The age old question, to shoe or not to shoe.
Does your horse have shoes, if so why?
Is it due to the terrain or his feet?
Here in CA, I normally ride through a few streets(blacktop and GD) before accessing the trails.
My farrier said he can naturally wear down his hooves in spring through autumn.
I would only need to call him during the winter to trim them since he mostly sits.
But, I've left his shoes on, he's had shoes before I bought him, and some people's opinions are to leave them on since he is used to them. Their example was, we are all used to wearing shoes now, it wouldn't be easy going outside without them now. If you've been barefoot at an early age it would be easier to stay barefoot.
Mine is shod all around, I tried a natural farrier for a few months as the idea sounded great, and so he went natural for that time. He was friggin miserable and he looked like he hated me for going with a new cool sounding thing.
my horse has most of the time always had all four shoes, at least always fronts due to a hoof injury as a foal, and i know she would hate having chipped hooves since she's a princess ^.^, but also its really dry out here now that it's summer and most of the other horses down this way have chipped hooves (heavy australian bush sand), and she gets worked alot.
I have 2 horses. 1 is barefoot and the other has shoes all the way around. Only reason is that we're doing mountain riding so he needs them after we get back they will be pulled for the winter... I only use shoes when I take mine to the mountains for riding.
Barefoot all winter, my boy is ouchie on the gravel so he gets front shoes. My daughter's boy is rode and shown so much all showing season he is in shoes and my husband's horse is always barefoot. Depends on the horse and their feet.
Tess has shoes as she has very soft feet and they just crumble away if not shod. She hasnt ben shod for a few months now as she had a very bad accident in the float that resulted in her ripping two back shoes off and standing on the nail causiing an abcess in her foot, so she has not had shoes on for months, just to be on the safe side
My Haflinger and one of the Appies in my care also had crumbly feet that we thought would require shoes. After a few months barefoot, their walls really hardened up and quit breaking so easily. The Appy's feet have all grown out now and look great! The Haflinger's feet are almost all grown out and his soles have become very tough. He self-trims his quarters and toes, and has no problems with bearing more weight on his soles due to short walls.
You might consider leaving those back shoes off and have your farrier show you how to touch up her feet between visits. Her back feet may toughen up and increase wall growth with the added stimulation of the ground.
I prefer barefoot horses.
BUT it does depend on the terrain weather and time of year for some horses.
my mare get shod all year round when she is spelled over christmas i get her shoes taken off while shes in the paddock. but you should consider shoeing if your riding on harder surfaces during hoter/dryer weather.
OR you can spend a fortune on supplements and oils/hoof greeses.
ALSO for the barefoot trimmers
make sure your farrier isnt taking too much off and that he also round the hoof at the edge of the sole which prevents cracking to a degree and the bearing surface and thicker.
i had a farrier barefoot trim one of my horses and i said could you round it off please and he said he didnt need to needless to say he never got my money again!
5yr old Haflinger gelding with great feet. My daughter rides him Dressage and beginning Jumping training. She also trail rides. He rarely takes a mistep, even over big gravel. He will eventually be an eventer.
11 yr old Anglo Arabian gelding, always has had awesome feet. He only gets ridden occassionally on the flat and trail rides. Another injury prevents from jumping. If not for that, he would be a barefoot event horse!
12 yr old Appy mare (mostly QH breeding, halter horse). She has little 0 or 00 feet that are senstive. She does fine on grass or sand, but needs at least front hoof boots for rocky terrain. She's always had tender feet, even with shoes on. Her feet are much healthier without shoes.
10 yr old Paint mare. She has had shoes her whole life. I bought her just recently. We pulled her shoes today (just front shoes) and she's walking around her pasture without any problems! She's a Hunter mare, does trail rides, and gives beginner lessons. She jumps up to 2'6". We'll probably put front boots on her for riding, while her feet get used to being barefoot.
I have two other horses I board that are also barefoot, both Appaloosas. The last two horses do have shoes. One is a QH gelding who's owner takes him on rocky trails and doesn't want to bother with boots. The other is a young mare with side bone and high ringbone. She has shoes to help correct this.
My horses live outside 24/7 with only stall time to eat. They're on a grain-free diet of grass hay, alfalfa pellets, flax, and a vit/min supplement. I keep them barefoot because it is healthier IME, easier (no lost shoes!), and I save money. I have learned to trim myself, and have a professional check my work twice a year. I enjoy learning and the bonding time I get with my horses. I trim all four of mine and the two barefoot horses in my care. I use a "Ramey-style" barefoot trim.
This summer it was very hot and dry. My barefoot horses did great! Their feet really toughened up and were hard as rocks! The hard, dry ground did them well. I did use some hoof oil (Hoof Heal) to make sure their hooves did not over-dry and crack. None did.
No shoes here...When I do need a bit more protection, I prefer boots. I just prefer bare, and have ridden over tons of terrain over the years and never had one lame, or have bad feet because of it.
I've only had one horse shod (only fronts) in all my years of owning, and it was only because he needed some corrective work done on his feet...once that was done, he was back to being bare.
My pony mare has fronts right now I am not sure yet if I will have her go barefoot this winter since I hopefully will be riding her quite a bit.
I have not put shoes on my arab yet as he over reaches quite a bit and I am a little worried he might rip them off.
My older mare is barefoot as we don't ride her often. I just ordered her some boots to help when we do ride her on the trails. She is really touchy on the rocks. I will be trying them tomorrow. I just hope I can get them on they look like it my be a bit of a struggle.
NO shoes, all mine are barefoot trimmed by a professional trimmer. I use boots for those who are ouchy on our hill gravel road rock and flintrock in the flinthills. Some feet are still a work in progress.
Mine have always been barefoot, but I'm considering having front shoes put on Soda. He's extremely ouchy on gravel which makes riding anywhere a pain and dangerous as he's always trying to ditch dive. He also has a toe crack that isn't going away. Maybe shoes will help, we'll have to see.
No shoes here...they're all blessed with good hooves for the most part. Horses were given hooves for a reason, so I prefer to let them go as nature intended so long as there aren't any complications.
My horse has shoes on her fronts. Came up lame due to a poor trim job and a bruise, new farrier hopes she'll be able to go barefoot again within the next few months.
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