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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 614
 
| Does anyone have managing tips for a horse you want to keep barefoot and compete on? My horse is sounder when he is barefoot because his heels spread with shoes they contract. I have tried different farriers, several vet suggestions, a podiatrist and so on. The only thing that helps the contracted heels is putting him barefoot so they spread. I was trying to figure out a plan with using boots to help with the ouchiness and run him barefoot. Most arenas he is find. Maybe something to toughen the sole. I would love some suggestions or someone to spell it out for me.
Forgot to add once the heels spread and I put the shoes back on they start contracting again. It does matter how the shoe is set and by what farrier.
Edited by Dirt Dobber 2016-10-12 10:42 AM
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Married to a Louie Lover
Posts: 3303
 
| We've gone barefoot on all of ours as of yesterday and I'm learning to trim them myself with the mentorship of a friend who's been trimming hers and running barefoot for many years and my BIL who is a farrier. 1 has been barefoot about 6 weeks, 1 about 4 weeks, and we pulled the shoes off the last 2 in the last couple days as they were due and lost a shoe. 3 of the 4 look great and are sound in the arena. Various stages of touchy on gravel but to be expected. The 4th has some underrun heels so he's going to be touchy for a little while.
I highly recommend Pete Ramey's book and gaining an understanding of the hoof and how it functions.
If he's sounder barefoot why have you put shoes back on him?
I plan to get boots for mine when we start to travel again for when he's stalled on concrete or has to stand on gravel.
Love not having to worry about throwing a shoe before an event, love working towards not having to work around someone else's schedule/being able to trim my own. And the more I learn about the hoof, excited to see improved soundness in my horses.
ETA: my new understanding is, and correct me someone please if I'm wrong as I'm still learning, but sorenesss barefoot is not usually sole related unless your farrier has been paring away the sole, particularly the toe callus. Soreness can be from not rounding the wall (mustang roll) and taking off flare, which is a separation of the laminae (akin to slowly ripping your fingernail off with every step), and from adjusting to the new weight distribution on P3/coffin bone. The sole is a mirror of P3, if I'm thinking about this right contracted heels would angle the P3 down, and barefoot/spreading heels would return it to it's proper angle, but not without some touchyness in between. It's a process you have to stay dedicated to.
Since I'm still learning I wouldn't take that as gospel until someone with more experience chimes in.
Edited by OhMax 2016-10-12 11:37 AM
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 614
| OhMax - 2016-10-12 11:23 AM We've gone barefoot on all of ours as of yesterday and I'm learning to trim them myself with the mentorship of a friend who's been trimming hers and running barefoot for many years and my BIL who is a farrier. 1 has been barefoot about 6 weeks, 1 about 4 weeks, and we pulled the shoes off the last 2 in the last couple days as they were due and lost a shoe. 3 of the 4 look great and are sound in the arena. Various stages of touchy on gravel but to be expected. The 4th has some underrun heels so he's going to be touchy for a little while. I highly recommend Pete Ramey's book and gaining an understanding of the hoof and how it functions. If he's sounder barefoot why have you put shoes back on him? I plan to get boots for mine when we start to travel again for when he's stalled on concrete or has to stand on gravel. Love not having to worry about throwing a shoe before an event, love working towards not having to work around someone else's schedule/being able to trim my own. And the more I learn about the hoof, excited to see improved soundness in my horses. ETA: my new understanding is, and correct me someone please if I'm wrong as I'm still learning, but sorenesss barefoot is not usually sole related unless your farrier has been paring away the sole, particularly the toe callus. Soreness can be from not rounding the wall (mustang roll) and taking off flare, which is a separation of the laminae (akin to slowly ripping your fingernail off with every step), and from adjusting to the new weight distribution on P3/coffin bone. The sole is a mirror of P3, if I'm thinking about this right contracted heels would angle the P3 down, and barefoot/spreading heels would return it to it's proper angle, but not without some touchyness in between. It's a process you have to stay dedicated to. Since I'm still learning I wouldn't take that as gospel until someone with more experience chimes in.
he was ouchy on rocks and I was afraid he would bruise.
Edited by Dirt Dobber 2016-10-12 11:56 AM
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Married to a Louie Lover
Posts: 3303
| Gotcha, he will be ouchy for a while, according to Pete it can take up to a year to transition depending on what you're starting with.
If you experience gravel a lot I recommend boots, there are some great ones you can ride in if they are properly fitted.
Biggest thing I've seen ease the gravel ouch is getting the outer wall rolled so it's not actually coming in contact the ground, imagine slowly prying your fingernail off with each step. It was an overnight difference for my horse, but he still is tender on gravel.
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 Expert
Posts: 2604
Location: Texas | My horses are all barefoot and I compete on two of them. I went 100% barefoot about three years ago when I got tired of wandering around the pasture looking for lost high dollar shoes. Had been barefoot off & on before then, but this is when I committed 100% to it. My pastures are all pretty soft ground and sugar sand. Everywhere I ride at home is soft ground. This is good and bad. Good because I don't need shoes to ride at home. Bad because their hooves never get the chance to really adapt to hard ground. I use Easyboot Trail boots with added pads in them. I put them on before I load because they also work great to help dampen trailer vibration. Once at a barrel race I just leave them on. Depending on what the ground is like where I warm up, I will either leave them on or take them off. If I leave them on & warm up in them, then I just take them off the drag before I run. I go in and make my run. When I come back out, I get off, loosen the cinch, walk around a bit and then slip the boots back on and walk back to the trailer. They have holes in them so I just leave them on when I hose him off and he then wears them until we get home and I turn him out. They are very easy on/off. I will NEVER go back to shoes. Yes, my horse is ouchy across hard ground and rocks. But living in steel shoes 24/7/365 is a LOT worse for him than wearing boots for a couple of hours a day once or twice per week. |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 1118
Location: The South | Our ground is the same as Tbone, so ours are still sensitive on gravel at shows. I'm planning on getting pea gravel and putting it around the water trough and the pasture gate so they'll hopefully build up a tolerance and get a little tougher. |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 614
| Thank you all for your responses! I feel better about going barefoot and will use the responses. |
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 Life Saver
Posts: 10477
 
