Hello Everyone. I am thinking about taking the shoes off my gelding and let him go barefoot since it’s been presented to me that it is healthier for the hoof in the long run. My friend did this recently and was told her horse would most likely be ouchy until he developed callouses on his hooves. Three horses in her barn including her horse ( other two have been barefoot and have been on and off) came in gimping on the cement and her horse is gimpy on the cement and in the ring going more one way than the other although he seems to work out of it. My question is how can a barefoot trimmer know how to trim without looking at xrays of the hooves. For that matter the same goes for shoeing. She is planning on getting a set of xrays taken. Another question is in your experience how many views should be taken to give her farrier the information he needs. This may be more of a change than I want to make. Thanks for your opinions and information.
First off, barefoot is NOT the “be all end all”. It works for some, not others. Please keep that in mind. If you are set on going barefoot, hoof boots can go a long way towards easing the transition.
Secondly, a decent educated farrier/trimmer has been through schooling/apprenticeship or other to know “how to trim”. Very rarely are x-rays taken prior to trimming, unless the horse has a known or suspected ailment where films are needed to guide.
Vets will take “farrier views”, and if after reviewing they feel additional views should be taken, that can be done also. Films can tell you sole depth, coffin bone (P3) angles, etc.
Also, IME, some barefoot trimmers are far too aggressive in how much they take off when they trim. Not all, some are very very good.
Like everything, it’s individual and your horse might not respond like your friends.
A good farrier or trimmer can look at the external markers of the hoof and be accurate as to where everything is inside and trim accordingly. We don’t expect farriers to x-ray the feet to see where the nails ho, do we? And that’s pretty tricky too if you didn’t know what you were doing.
I have a horse that’s been barefoot her whole life, and my coach and close barn friends have barefoot horses. We use front boots for trail riding as necessary. I don’t want to ever ride a horse that is sucked back, ouchy, or won’t trot out nice on the footing at hand.
At this point I would recommend anyone transitioning to barefoot to use a good brand of performance boots on the front feet at least when under saddle ad needed. You can slowly transition off or you may need them forever for gravel and rocky trails. It’s still cheaper than shoes especially hot forged shoes.
Why are horses tender after losing shoes?
Yes many of them need time to build up sole depth and heel cushion.
But also many horses develop hoof pathologies through poor quality or infrequent shoeing cycles. These could include contracted heels, run forward toes, and persistent fungal infections. These problems can be overcome through good barefoot trims and care.
We really need to see good hoof photos of your horse. My guess is that we will see some pathologies that explain the lameness. This is especially true of people take off shoes because the horse is NQR in some way. Yes it is true that you can fix these kinds of pathologies easier barefoot but the horse will need protection while you do so.
Also if the horse has previously foundered even just a tiny bit their hoof will be more sensitive because the coffin bone is closer to the ground. If you suspect past founder from external signs or horse has a club foot then x-rays are valuable.
Anyhow I would say you need an excellent trimmer with credentials, good performance hoof boots, and also go to the Pete Ramey hoof rehab web site. He is the top barefoot trimmer out there, started life as a trained farrier, does clinics and is involved in university level research. Has excellent books too.
When you go barefoot you really have to self educated and be involved in hoof care, monitoring the hooves which change daily and even ending up rasping a little yourself between trims. It’s not like shoes where the farrier comes every 6 weeks, and all you do is pick hooves when you ride.
Who presented that to you? What reasons did they give?
If a horse can have healthy, sound feet and body without shoes, that is ideal. But that is not always the case, and for those horses, barefoot is not healthier in the long run.
Why does your horse have shoes now?
My friend did this recently and was told her horse would most likely be ouchy until he developed callouses on his hooves.
There can be a transition period from shoes to bare. BUT, discomfort should be minimal at best, and not take months and months. If it’s more than that, then I would be looking to the health of the foot in shoes, and if needed, fix/improve that before taking shoes off. Feet heal/correct faster when they don’t hurt (as much) so the horse can move around properly. Boots can help a great deal. They can be used to ride in if the horse is comfortable in his pasture but not the ring, they can be used on a limited basis in turnout, there are pads that can be used to help stimulate healthier growth, and more.
Three horses in her barn including her horse ( other two have been barefoot and have been on and off) came in gimping on the cement and her horse is gimpy on the cement and in the ring going more one way than the other although he seems to work out of it.
That sounds like more going on than just coming out of shoes. Or, the farrier is continuing to trim as if to put shoes on, which is not how it works.
My question is how can a barefoot trimmer know how to trim without looking at xrays of the hooves. For that matter the same goes for shoeing.
Every good and competent trimmer/farrier knows the external landmarks of the foot that tell them how to trim that foot. Those things have been well-studied for decades, using xrays to compare to the real foot to prove over and over how things relate. Heel buttresses, the true apex of the frog (where it joins the sole, not just the potentially overgrown tip), the bars (they end halfway down the frog), finding live sole (not just layers of dead sole) and other things tell them exactly what to trim and how much to take off.
