Aargh, can't decide what to do!!

emma314

emma314

Active Member
Jan 3, 2002
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Cornwall, UK
I had Frosty's shoes pulled last winter, partly because farrier said she had good enough feet to manage without and partly because she was so bad for the farrier that he refused to put shoes on :eek:!!! Admittedly I knew very little about keeping a horse barefoot and it has been a huge learning curve for me. She was very sore to begin with and I enlisted the help of a barefoot trimmer. He sorted out her behaviour problems (she was perfect last time he came out) and now her feet are looking in a really good condition.

Her feet now are much better than they were and she is walking on all surfaces with no problems (in hand, I use boots to ride in). However, I keep changing my mind over whether to try her in shoes again. I have got my original farrier (trimmer just lives too far away and it was getting too expensive :() coming out again on Thurs so need to decide before then.

My reasons for putting shoes back on are:
- Worrying about the spring grass and she will get footsore again (may do, may not - she's fine at the moment)
- She walks with a slight twist in one of her front feet and although this has never caused any rubbing or problems at all, the lining of her boots has worn away and I'll need to buy some new ones soon after only 6 months of use (they are old macs so could try different ones with no lining).
- Easier to just hop on and ride without messing about with boots.

I guess what I'm really asking is how likely is the grass to affect her feet? If I wait until they are sore then is it too late to put shoes back on, would I have to wait until they are in a good condition again? Is the twisting movement of her front feet likely to be affected by wearing boots?

Sorry for the long post and all the questions - I just want to do the best thing for Frosty.
 
Hi Emma. I have been through all the above !! Bloomin nightmare isnt it. We are now bootless and this has mostly been achieved by diet.

I trim my own, would your trimmer be able to advise you to do this and then you could call them out less just to check your work. It isnt difficult but you do need to know what you are doing. I just use a raspr regularly so no need for actually cutting bits off.

As I said though diet makes such a difference. What are you feeding?
 
Thanks, littlepony, it does all seem to get a bit complicated!!

Her feed has been cut right down now as she has gone out 24/7 and I'm anticipating that spring grass coming through soon!!

She's on a big handful of Happy Hoof, half a scoop of Speedibeet (just using this up from over the winter, doesn't really need it), cider vinegar and a herbal supplement which has seaweed, garlic etc (Equus Health Winter Glow) in it. Just fed in the evenings now.

That's a good idea about asking trimmer to show me how to do it. Not sure I'd trust my own judgement though! I don't really mind about using boots for riding provided she is comfortable without the rest of the time.
 
How about adding magnesium to her feed to help combat the spring grass?

If you really would prefer her shod, no reason why not. You can always take them off again.
 
I think it's really the grass you are worried about? If so, unless you are about to change fields or fertilize heavily, the spring grass has already sprung and is causing problems elsewhere!

If she does go sore you can put the shoes back on then if you feel thats what is best.

Have you tried riding without the boots? If you are the 'right size' for her you may find you don't need them - or only need them for some routes. riding barefoot will help to improve the feet more if she can cope

Keeping on top of growth between trims is easy if the feet are a good shape - ask you trimmer about it before you make up your mind, and start while they are there. It's not a job for every owner or horse or trimmer but can be an answer for your problem.
 
Thanks for the replies, Showjumper and Caroline. Yeah, it is really the grass that is worrying me (well worked out from the long, waffly message!!).

I didn't realise that magnesium could combat the effects of spring grass. I thought about trying her on that in the past as a calmer as she can be quite anxious so maybe it'd be worth a try. What sort would you recommend? I've seen magnesium oxide on ebay but would be worried it wasn't the right thing and I wouldn't know how much to feed.

That's good to know that I could put shoes on if she becomes sore. I was thinking that maybe it would be too late once she had already become sore. In that case, I definitely think it's worth sticking with barefoot for now. I could try her without boots as her feet are so much better now, I think it's just me worrying about hurting her.
 
The grass could cause you a problem. It took ages for me to realise that even though its supposed to be the best diet for a horse the pastures we have in this country are usually unsuitable. I now have a paddock paradise system which works great but may not be possible on a livery yard?

You could muzzle your horse. The equus health supplement is excellent for feet, abit like Simple System Total Eclipse. Mag and linseed are good for footiness. You may have to play around with the diet. For example I took digital pulses twice a day for a year and recorded them on a calender in the tack room. Only then could I see the effects of the evil green grass! (must get out more). It took 2 years of diet tweaking to get my mare sound on all surfaces. You have to be a bit anal about it !!:D
 
Thanks littlepony. Yeah, it's difficult being on a livery yard as I don't really have any say in where she goes. I think I'll just have to see how she gets on. She's quite a good doer but she's not a native so doesn't put weight on at the first sight of grass! At the moment she looks about perfect weight wise (although it doesn't look like it due to her big broodmare belly!) so I'm hoping with plenty of exercise she might be okay. If not, I'll have shoes put back on.
 
Thank you!! That is so much clearer than the other ebay page I was looking at before! It does sound good, I'll definitely give it a try.
 
Well...just got back from the yard and decided that I will NEVER be using that farrier again. He spent all of 5 mins on her front feet, grabbed a hind foot quite aggressively and when she pulled her foot away (no kicking, pushing into him, just pulled it away) he said that she obviously hadn't improved at all and he would just do the fronts. He never spoke to her, tried to pick her foot up gently, let her realise he wasn't going to hurt her (she's a rescue and needs to know that people are okay and aren't always nasty!). I told him that she just needed to take a few moments to know what he was doing but he wasn't interested so charged me £10 for all of 5mins work and left!

Luckily her feet should be okay now for a few weeks till I can find a new farrier. Nightmare!
 
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