02/26/2016
You must defend your position to keep your horse barefoot. Many times, if something goes wrong, a vet or trainer or friend will immediately refer to the barefoot status of your horse as the obvious culprit! It takes a lot of resolve sometimes to stand up to this, especially when your horse is in pain from some undiagnosed condition. Here are some things to keep in mind that might help you. There are many, many lame horses that are shod. The immediate reaction is certainly not "well, it is the shoes," yet, ironically, perhaps it should be! Just because something has gone wrong, does not mean the horse needs iron immediately nailed on! In fact, it will muddle the search for the real cause of the lameness, because the horse might instantly be better! Especially with horses who have been barefoot for years, it is important to be a detective and ask, "well what has changed?" It might be iron in the water, or a horse eating a toxic w**d, or a change in diet, or perhaps it was just a strain or bruise. If the vet does recommend shoes, make sure you get a specific explanation as to what the shoe will do, and for what malady is it being applied. Here you will see, the paradigm falls apart, because there has been very little science on the subject of shoes vs. barefoot for fixing conditions. . . the one study I know of supported the natural hoof, of course. Shoes should be the last thing you try, quite frankly. Why? because they are the most disruptive to the hoof. Many years ago, someone came to natural hoof care because the farrier had tried for FOUR YEARS to get the horse sound with shoes. Wow, I thought. . . he had four years to try out that paradigm! We very often get little time to fix things, or no time at all! We are often just told the horse went back into shoes. . . which is a shame because it is the tough cases that would teach us the most. And I rarely have a vet who calls to discuss a case, even when I have been the hoof care provider for years. The farrier that works with the vet is called, and the shoes go on. Things trimmers can try: leave heels a bit high, if weak or thrushy frog. Trim entirely from top, and then more frequently. Address sugars in diet, of course, or any deficiencies. Check for iron in water. Change environment: dry up mud, put down pea gravel, or sand. Have horse wear boots--one day on and one day off--with thick pads. Encourage 24/7 turnout, and/or exercise, hand walking, etc. Movement is good! xray and work with vet to see if toe can come back more, or if a false or built up sole can be addressed. Above all remember: Lack of a shoe is not a diagnosis!!!!!