She is planning on getting a set of xrays taken. Another question is in your experience how many views should be taken to give her farrier the information he needs. This may be more of a change than I want to make. Thanks for your opinions and information.
Unless there are pathologies, xrays are not needed (see above). If there are things going on, like crushed heels that won’t come up despite the best trimming, like toed in or out, soreness that doesn’t seem to suit the trim, suspicions of ringbone or sidebone or anything like that, then the number of views depends on what you think you’re looking for. A side view and a front view are the minimum. Sometimes you need a rear view, a view from above, and/or a view from the bottom. Sometimes you need to shoot at an angle instead of straight on.
Whether this all is more than you’re willing to make, entirely depends on the health of the feet now. If they are not trimmed well, they are not currently candidates for going barefoot if that farrier is the one who will continue to trim them. You’d need a new farrier to help the feet get healthier first, then visit the barefoot scenario.
You can’t know what you haven’t tried, so even if the feet are in good shape now, there’s still no given that they will take to barefoot easily.
The first step is talk about this to your own farrier.
You don’t need a trimmer to do this. A competent farrier will have no problem transitioning a horse from shoes to bare (assuming the feet are a candidate in the first place). If he can’t do that, then the odds are good he’s not been trimming the shod foot very well to begin with.
I’m not so sure about that, as a competent farrier doesn’t need to preserve the bottom of the hoof because they’re going to protect it with a shoe.
Whether a horse can go right from shoes to barefoot will likely have a lot to do with how long he’s been in shoes, how strong a hoof he’s been able to maintain, and what he’s going to be doing when the shoes are pulled.
The point was, if a farrier doesn’t know how to firstly trim a bare foot, he doesn’t need to be trimming for shoes. Shoeing is an 'add on" that farriers provide. They first need to know how to trim for a sound, healthy foot, whether it’s going to get shoes or not.
The healthiest thing for the feet is doing what the horse needs most to be sound and comfortable. For some horses that means shoes 365 days a year, for some shoes when ridden over certain terrain or distances, or if competing, etc…
If you have a competent , knowledgable farrier who you trust you should be having this conversation with him. Quite a few times I have been reluctant to let a currently shod horse be barefoot and with my farriers approval we tried and they were fine.
On a couple others he told me plainly that they were not a candidate and I respected that.
I agree. However in practice I see some very poor hoof angles develop over time with the main barn farrier everyone thinks is “good enough” and willing to play along with customers that think a ten week shoeing cycle is fine if the shoes aren’t showing wear.
I also saw a horse that this farrier had been asked to take barefoot and horse had under run heels prominent bars and no mustang roll the day after the trim. Also the heels were trimmed uneven.
Alot of just good enough mediocre hoof care is actually no good at all IMHO and if OP wants to try barefoot they should research and use the best qualified local person not whoever the BM is getting on the cheap.
I also grumble about what I see self taught trimmers doing.
Your best bet is a good trained farrier who has pursued further learning in barefoot trimming and has some coherent ideas about it.
For sure there are owners who are their horses’ own worst enemies 
I know farriers and trimmers who fire clients like that. I would never use a farrier/trimmer who didn’t at least advocate for the horse, even if the owner wasn’t willing to listen.
I have had the unfortunate situation of having a CJF do terrible disservices to most of the feet in the barn, so it’s not just self-taught trimmers/farriers doing crap work
I’d leave that decision to the vet/farrier asking for the views.
Sadly, this is an area of equine husbandry rife with controversy based upon and almost religious belief in things never proven. The reality is some horses need shoes, some don’t. Some, like mine, need shoes in work but not otherwise. Since two of my four are in work they get shod, the others don’t. All move comfortably and correctly and show no other issues that can be related to hoof care.*
G.
*One mare has a very badly deteriorated left, rear hock. This is a genetic weakness that was exacerbated by prior owners failing to provide proper care (including one that had a true butcher doing her trims). She’s a pasture ornament and will never be anything else.
To me it is very important, that the farrier is not only educated but open minded. This means, if someone is only willing or able to trim a hoof in a certain way (mostly because he/she believes in the dogma of some hoof guru), I’d doubt his/hers knowledge.
I would also add that if you want a horse to go barefoot, look around for horse owners who have successfully managed this and have figured out how to keep their horses sound in all work.
Go talk to them and consult with the farrier they use. Be prepared to use boots as needed.
I honestly would not advise going barefoot with the trimmer for the BM and the BM themself as advisor because from what you are saying here it’s a bit of a trainwreck. Why get caught up in that?
Also it’s not good for the feet if a horse is gimpy. If the horse can’t move out comfortably the hoof structures won’t develop correctly and can be compromised. Also other parts of leg and back. You do not want a horse limping around even a pasture if you can help it
Hence why you want boots so horse can move out and put correct pressure on the hoof structures.
