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Veteran
Posts: 162
 
| Anyone only shoe the front feet? Pros, cons? |
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 Take a Picture
Posts: 12838
  
| I have one older horse that is retired that gets shoes on only the front and a young horse that just gets them on the front. She can stay upright better with shoes and does not really need them on back. |
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Veteran
Posts: 268
| I only put fronts on. My horses have great feet. I have no problems. My husband has a horse that we shoe all the way around. His feet crack and chip if he doesn't have them. Where do,you go? Is there a lot of gravel? Is the ground deep or hard or does it always vary? These are also things I consider. I trust my shoer and if he thinks I need back shoes then I will have them on. Just my opinion.
Edited by sandygirl1 2018-09-08 8:46 AM
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 1165
Location: California | I only shoe the front feet only of my mare. She has some issues in the fronts and also has a wedge on both fronts. Her hind feet are great and don’t need shoes. Her son is shod all the way around now because his hinds started cracking when we started jumping. On barrels I only shod his fronts because they are a bit sensitive. |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 762
Location: NC | The older horse we have whos still running has had front shoes only since he was 7 (hes 22) If he doesnt he cant even walk across a road without falling. The other horse i have has 4 on but he needs them for support on his back feed |
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 Maine-iac
Posts: 3334
Location: Got Lobsta? | I also read that having no shoes in the back help with hock issues? I asked my farrier about it and he said that only way to have hock issues is when they are not balanced on the back.  I've been running my mare without hind shoes, first horse I've done this for and she's running well, no traction problems. |
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 I hate cooking and cleaning
Posts: 3310
Location: Jersey Girl | Most of my horse owning life I have only done fronts......but now I have a mare that needs all 4. I would do barefoot if I could. |
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 Born not Made
Posts: 2931
Location: North Dakota | Yup. Both of my horses right now have front shoes only.
Red gets shoes in back too for traction, but that's only because he slips if he doesn't have them. So he gets them. My other two horses don't slip so they don't need back shoes.
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 Expert
Posts: 1718
Location: Southeast Louisiana | The mare I run wears fronts only. And that is only because her front feet had a few slits that I was trying to grow out. Since we moved a year and a half ago, her feet are better. (I think it was the water they had access to combined with a wetter pasture causing it.) I might try barefoot all the way around, once I get her feet to where I like them. I really like that I don’t have to worry about the damage she could do overreaching with rear shoes vs barefoot in the back. Also, i’d Love to never have to worry about losing a shoe! |
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 Not Afraid to Work
Posts: 4717
| All of mine have only fronts. Ran this way for as long as I can remember. I wish I could go barefoot but the one is in corrective shoes and the other just doesn't need them on hinds but front chip up a bit. |
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 A Somebody to Everybody
Posts: 41354
Location: Under The Big Sky Of Texas | I have been shoeing only fronts for years, But now have gone to barefoot, except for one gelding since hes thinner soled and needs to be up off the ground. Horses carry more weight on the front end then the back, keeping my horses shoed on the front while I was hauling help keep their feet in better shape. |
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