Help! Trying to think with my head. 3 yo gelding, 20 rides only, looking to be (future) a kid and husband safe 2’6” hunter / trail pony
Little hooves are a big NO for me. Seen too many small-footed horses develop problems with usage and miles. Horse is only 3yrs, ALREADY has calcium and feet don’t match in the pairs. He has not been carrying a rider or doing mileage yet!
I want hooves in proportion to the size of the horse. “Back in the day” my 14.2H western horse wore size 1 shoes in front, with 0 behind. She weighed about 900 pounds., carried me 135pounds then, a 30 pound western saddle and pad under it. She was in proportion to body size and hoof size, both pairs of hooves were mirror images of each other. Horse stayed sound with LOTS of mileage over the 35 years we had her. Can be harder to find horse with hooves in proportion to their size and in matching pairs, no high-low issue in these modern times.
Farrier work can help, IF you have access to quality shoeing and trimming. Are you willing to pay for the quality Farrier? Prices will only be going up as the years pass, since Farriers have costs, need to increase their prices to keep up. Horse will need hoof work every 6-8 weeks to keep him correctly aligned for use.
When we look at horses, we give a quick glance at over-all conformation, then go straight to the hooves and legs. If there are bad issues there, no use looking at the rest of the horse. Husband is a
Farrier, can do a lot of magic with hooves, but he can’t change size or bone, angles without raising other issues. Do we want a horse who needs magic to keep him going? Probably not because we
use them hard. Those horses with issues will let you down when least expecting it, unreliable.
I don’t mind keeping horses we have used for years, have high mileage, on into their old age. They deserve it! But a horse who may not make double digits in age without problems is nothing I would buy.
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Why are you looking at a 3 yr old if you want kid and husband safe?
If this horse was everything you were looking for and kid safe, I would be able to over look the foot issue.
But since he is 3 and not proven in any way, that would be a hard pass.
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Second this question, but assuming you have a plan…
It depends on the rest of the horse.
I’m biased because I have an incredible barefoot farrier, but I don’t necessarily agree that small feet = always has to be shod. And I definitely don’t agree that “increasing size of the shoes means the heel has to come down.” The feet will get as big as they’ll get, and it’s imperative to have a good farrier (but when isn’t it?) to keep the angles correct.
IF this 3yo has a great brain, the rest of the PPE is good, and he moves the way you want him to move for his future job, I wouldn’t say no just based on the feet. I think it also depends on how much he’ll work and if you want to be competitive in the rated hunters or are just planning on schooling shows with no need to get a tri color every time out. If you want a winning A circuit horse, he’ll probably need to work a fair amount to keep up his training and fitness. If he’s going to trail ride, hack a few days a week and go to 3 schooling shows a year, his feet might be just fine.
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Honestly, I’d need to know a lot more. Can you get a second opinion on the hoof x-rays? The shoeing advice by the vet doesn’t make much sense, IMO. It’s very…well, old-school in a not terribly helpful way. What is calcified? The lateral cartilages (so sidebone)?
Agreed that I would also be closely considering intended use. How much work do you really want this horse to be in? By 2’6" hunter are you thinking going to a couple shows a year and popping around small courses once a month at home, or doing the QH circuit for extended periods of time?
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Thanks all. I walked. I figured if I was coming to internet strangers for advice I already knew the answer. He’ll make someone a great trail pal!
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No
Good Luck ~ keep looking 
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Just to come in from a different perspective, our best trail and husband horse was broke out west and came to the barn I was riding at as a lesson horse at 4. QH, halter bred, little feet. Fractured his coffin bone in the program and has been with us since. So, similar to your guy in young, unproven, and changes on rads. He’s almost 30 now.
He’s been the best hubby horse ever, no nonsense, always puts those tiny feet exactly where he should and has a lot more sense than the men that ride him. 
But… always trust your gut. It was hard to offer meaningful advice with the little information given, a good rule of thumb besides trusting your intuition is to look at the horse as a whole and measure that against the good advice given to you by your vet. Lots of QHs have proportionately small feet compared to other breeds, look at the horse in front of you first.
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He’ll make a great trail horse but I need a double duty and a jumper he will not
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because I like producing young horses and my kid can already out ride me 
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Something to remember is at 3yo it can go either way. My 21yo been in work near his entire life with plenty of miles left to go has front feet that don’t match. He gets done more regularly and is in front shoes (just has always gone better) but I’ve seen youngsters who look like a near perfect specimen be crippled by 9 and not from anything the riders did. 9-11 is when you’ll see more if a horse is going to last or not. Unless you’re really wanting to be the one producing the horse all you can do is look at what you plan to ask out of the horse, what maintenance the vet expects they’ll need based on their experience, start planning for that maintenance now and how to minimize the impact and hope for the best. All you can do at the end of the day is make an educated guess on if the possible maintenance will or won’t be worth it and go from there. PPEs aren’t a pass or fail they are an educated guess on if the horse will be capable of what you want and what maintenance to expect.
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A second opinion would help.
Need more information on what that “more calcification” means, where is it, etc.
Then, “when in doubt, don’t” seems to always be a good point to keep in mind …
I think you made the right call. Front leg/hoof issues don’t fare well for jumpers. You would be taking on a lot of vet and farrier costs, and that’s before you know how well the horse jumps under saddle.
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As a jumping horse, probably not the right pick.
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Feet small bordering on upright with radiograph changes…BIG PASS
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