Barefoot Trimming

[castlehorses]

Hi Folks, new to this site and just wanted to add comment. We have several horses and ponies barefoot at this stage thanks to the invaluable help and assistance of our barefoot trimmer (and friend) Dermot McCourt from Co. Down. Some are in 'transition' having been shod in the past and others are animals who are happily working barefoot as they were further on in the process! Recently I finished breaking a 4yr old 16.1hh ISH mare. She has NEVER been shod and because of this her soles are naturally thickened and strong. For the last three weeks since I have been riding her I've ridden her on just about every surface you can imagine without a problem. We chose this method as a way of keeping our horses closer to nature. We are going through a major learning curve and everything sofar has been very positive. However, I would like you to consider a very important point that seems to have been missed out or overlooked by some who have posted on this site earlier:
When you take shoes off a shod horse he is therefore unshod - to produce a 'barefoot' horse (as referred to in this context) requires time and the assistance and expertise of a qualified barefoot trimmer.

[intouch]

Hi There, We've had our horses working unshod for the past 4 years, there's no doubt that a horse who has never been shod will cope well, while with one who has been shod, it depends on the condition of the feet how long it will take to get them into condition, but most horses will adapt given the right circumstances.
Trouble in Ireland is, the wet conditions contribute to problems which are disguised by metal shoes, so we think that the horse is sound when in fact he is just incubating future problems.
One of the best websites I have found is www.unshod.co.uk, it gives good info on keeping your horse without shoes, and the responsibility this places on the owner.
There are so many pluses to ironfree hooves - as well as mouths - that it's hard to understand why anyone would want to nail iron clogs on their horses! But then, I'm a bit of a hoof anorak.

[patriciaridgeway]

Hello Elaine -
I am SO sorry to have taken so long to respond, I travel a lot with my (other) work and I'm a disaster sometimes! We are in mid Louth, on the coast, we have a small riding school, we keep livery and we school animals. My husband is learning to do maintenance barefoot trimming from Dermot McCourt. I am a Bitless Bridle Instructor through BBUK and have shared stories with Festina Lente, they're wonderful. We don't ship or sell bridles directly ourselves, we do so through BBUK. All our own animals are bitless and barefoot, almost all our school ponies are bitless and to be honest, it's easier to count what ponies HAVE shoes than haven't. Like Jill, we have lots of case notes on multiple animals since we changed to the x-under bitless, happy to share those with anyone who is interested, curious or, like I was myself at one time, almost at the end of their rope with a problem 'friend'. We are currently refining a 'natural livery' option for customers, a la Jaime Jackson and we're very excited by the interest to date. If anyone wants to have a chat about barefoot transition and/or x-under bitless riding, please don't hesitate to contact us @ [e-mail].
Again, so sorry for the delay in responding!

[Elaine]

Patricia, have karma-ed you!!

[moongirl]

Hi all,

I have been reading all your posts with interest. I have always been interested in barefoot horses but havent had enough knowledge or info to go there yet with my horse. But I have just had my horse unshod for the past 5 weeks as I have been away and was letting her have a break from shoes. I am now really reluctant to put shooes back on her because it seems so unnatural. She is an Icelandic horse and so has naturally quite tough feet so I dont think we would find the transition too bad.

My questions are to anyone who has already got their horses barefoot and to the barefoot trimmers:

What will I have to do to make the transition ? ( Apart from finding a trimmer )

Will it be hard work, expensive, painful for my horse ?

How long will it be until I can ride normally ?

And once she is used to it, will I be able to ride on most surfaces and for long distances ( it is quite stony in places where we live and theres some road work ) ?

And - I live in South Tipp - does anyone know of any barefoot trimmers who will come out to that area ?

Thanks so much,

Michelle and Manadis

[hoofsculpture]

hi michell and manadis
about you,r horse, he should have naturally good feet,being icelandic, when you find someone to set up his trim, he should be able to show you how to maintain the trim untill you feel he needs another pro trim. you ask how long it will be untill you can ride normally. well that depends on the horses feet. if you can establish that he has good thick soles, you are nearly there, if his soles are thin, then he must be worked on sand,to toughen the soles, and make sure he does,nt get a stone bruse. if he has grown some new hoof horn[that has not flared,curled out like a trumpet or bell] then a nice rim of hoof wall can be shaped for him to walk on. also as he is nowthe thickness of a shoe lower,his sole will be clocer to the ground, so any pressure points will have to be trimmed. if you cant find anyone to set up the trim ,you can give me a ring on02843725961 or07736877358 or e mail [e-mail]

[cokey]

Hi all! one other thing to consider is the diet. It plays a HUGE part in whether your barefoot experience will be a success or not. My TB mare has been barefoot for nearly 5 years now. She's had to wear boots on hard surfaces for nearly all that time, and I just sort of accepted that she was a bit of a wimp!