Agree with the majority here. Some horses need shoes for protection, correction or.traction (or some/all of these.) There is no correct or best way - it is entirely dependent on the horse and the job it is being asked to do.
A good farrier certainly can perform a barefoot trim AND apply shoes when needed.
I have 3 full sized horses and only one in shoes. She needs them and my other two do not. The end. Most people dont put shoes on for no reason and not every horse can be barefoot.
Your horse shouldn’t be sore after a trim on concrete and if they are, you need to use hoof boots. Mine is barefoot in the winter and shoes in the spring and summer. All depending on his workload and comfort needs. There is no one size all when it comes to hoof care.
My two cents-
- Why was your horse shod originally? Why are you taking shoes off and wanting to go barefoot? I’ve traditionally had mine shod April - October for fly stomping and shows but I am keeping fronts on my guy this year for additional support- had them off for 6 weeks and he was having issues
- Ask your vet especially if horse has any issues such as ringbone or navicular
- Recommend experienced farrier vs. barefoot trimmer IMO- farrier can do both and if you end up needing shoes again, you should have farrier contact
- Agree with having to do what is need for horse so that should come before your desire to go barefoot
- Hoof boots are good for riding but if horse needs protection in turnout too they are not much help
Demereaux, how healthy are your horse’s feet now? Are the walls strong, smooth and healthy or do they have lots of rings, trouble holding nails, flaring etc? What about the frogs - are they full and healthy or narrow and wimpy looking? What are his heels like - are they strong looking and growing at a good angle or are they underslung, growing forward or weak looking? Can you tell whether his feet have some concavity already, or is he rather flat footed?
I find the idea of “needing to develop a callous” to be a frustrating throw-away line. It’s a get out of jail free card - if the horse is sore then the farrier/trimmer can just say “yeah, I warned you…”. A good farrier/trimmer will know how to trim the horse to transition to going shoeless. They should know to leave the hoof wall sitting a little proud of the sole for the first trim - to go a little easier on the mustang roll until they know how much the horse can handle, to clean out the sole if it has been allowed to build up too much false sole, to do a good job of making sure there are no weightbearing lumps and bumps on the sole, to trim the bars correctly to ensure they aren’t weightbearing where they shouldn’t be, to check whether the frog is contacting the ground correctly. These are all things they don’t need to worry about as much when trimming for shoes.
If you are planning on using your current farrier, ask them if they will be trimming the hoof differently. If they can’t answer the question in any detail then keep looking.
If your horse has healthy feet, there is no reason they should have any trouble transitioning. If your horse has some issues with his feet then it is even more important to choose your farrier/trimmer wisely and to be prepared to use boots to help him. There is no excuse for allowing the horse to be sore - whether that is during turnout or during work (unless of course there is a veterinary issue you are working through and you have no choice).
But even this is misleading. Some horses absolutely can walk away after having been shod without any need for boots or special trimming, and others just can’t. If a horse needs shoes - it’s hard to find a replacement. Whatever “callous” a horse might develop is very different from the protection or correction a fitted shoe can provide.
I have one that wore shoes for a year and we took just them off one day without any special trimming or transition time. And one that wears shoes and pads all year long, even though she’s retired. She was a broodmare, and had been barefoot for 8+ years, and then another year or so when started back in work with me. It’s not like we didn’t try. But nothing changes the fact that shoes make her vastly more comfortable.
Yes, you’re right. There are definitely horses who don’t cope without shoes. I find it difficult to articulate why the whole “callous” thing bugs me. I guess I’m not sure whether I believe in it.
My farrier says it’s BS.
I think the best thing you can do for a horse when going barefoot for the first time, is to pull shoes towards the end or middle of the shoeing cycle – say 3+ weeks in – and then don’t trim the foot at all. Just pull the shoes and see how the horse does. The extra growth can go a long way towards helping horses acclimate.
I have done this ^^^ with the many horses I have (successfully) transitioned to barefoot – it is also something my barefoot trimmer recommends.
As for taking radiographs, I feel this is only worthwhile if horse has or had previous issues – like thin soles or poor hoofwall attachment due to laminitic episodes or bone loss from fractured/chipped coffin bone, etc.
I happen to have an OTTB who came to me with thin soles, old coffin bone fractures and bone loss + migrated heels, and he can not go barefoot ever = dead lame without shoes. Whereas one of my other OTTB’s came to me with crushed, migrated heels and other problems, and though it took a year of transition (boots off and on + a series of abscesses) he now has rock crushing healthy feet – all problems were solved by going barefoot.
But more often than not, my own horses – homebred retired racehorses – all took to going barefoot without a hitch.
I think it all depends on the general health of a horse’s feet to begin with. This will help determine if going barefoot is the answer. Or not.
