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 Reaching for the stars....
Posts: 12708
   
| I can see keeping in shoes if you never knew what you were facing as far as ground conditions (warm up or competition). You take that factor out of the equation, which is the smart move.
If you know all the ground conditions you will face in a given year and all are ok to ride on without shoes, then barefoot is a great option, as long as the trimmer knows what they are doing.
A bad farrier is a bad farrier with or without shoes involved. A horse can be lamed by a bad trim as easy as a hot nail. Bad trimming is what makes a farrier bad -- only a balanced foot works right, whether a shoe is attached or not.
I am currently shoe free. Zan, who has a very slight clubbed front, has never had better feet. Even my vet (who was my farrier previous to my new trimmer/farrier) says his foot looks fantastic. Xena is going to paddle no matter what, but the motion is less exaggerated without the shoe and she won't hurt herself nearly as bad without steel on leg contact if she does swing that front excessively. Boy is only being used to play with some cows here and there right now and I'll have to x-ray his rears again if I get really serious about team penning with him to see how his angles look and maybe put him in shoes with wedges to correct a negative palmar again.
I know the ground conditions I will face here in VA. I lead across gravel at Herndon and the Horse Center, and since both competition horses are well over a year into barefoot-ness they don't hardly notice A21 gravel anymore. I have acceptable footing with little to no rocks or stones. I am very happy to have found a farrier who will keep my guys well balanced and happy, foot wise. And it sure is easier on the $$'s. Unless I have to for therapeudic reasons, shoes will be obsolete for me and my crew. | |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 333
| How is a natural trim different from a regular trim? | |
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| lonely va barrelxr - 2014-02-28 10:21 AM I can see keeping in shoes if you never knew what you were facing as far as ground conditions (warm up or competition). You take that factor out of the equation, which is the smart move.
If you know all the ground conditions you will face in a given year and all are ok to ride on without shoes, then barefoot is a great option, as long as the trimmer knows what they are doing.
A bad farrier is a bad farrier with or without shoes involved. A horse can be lamed by a bad trim as easy as a hot nail. Bad trimming is what makes a farrier bad -- only a balanced foot works right, whether a shoe is attached or not.
I am currently shoe free. Zan, who has a very slight clubbed front, has never had better feet. Even my vet (who was my farrier previous to my new trimmer/farrier) says his foot looks fantastic. Xena is going to paddle no matter what, but the motion is less exaggerated without the shoe and she won't hurt herself nearly as bad without steel on leg contact if she does swing that front excessively. Boy is only being used to play with some cows here and there right now and I'll have to x-ray his rears again if I get really serious about team penning with him to see how his angles look and maybe put him in shoes with wedges to correct a negative palmar again.
I know the ground conditions I will face here in VA. I lead across gravel at Herndon and the Horse Center, and since both competition horses are well over a year into barefoot-ness they don't hardly notice A21 gravel anymore. I have acceptable footing with little to no rocks or stones. I am very happy to have found a farrier who will keep my guys well balanced and happy, foot wise. And it sure is easier on the $$'s. Unless I have to for therapeudic reasons, shoes will be obsolete for me and my crew.
^^^^^This is my main reason for going barefoot! Good farriers are hard to come by in my area, but I have a pretty reliable barefoot trimmer that is doing an excellent job transitioning my 6 year old mare after several popular farriers in my area just couldn't be consistent in their shoeing.
If I had an awesome, reliable farrier at my disposal then I would most likely keep shoes on my performance horses. However, since that is not the case then I choose barefoot. My horse likes it and so do I.  | |
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 Did I miss the party?
Posts: 3864
| If I had to choose between a bad farrier or barefoot, I'd definitely be barefoot. But, for rodeo'ing hard.... prefer shoes. Or they'd be in hoofboots the entire time minus my actual run. Including warming up. | |
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Member
Posts: 29
| If he has under run heels, then he more than likely has thinner soles. Where I live, it doesn't get dry enough for their hooves to harden completely. So, my experience has been that no matter how much time they have to toughen up, those types need shoes at least in front and are usually ok behind. Otherwise they get front endy feeling even if they are sound. If you live in a dry environment, it may be ok.
Edited by twinkles 2014-03-01 10:19 PM
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Member
Posts: 29
| and to answer your question, I have a horse who after 11 years, I've finally given up on trying to run him with shoes of any kind. He slips and gets sore with shoes. He stays confident being barefoot, and sound. I run on all types of ground. Including rodeos. I use boots to walk across the rocks. He doesn't have trouble running on any ground being barefoot, but he sure did with shoes. He is the exception for me. Most have done better with shoes. Just the way he uses himself I suppose. They are all so different. | |
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 Certified Snake Wrangler
Posts: 1672
Location: North MS | I have 4 that are barefoot. No rodeos, only NBHA, a Friday Night series and maybe add in a club show once a month. The occasional 4H fundraiser and 3 day show series. Everybody is barefoot- even the appendix who stresses and teaches me soooo much about trimming. He makes everyone else look easy. One mare has perfect feet. The two young ones can be a bit of a challenge, but nothing bad. Everybody seems to handle ground well. I've never ridden one any other way so I truly wouldn't know. The appendix has tripped once at an event. Went to a knee. Recovered and on we went. This is in 4 years of being barefoot. Oddly enough my 21 year old TB Silent Darkness has the best feet EVER! She must have some awesome genetics in that department as well. Of course I make a conscious decision not to run my horse on gravel, only walk across no matter how antsy they get. I try to find a spot of grass, sand, or dirt to warm up in. It also doesn't make sense for me to spend $65 every 6 weeks on shoes. Roughly $20/run each month on shoes. When I can be barefoot, mindful of conditions, and be worry free about them loosing a shoe. | |
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