[Jess!]

I am not happy with my farrier, really. He's done my horses three times now, and Kandee's feet are looking worse. She has underslung heels [I will get pics tomorrow] with really long toes. I want to get that heel up, and the toes shorter but well...he's not really listening. I told him before I used him I had a mare with underslung/underrun heels that I needed corrected, and he said no problem.

Then last time he told me that she just had long toes and no heel. Bull, I can even see the problem. And I think it's affecting her whole leg, now. Plus I think her heels are getting crushed, I really need to get pictures.

Her back feet were looking bad, as well, so I got frustrated and had her backs pulled this last time. After about two weeks of riding on the trails, they are now shaped NICELY. Heel is nice, toe is nice. No more flaring, no super long toe, etc.

So, I think I want to go barefoot on the fronts, as well, but maybe use hoof boots? We have lots of rocky ground, and one of the reasons I even had shoes on her was because she gets ouchy. Will she get over the ouchiness if I just keep riding her on the rocks??

It's so hard to get a good farrier around here, especially one that will LISTEN to you.

Also, Amirah...not too happy with the way HER feet are looking, either! BLAH.

[Dusty1979]

I know exactly what you are going through. Going barefoot versus a poor shoeing job is better any day, in my book.

You'll need to transition through this though, probably with a pair of boots. The sole will need to thicken and callous to become able to withstand the abuse of gravel and rocks.

It all will depend upon what kind/condition of feet you start out with and what care you give them to get them in the best possible condition they can be in. Maintaining the barefoot trim is another key to being successful.

As you know, each horse is different and each one has their own set of living arrangements, diet and work load. How successful you will be in this attempt at going barefoot will depend upon your set of circumstances.

I would encourage you to give it a try. You can always put the shoes back on if need be. It sounds like you may have some issues with getting the feet back into proper form, but it also sounds like you know what you are looking for in a healthy, properly cared for foot.

You have Arabs who are known for their good feet. I say "go for it".

[Dancers Mom]

Originally Posted by Jess!

I am not happy with my farrier, really. He's done my horses three times now, and Kandee's feet are looking worse. She has underslung heels [I will get pics tomorrow] with really long toes. I want to get that heel up, and the toes shorter but well...he's not really listening. I told him before I used him I had a mare with underslung/underrun heels that I needed corrected, and he said no problem.

Then last time he told me that she just had long toes and no heel. Bull, I can even see the problem. And I think it's affecting her whole leg, now. Plus I think her heels are getting crushed, I really need to get pictures.

Her back feet were looking bad, as well, so I got frustrated and had her backs pulled this last time. After about two weeks of riding on the trails, they are now shaped NICELY. Heel is nice, toe is nice. No more flaring, no super long toe, etc.

So, I think I want to go barefoot on the fronts, as well, but maybe use hoof boots? We have lots of rocky ground, and one of the reasons I even had shoes on her was because she gets ouchy. Will she get over the ouchiness if I just keep riding her on the rocks??

It's so hard to get a good farrier around here, especially one that will LISTEN to you.

Also, Amirah...not too happy with the way HER feet are looking, either! BLAH.

I am in the process of going barefoot now and man is it a pain in the butt. That being said I am going to stick it out a few more weeks as my girl is tender also. I put venetian turpentine on her soles everyday for a week and some oil on her walls about 1/2 way down starting from the coronet band every couple of days for a week. Her soles are alot harder now but she is not quite herself yet and it has been 4 weeks now. At first she was very short strided and then got sore on her backs due to a bad trim. Finally today I was able to trot her in the round pen for some exercise and I encouraged her to canter if she wanted to, which she did for a minute or two, I just let her do what she wanted and believe me she needs to run being an OTTB but not yet. I plan on getting some boots but I heard to wait until you have your first good trim and that will be in two weeks so she has not been worked at all in the last 4 weeks and boy is she sour. I will make the decision as to whether we will put shoes on her in the next couple of weeks.

Good luck and remember that this could take some time to complete.

[Jess!]

Originally Posted by Dancers Mom

I am in the process of going barefoot now and man is it a pain in the butt. That being said I am going to stick it out a few more weeks as my girl is tender also. I put venetian turpentine on her soles everyday for a week and some oil on her walls about 1/2 way down starting from the coronet band every couple of days for a week. Her soles are alot harder now but she is not quite herself yet and it has been 4 weeks now. At first she was very short strided and then got sore on her backs due to a bad trim. Finally today I was able to trot her in the round pen for some exercise and I encouraged her to canter if she wanted to, which she did for a minute or two, I just let her do what she wanted and believe me she needs to run being an OTTB but not yet. I plan on getting some boots but I heard to wait until you have your first good trim and that will be in two weeks so she has not been worked at all in the last 4 weeks and boy is she sour. I will make the decision as to whether we will put shoes on her in the next couple of weeks.

