rubber/gel like horse shoes?

I never tried putting things on his feet lol. I don't know what he would do. I would probably try just turning him out in them for about an hour to see? If he seems comfy then ride on the gravel (rocks). But it'll be a little while (a month?) before I can get boots and plus I have to measure his feet still to see which boots will be best.
The concerns I have with shoes are a) will the shoes allow him to trot on the rocks? And b)will the shoes weaken or change the shape of his hooves?
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I know a lot of horses that have done a lizard walk in the gloves for the first 5 minutes or so, then learn to deal with them. My horse was fine with them from the get-go and I just used them for conditioning 2-3 times (more to get me used to putting them on because he didn't care) and then only at rides. And and a friend of mine got hers at a ride when she realized her horse wouldn't be able to compete barefoot. That horse got a nice 25-mile introduction to them without an issue haha. I wouldn't turn a horse out with them, but rather just throw them on before riding and then pretend they aren't there. My boots cost too much to risk horseplay when they're turned out!

Whether or not you decide to use boots, I would recommend getting a good rasp (I use a Belotta) and learning how to maintain your horse's hooves in between trimmings anyway. It's a great skill to have if your horse gets a chip or something and you want to clean it up without having the trimmer come out. I've actually rasped a horse for someone at my barn when her feet were cracking because it seemed the previous owner never had a trimmer out. Granted, that was mostly just to help her be a little more comfortable until the trimmer could get there, but it's comforting to now I can do basic care of my horses' feet. It's also forced me to learn more about their feet and why they're that way, and I know what I'm looking for when it comes to signs of trouble, especially since I take a good look at their feet frequently and know what's "normal"

And it's super simple to learn!

As for the weakening of the hoof, I'd ask your farrier. He seems like he'd give you an honest answer since he's not a "need shoes" type of farrier.

Yes I've been looking at getting a rasp and Learning. Hopefully my farrier will teach me or I'll just watch him :p. Yes I'll ask him what he thinks will give me the best protection. He really is an honest guy. How much does the belotta rasp cost?
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I think it was about $30 and I got a good handle for it as well

Well that's not bad at all. Actually I may have him teach me how to trim lol. Will save lots of money!! Haha
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I keep plain old steel shoes on my Arab. I ride her on gravel all the time. I have no problem with her at all with these. If she were getting bruises, I would have pads put under them.

I don't want to waste my precious little bit of riding time putting on and taking off boots. I also found that the easy boots that I used made my horse a bit more clumsy and more prone to trip.

Do you find they change the hoof at all? Shape or strength?
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Do you mean the regular shoes? They change the hoof from being cracked and sore to being strong and sound every day. My horse will chip to pieces without shoes. It is not worth it.

Well I mean a horse that has good hooves and doesn't normally need shoes. I just need protection from the gravel and rocks I'll be conditioning on but don't want his feet to change.
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