This last spring, she had a bout of laminitis, which I believe was brought about when she lost her foal. Since then, she's been on a very strict lami diet. Hardly any grass, lots of soaked hay etc. She's now totally sound on ALL surfaces! Even when she'd been out of work and just lounging about in the field for 2 months, the day that I got back on her to ride her out on the road, she was sound as a bell. No boots required!

So, I believe that all this time, she was suffering from a form of Low Grade Laminitis (LGL). I feel utterly awful that I just accepted her "footiness" on hard surfaces as a by product of being TB..

However, now I know better, I'm letting everyone else know too, so that's one way of redressing the balance!

[Elaine]

*waves* have karmaed you cokey

[moongirl]

Hi,

Thanks to hoofsculpture for your reply. Her hooves are still looking good - havent flared or anything.

I have been in touch with a farrier who does some barefoot trimming. He is too far to come out to me but suggested I could ride my horse with her hooves as they are ( my normal farrier just removed the shoes but did no special trim ) I have read in many different places, including one of the posts on this thread, that its not a good idea to ride unshod without having a proper barefoot trim. I dont really want shoes put back on but I dont want to do my horse any harm.

So I was just looking for a second opinion on this - is it ok to ride as she is, just unshod, or would it be preferable to have shoes put back on until I can get a barefoot trimmer ? Or perhaps could i use hoof boots ?

He also suggested using formaldahide on the hooves and sole to strenghten them, but I dont like the sound of that. Any ideas on this ?

I would be very glad to hear any ones thoughts. Thanks

Michelle

[intouch]

Hi Michelle - Jenny replied to your post on intouchequestrian - did u get it OK?
Lesley

[hoofsculpture]

hi michelle, i gather from what you say that you,r horse has no shoes at the moment, if that is so ,you can try him on various surfaces, he will be fine on sand etc, he should be fine on tarmac road, the real test will be rough stoney ground. if he walks ok on that, then you will know that he has good soles and will go unshod just fine. if as you say he has no flaring, then i would look to see if he has long toes, if so have them cut back a bit. then have a look at his heels, if they are not starting to bend inward just leave them, if they are long and starting to under run you can flatten them a little with a rasp, look at the bars [ridges sticking up each side of frog] if they look long enough that they would be weight bearing ie like the heels, scrape or cut them down a bit. if you hold a straight edge across the heels you will see if the bars are lower, if they are leave them. you should not need any product to harden his feet if he is sound, it,s a thick tough healthy sole you need, not a hard skin on the surface, so to answer you,r question, ride him where ever he is comfortable, but you must have him trimmed soon, if you could get him up the road as far as kildare or somewhere i could trim him for you when i,m working there. and if you are completly beat, i will go down to you.

[jennyharvey]

Hello Michelle its Jenny. Just letting you know that i am now online so if you need any info on equine podiatry just let me know.

[savanna]

hi,
does anyone know a bare foot trimmer in the kildare area? my horses have no shoes on for nearly a year now, but i still us the same farrier. does Tj (cork) or Dermot (down) travel to kildare area?

[chestnuttymare]

May 7, 2007 20:30:37 GMT @Tj Whelan Master Farrier said:

how r u doing,
Tj whelan the master farrier here, i now have a massive head and can not get into my van after reading this site. so i have to increase my fee to 35 euro as i need to employ a driver and pay the diesel.
kind regards
tj whelan registered master farrier ireland.

On the subject of barefoot trimming.
What are the qualifications of barefoot trimmers who are not actual farriers? How long do they train. I know local SSPCA bloke (iam in scotland) and he dropped in to my place to ask if i knew of a trimmer who had being doing botch jobs and one was now being considered a cruelty case.

[intouch]

If I may quote from a letter in British Horse from Jayne Hunt, Chairman Equine Podiatry Assoc. UK

"There are two organisations in the UK which act as self-regulating professional bodies for their members and insist on a high standard of competency as well as having the power to investigate complaints and take disciplinary action if necessary. Both of these organisations are working with Lantra, the government licensed sector skills council, to compile a minimum standard for a nationally recognised qualification.
"This is taking place in consultation with many parties including the BHS, the Farriers' Registration Council and the British Veterinary Association.
"The names of these organisations are the Equine Podiatry Association UK and the UK National Hoofcare Practitioners."

The standards for the EPA training is almost in place, it is expected that the training will take at least 2 years to complete.
Hope this answers your question.
Lesley