It’s been suggested to me that I canter my mare outside on a trail/hill to loosen her up a bit. She’s barefoot. How do I select the best place for her to canter? Should I put some kind of a temporarly trail boot on her?
I consider boots cheap insurance. Why take a risk if you are not sure ?
[QUOTE=qhwpmare;7621514]
I consider boots cheap insurance. Why take a risk if you are not sure ?[/QUOTE]
In that case, what boot do you recommend?
If her feet are good and the footing is OK I am not sure why you think she needs boots to simply go cantering outside the ring.
[QUOTE=trubandloki;7621581]
If her feet are good and the footing is OK I am not sure why you think she needs boots to simply go cantering outside the ring.[/QUOTE]
This. I event my horse barefoot with no problems. Unless there is somthing up with the footing or your horse’s feet, cantering on a trail shouldn’t be an issue.
she doesn’t need boots. She just needs good ground.
Agree there is no need to boot her unless she has some sort of issue pre-exisiting.
If she can canter in an arena, she can canter outside.
I also Evented my TB barefoot and trail ride all my horses this way.
Good feet are good feet, they don’t need added “stuff” to transition outside of an arena.
Just pick decent ground:
No huge stones/gravel
No deep mud (hard on tendons)
Cleared enough so you can see what horse may step on
If your place has existing trails try asking those who use them about the best places to do more than walk.
I’ve cantered all three of the horses I trail ride on the trail, and none of them wear shoes. And all three have been fine. 
Is the horse otherwise sound with good feet?
I foxhunt my Arab over whatever footing we come across barefoot. We canter across gravel roads, rocky trails, creek crossings, etc. He’s got good feet and I’ve never put anything on them- shoes or boots.
If she’s not used to being out of the arena, I’d just pick somewhere with good footing - minimal rocks and dry and go for it. Find a trail or a field or whatever and go. You’re overthinking it!
If your horse has been barefoot for awhile (not going through a transition period from shoes) there’s no reason why you can’t canter on the trails without boots. My TB was barefoot for 2.5 years and I used boots only when foxhunting and only then because the territories are rocky. The rest of the time he was fine barefoot – at all speeds. I finally put shoes on him to foxhunt but both my horses were barefoot right up until hunt season and they were both fine. My other horse is a draft x and I have her shod only in front right now. They will both have their shoes pulled after the fall hunting season ends.
Choose ground that’s not too rocky and see how your horse feels.
I agree with the above. I competed my horse long distance and he’s never worn a boot. And that was in Oklahoma and Texas over some rocky ground!
She had shoes on the front when I bought her; we pulled them in March. She walks just fine when trail riding but she will act ouchy when we walk on gravel. She also has trouble with hard, chunky, sand.
I’ll just try to trot on grass and if that goes well I may have her canter. Thanks.
I canter my horse just about everywhere on the trails - and she does perfectly fine, she canters and gallops barefoot out in her pasture, so I see no reason not to on the trails.
That said - if yours is ouchy on gravel at the walk - sounds like she still may be a bit thin soled / tender.
Have you tried Durasole? I love the stuff. It helps build a thick sole (by making the shedding sole adhere, rather than shed like normal) and can make a barefoot horse more comfortable.
Mine gets durasole after her trims, especially if the sole is shedding - helps keep her quite comfortable. She can work on gravel, roads, very hard trails, all sorts of unforgiving footing without tenderness or bruising.
[QUOTE=Appsolute;7621993]
I canter my horse just about everywhere on the trails - and she does perfectly fine, she canters and gallops barefoot out in her pasture, so I see no reason not to on the trails.
That said - if yours is ouchy on gravel at the walk - sounds like she still may be a bit thin soled / tender.
Have you tried Durasole? I love the stuff. It helps build a thick sole (by making the shedding sole adhere, rather than shed like normal) and can make a barefoot horse more comfortable.
Mine gets durasole after her trims, especially if the sole is shedding - helps keep her quite comfortable. She can work on gravel, roads, very hard trails, all sorts of unforgiving footing without tenderness or bruising.[/QUOTE]
I will research Durasole! Thanks.
I wouldn’t worry too much as long as the footing’s decent. The cowpony I ride is barefoot, doesn’t have crazy hard feet (although MUCH better with good nutrition), and while he can be a little ouchy on gravel he’s completely fine on grass. And when we move cattle, it’s w/t/c/occasional gallop dealing with wherever the cows are going–so yeah, we don’t get the pick of footing although I’m as careful as possible. We covered at least 10 miles this morning, and he’s fine although a little tired!
As for selecting a good place, 2Dogs gave some good advice. I like a nice big hill if they’re feeling a little frisky.