Location: MT | Something that Pete Ramey taught me was to buy a cheap thin wool felt pad. Trace around the bottom of your easy boot on there with a marker and then cut out and use as your pad in the easy boot. Lasts way better than the pads that easy care sells and you can get a lot of them from buying just one wool felt pad for $20-30.
Just thought that might be useful for those who are booting when on rocky ground.
Our horses have been barefoot for years now. Have no issues at all on rocks or hard ground. They are out on an 1100 acre pasture that does have a bit of rock to it so are used to it.
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 I'm Cooler Offline
Posts: 6387
Location: Pacific Northwest | I have two barefoot horses.
My mare I compete with and I can't really offer any advice because I literally just pulled her shoes one day and she was 100% sound on gravel from the get go. I don't go around trotting her on gravel or anything, but I honestly don't have to worry about her. She still clocks just as good, too.
My gelding I just pulled his shoes a couple months ago. I've had him since he was 4 and he's 17. His feet just don't grow. He was VERY sore when I first pulled them, but he's much better now. He has to walk a little slow across gravel, but when he's on grass or arena dirt, he's just fine. And his feet are actually starting to get a natural cup to them, so I think he will just get better.
I do keep Durasole and this other stuff that I order from SmartPak called Farrier Fix on hand, it's just a liquid hoof oil that apply every other day or so. If the gelding seems especially sore, or if I ran the mare somewhere with bad ground/rocky warm up, I will pack with Magic Cushion afterward. |
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 Swiffer PIcker Upper
Posts: 4015
Location: Four Corners Colorado | Keeping your horse sound barefoot on all terrain, takes a combination of the proper trim, proper diet and proper housing/ hoof conditioning. So it isn't as simple as people think but it is worth it! |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 695
Location: Windoming | My 12 year old barrel horse has never had shoes on. He has great feet. I run all my horses barefoot and have for at least 10 years. I got started doing it when my good horse kept slipping in his turns. |
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  Whack and Roll
Posts: 6342
Location: NE Texas | Mine are all barefoot. Keep some keratex or durasole on hand and use as needed.
Edited by Herbie 2016-10-13 12:45 PM
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| LindsayJordan84 - 2016-10-12 2:34 PM
Our ground is the same as Tbone, so ours are still sensitive on gravel at shows. I'm planning on getting pea gravel and putting it around the water trough and the pasture gate so they'll hopefully build up a tolerance and get a little tougher.
Buy the bigger washed gravel they use for septic system lines (one inch++) ... and only trim the slag off of their frogs ...
Wetting the sole and frog down with 100% turpentine will tuffen up feet and seal off any open nerves after a trim... wet it only with a wet cloth .. if it gets up in the hair line it could blister the skin ...
Use one of the boot methods suggested above to keep your horse off of blacktop roads or parking lots ... walking on this will wear a hoof down into a quick faster than you can imagine ..
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 Having Smokin Bandits
Posts: 4572
Location: Woodstown, NJ | If anyone needs to get your horse's feet to GROW, try giving him Biotin 100 from Nanric. Omg, that stuff is amazing! It is not cheap. Costs about $80 for a gallon tub but I can't even begin to tell you how great it is. Your farrier will notice their feet are growing faster. I used to have a tack shop and I tried everything. Nothing worked like this. Thought I'd let you in on that little tidbit.
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