Good luck and remember that this could take some time to complete.

HEy! You're in La Mesa?! I was born there!!!

What farrier do you use? [You can PM me if you'd like ]

It didn't take long for her back feet to transition to barefoot, but I know the fronts hold most of the horse's weight.

[calypsoscarnivl]

One of my guys goes barefoot at the advice of my vet and farrier (a traditional farrier, not a barefoot/natural hoof farrier) due to an old injury he has. While he is 100% sound without shoes now (he was lame with shoes due to his specific situation) it took about 6 months after pulling the shoes for him to be really comfortable, but he was less lame than he had been so I stuck it out!
Some advice I was given by my vet and farrier when I started the process:
1. Turn him out at much as possible. I pretty much left him outside all of the time, weather permitting. My turnout is a big grassy pasture with a few hills and some rocky patches.
2. Soak the feet in water. I guess soaking the feet helps add moisture and will help them grow. I just used rubber feed tubs and popped his feet in for 15 minutes a day.
3. Use boots if the horse is really tenderfooted. I can't really comment on this as I never needed to boot my guy. He would take a few short steps walking acrossed the paved driveway from the field to the barn, but was never dead lame (or lamer, since this is why I started this process)
Overall, I'm really glad I pulled the shoes. My horse is more comfortable and his feet look awesome! I trail ride him through the woods over stumps and rocks and he does just fine. I do have the farrier come every 5-6 weeks, which I know is more frequent then some people do.
Sorry this is so long, hope it helps!

[Jess!]

Originally Posted by calypsoscarnivl

One of my guys goes barefoot at the advice of my vet and farrier (a traditional farrier, not a barefoot/natural hoof farrier) due to an old injury he has. While he is 100% sound without shoes now (he was lame with shoes due to his specific situation) it took about 6 months after pulling the shoes for him to be really comfortable, but he was less lame than he had been so I stuck it out!
Some advice I was given by my vet and farrier when I started the process:
1. Turn him out at much as possible. I pretty much left him outside all of the time, weather permitting. My turnout is a big grassy pasture with a few hills and some rocky patches.
2. Soak the feet in water. I guess soaking the feet helps add moisture and will help them grow. I just used rubber feed tubs and popped his feet in for 15 minutes a day.
3. Use boots if the horse is really tenderfooted. I can't really comment on this as I never needed to boot my guy. He would take a few short steps walking acrossed the paved driveway from the field to the barn, but was never dead lame (or lamer, since this is why I started this process)
Overall, I'm really glad I pulled the shoes. My horse is more comfortable and his feet look awesome! I trail ride him through the woods over stumps and rocks and he does just fine. I do have the farrier come every 5-6 weeks, which I know is more frequent then some people do.
Sorry this is so long, hope it helps!

Well, my corrals are ALL Rock, hills, etc so I don't have to worry about that.

I do have an endurance ride in October, I'll probbaly have to pop shoes back on her then Or I might try out these boots:

http://www.renegadehoofboots.com/

[Dancers Mom]

Originally Posted by Jess!

HEy! You're in La Mesa?! I was born there!!!

What farrier do you use? [You can PM me if you'd like ]

It didn't take long for her back feet to transition to barefoot, but I know the fronts hold most of the horse's weight.

I will pm you now.

[WashingtonBay]

I think choosing a different farrier is an independent decision from whether she needs shoes or not.

With or without shoes, she'll need a skilled trim first.

So I'd decide what the foot needs, and then choose what kind of hoof care provider you need to provide it.

[Jess!]

Originally Posted by WashingtonBay

I think choosing a different farrier is an independent decision from whether she needs shoes or not.

With or without shoes, she'll need a skilled trim first.

So I'd decide what the foot needs, and then choose what kind of hoof care provider you need to provide it.

The hoof needs to be fixed, first. I need to get the toes shortened, but the heel has to come up first I'll take pictures this afternoon, I am really upset with this last shoeing on my farrier's part. It was only about two and a half weeks ago they were done. And all he did was reset the shoes, because they didn't shoe enough wear.

Yeah, well now they're almost ready to fall off [super super thin in some places] because I'm back to riding all the time.

[WashingtonBay]

Believe me, I sympathize. I've been through a roller coaster of various farrier experiences in the last couple of years. I'm currently with a new farrier who I hope will be correcting some of the long toe and under-run issues from the last one.

We're at their mercy. If you find a good one treat him right!