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 Money Eating Baggage Owner
Posts: 9586
   
Location: Phoenix | So I decided to just leave my horse barefoot (For now), but now he's limping on the front right. When I tap the front feet with the hoof pick he's sensitive in spots. I don't know whether I should soak in Epsom salts or what....he's fine at the walk and slow trot, but anymore than that and he's limping. I guess I should at least get him some boots to help.....what kind do you guys like?
Edited by hammer_time 2015-01-15 11:05 PM
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Veteran
Posts: 197
| I pull shoes on mine for the winter almost every year. When first take shoes off we leave them a little long so they don't be as likely to get too sore. After a couple weeks, we trim them better and rasp them more rounded as a barefoot trim style. I have one that seems to come up sore more frequently than some of the others, I have been trying painting the soles with venice turpentine and it seems to help. I also do have soft rides that I will put on him for a day or so if he gets real gimpy. Where it takes most of them a couple weeks, this one horse seems to take a month or more to adjust. |
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Expert
Posts: 1280
Location: Texas | I just got a set of 4 easy boot gloves when my horse was barefoot for a month or so & sore (with other issues); I like them a lot & feel that I can ride at any pace in them. I wouldn't attempt to run barrels in them, but conditioning rides & trail riding for sure. They fit very tight so get the fit kit & try on before you buy. I also have a pair of delta hoof boots that I love for quick on/off, but they rub the heels (maybe because they are slightly big?). But the Deltas are only good for walking as the fit much different than the Easyboot. The Easyboots are quite a bit more difficult the get on & off until you figure out how to hold your mouth just right LOL |
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Veteran
Posts: 139
Location: Abbotsford B.C. Canada | I think it is difficult to have horses barefoot unless you can take the time to adapt them to the ground they will be on. If you take off shoes and put the horse on rocky ground or frozen ground they could hurt their feet.
We used to think wild horses were ideal for hoof quality, but we now know wild horses in Australia/NZ actually habve excessive hoof wear and damage to soles of their feet and in fact show signs of laminitis . In effect it is like road founder from being on hard rough surfaces all the time.
I think the horses need shoes "if " the ground is going to be gravelly or rough.
My understanding is if the horse must go barefoot youi need to atke time to walk the horse over similar ground to gradually toughen up the sole and hoof wall.
Then the horse can be turned out on that ground after the adjustment period. Walking on smooth round pea gravel is suggested by some experts to help toughen feet, but some rocks in gravel are quite sharp so why make a horse live on it?
Use a hoof supplement for sure.
The horse could get navicular like problems from stepping on a small rock or some other issue unless the feet have been toughened up. Then it is hard to sort out what is going on, as symptoms are vague.
Soaking in epsom salts may soften the hoof and let out an abscess but long term may take out the natural oils in the hoof wall and create more problems.
If the ground is wet it is a battle to keep the hoof sound, and if it is very dry they can have issues too. A lot of wild horses are screwed up in their feet if they actually are checked over by veterinarian's so no shoes is a loaded question and I would ask you vet about the research I am talking about.
I ride on some gravel and would be scared to try bare foot. My farrier even suggests pads for the rough trails as our weather is quite wet all winter so feet are always softer than normal.
Shoeing and a dry stall at night is working for me.
Just an opinion, it may not fit your situation, but the horse is saying it is not working right now I gather.
Cheers,
Coastal Rider |
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Money Eating Baggage Owner
Posts: 9586
Location: Phoenix | Thanks guys. I think I'll just go back to shoes...He's such a baby. Plus he's had them his whole life (besides winter time). I thought the ground was pretty soft but I guess it does have a gravelly texture.
So, he was trimmed a week ago. If I throw shoes on him in another week--he should be ok. Right? |
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Formerly Horse
Posts: 4552
Location: TEXAS | I used to run barefoot but never got mine conditioned to more than soft dirt. Now I only shoe with fronts and she does great barefoot in the hind feet. |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 1118
Location: The South | I have Renegade boots for my pansy and I really like them. They are super easy to put on and take off. He's been barefoot for almost a year and his feet look amazing. I'm hooked.
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 Reaching for the stars....
Posts: 12704
| 2015 will be the third season all my guys are barefoot. The first season they were barefoot I took softrides with me to the VA Horse Center, where it's gravel everywhere except the arenas. The next year I did not, and the horses bobbed their heads about the same as any horse with shoes, i.e., when they stepped on a big sharp piece of gravel. Last season I didn't notice any bobbing. A lone rock will make them step gingerly, but walking on solid gravel is no longer an issue.
It takes a LONG time for the hooves to get used to being bare after years of shoes. My horses now have better feet than they've ever had. They are growing evenly finally, with no flares trying to start. And my pocketbook is very happy. I can keep the entire herd trimmed for less than shoeing my two competition horses.
In the winter on frozen ground or in snow I think they have much less issues than they did with shoes. When the ground freezes solid and it was muddy beforehand, the ground is trecherous no matter what they have on their feet. I've not noticed any soreness this year, and that is the condition we have. Lots of precip and then freezing conditions. Looks like he!! froze over in my pens! They do move slow across the terrain, but no gimpers. |
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Money Eating Baggage Owner
Posts: 9586
Location: Phoenix | I really like the idea of barefoot....but he's had shoes his whole LIFE. I think I was a little ambitious thinking I could go barefoot. I did pack his feet with the magic Cushion and he responded well today on the trails.
Does shoeing just the front keep them unbalanced do you think? I can see it both ways.... |
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Red Bull Agressive
Posts: 5981
Location: North Dakota | I prefer barefoot but 2 of my 3 have front shoes now and can't be ridden w/o them (one had navicular-like symptoms so gets wedges/pads and the other has a ginormous hole in his sole from the abscess from hell). I think if just shoeing the fron unbalanced them there wouldn't be SO many horses out there with just front shoes. My boy was barefoot his entire life before I got him and he still is a baby on any sort of hard or gravely ground. He came with easyboots but I could not get them to fit so I guess his old owner got the wrong size. I'm not sure if I'll go back to barefoot or not. Sometimes it's nice to just not have to worry about every step he takes... |
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