and none are on any particularly specialist diet to help keep them that way. They're fed a simple mixture of Healthy Hooves, grass nuts, and Fast Fibre in winter, along with ad-lib hay, and have nothing but grass from about April through to October. None have had abscesses at any time whilst I've owned them, which is more than could be said for my old TB who was shod all round.
At the end of the day, it should be about what works for the individual horse, but implying that every barefoot horse has latent soundness issues seems like a rather farcical stretch. Barefoot wouldn't worry me; shod wouldn't worry me. Only remedial shoes would be a cause for concern if I was looking to buy.
 
Sukistokes2 said:
I currently have three horses, two unshod and one shod. I prefer unshod, whenever possible. My friend has just shod her stunning highland pony for the first time in order to sell her. I think she was silly. However it's how some people think. My farrier is of the view that whenever possible barefoot is good. He is helping me take my Clydesdale barefoot. All my friend did when she rode him ( the Clyde not the farrier ;) was to keep on about getting him shod, like it was the right thing to do, like I couldn't ride him appropriately if he wasn't shod. It maybe those great big feet will need fronts but so far he is coming along fine and his feet are getting stronger every trim. I just think people shoe because they think it's what you do and never think any further then that.
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Suki, you know my thoughts.
 
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