Should i have my horse shod

Ride in the arena or on sandy loam all day long, and you can ride them for months barefoot, and a barefoot horse is often more fleet-footed.

Con: Keith Jacobson No foal has come into this world with a pair of shoes tacked on to those little feet, but a whole bunch leave that way. Postponing the first shoeing as long as possible, at least until a horse is well into its fifth year, will add years of service on the other end of his life. Prematurely subjecting it to shoeing and strenuous work at an early age is counter to the best long-term interest of the horse physically. And, left unshod, most feet get stronger over time. But I do shoe one of my own horses!

My horse has poor pastern conformation, and his life is miserable without a wedge shoe that takes pressure off the coffin joint. Sometimes shoeing is less onerous than leaving the horse as he was made. Always do what is right for the horse. I think correction is the best reason to shoe.

And most horses need protection at some point or other. Today, we can apply protection as needed with a hoof boot, which allows the foot to function fully and be unencumbered by a shoe. The newest hoof boots go on easily, stay on well, and last a long time. And traction will improve greatly, as well. In effect, the reasons to shoe are few. The 19th century U. Cavalry also understood that constant or continuous shoeing degraded the quality and functionality of the horse foot over time; while leaving the hoof unshod at least half of the time restored soundness.

This remains good advice today. Three True Stories Who better to ask about their experiences with barefoot horses than top-level competitors? She keeps more than 30 horses, including working Quarter Horses in addition to her endurance Arabians. The story: Pixiedust is doing so well in her short venture to being barefoot that she was scheduled to compete in the Tevis Cup without metal shoes, less than a month and a half after Lane pulled them. I pulled his shoes and trimmed his feet.

Just a few weeks later, he was functional and happy. Dressage Federation bronze, silver, and gold medalist and three-time national championship competitor. The story: Not every horse who ends up comfortably shoeless has an easy time getting there. But Squishy, a massive horse at In , Grand Prix dressage horse Squishy was the first horse Peters tried barefoot.

I ended up taking him barefoot for a while just to give his feet a break, and he was more sound without shoes than with them. On top of that, he contracted Lyme disease, and over the next four years, he had laminitis four times.

Each time, we had to work on building a new, stronger foot again. Peters says conscientious trimming has been the first line of defense with Squishy. Some go directly out of shoes with no problem, and others have foot pathology that takes more time. He really needed the frog support, which increased stimulation and blood flow, and wedges to get his heel up, which would have been hard to do without metal shoes.

He stayed sound for me, and is now retired from endurance at age I rode a BLM mustang with the toughest feet ever, and tried to keep her barefoot, but having to condition as much as needed to get a horse fit for endurance on our terrain, I just wore her feet too short.

I found that on many horses I could have taken barefoot otherwise; wear was the biggest issue. Where-to-Ride Guide. Training Tips. Ground Work. Pattern Perfect. Private Lesson.

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Vacation Planning. Trail Safety. Trail Training. Horse Care. Barns and Fencing. Conformation Clinic. Hoof Care. But shoeing also has many benefits. Whether or not barefoot is best is up to you and your horse. Most farriers are very good at their jobs, but mistakes do happen. If the horse's hoof is brittle or damaged the nails used in horseshoeing can damage the hoofs further.

Sometimes the nails are inserted incorrectly causing the animal pain and damaging the soft tissue in the hoof. An improperly placed or fitted shoe can cause damage when the animal walks, similar to the issues that arise when humans wear shoes that are too small.

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