[Paintlover]

Ok, Lou Lou's feet haven't been trimmed in 7 months, but the thing is, they don't look like they do!!! At the toe, her wall is level with her sole, and it gradually builds up to her heel, which is pretty much the same level of her frogs, if they would be any higher/lower, her pastern to hoof line would break. I just had my farrier/trainer out the other day, and she didn't even say anything about her hooves. She doens't have much flair either, and from the bottom, her hooves look PERFECT!. The only flair she does have is right by her quarters, but she always had a tad bit after a trim job too. Does she really need a trim? I'd post pictures, but the camera isn't here right now. I'll get them posted as soon as I can, though.

[Dawn]

Some horses just wear their hooves down naturally. I've never seen one that didn't need a touch up every couple of months though. The heels tend to not wear down fast enough. Are her hooves too long? Not are the toes too long or are the heels too long. It can all still be correct proportionally, but still be too long.

[Paintlover]

Nope, nothing is long at all. Her heels are naturally a bit low, and the farrier is thinking about raising them a little. Her back feet are kind of short, as she drags her back feet at the trot if she doesn't go fast enough. Her front feet are short (not too short though) too. And they also are balance from the front, she doesn't have sheared heels or anything of the sorts.

[Blistering Winds]

Never hurts to have a farrier take off the wings of the flares. Mine never needs any toe off in the back, he always needs the flares off every 8-10 weeks....

[Paintlover]

Well, my farrier showed me how to take the minor flares off, so I might as well do it myself. I will have her come out sometime, maybe if I get anoher lesson and have her take a look at her hooves, but at the rate we are going, she'll only need to be 'trimmed' once a year, lol. And that is just to make sure they are properly balanced.

[Blistering Winds]

If you do the flares, make the farrier come out at least every other time. They should ALWAYS be looked at every other month in my opinion by a reputable farrier. Maybe find out if he is trimming in a public barn and have him just glance at the horse. Make sure he knows and is ready to trim the horse if needed. Saves you money if the horse doesn't need it, yet you know for sure.

[Nicky]

Well how old is your horse? I have a filly who is turning two years in feb. In her whole live she has had her feet done twice. The ferrier comes out alot and checks them but every time they dont need to be done. He said all her nutrients and energy is going into growing rather than her hooves....

[Paintlover]

Lou Lou is 3 1/2

[ejforrest]

You should ask your farrier what they recommend, hooves that dont look long can still be a problem with balance and other health issues. Being young it would be recommened to have the feet checked every 6-8 weeks to make sure no problems develope over time and can be corrected quickely if a problem does come up.
Talk to your farrier or your vet.