The Barefoot Horse Movement - Fact or Fiction - Cult ?
10/15/08
Hello and what a wonderful day it is here .
First things first - a late announcement , Septembers Custom Hand Forged Horse Head Hoof Pick winner of course !
Bill Eckroth from Mandan ND. Congratulations my friend and enjoy.
There's alot of controversy around the Barefoot Horse. I'm just curious how many go barefoot. A short time back i recieved a link from a friend to a website all about barefoot horses and was asked for my opinions. After looking over the website complete with videos et all , well , this is one area that i could really get set off on. It's not because barefoot horses infringe on my income rather the more i've seen about these barefoot movement people the more i want to scream.
I'm not going to name names but the website i visited was quite elaborate , showing the barefoot facility and what is done there. There was a strong video but after about 5 minutes into the video i got the feeling the speaker was just trying to overwhelm with information - kinda a smoke and mirror approach. I quickly noticed the speaker starting to quote a Dr. of Veterinarian medicine and this is where i noticed the body language of the speaker changing as he obviously was just repeating what was told him and didn't himself have the courage of his convictions. So i quickly became suspect of what was to come and i have to say i wasn't let down.
I have to just jump in here , there was a track all around the facility there where all types of different terrain is set up for horses to walk over - tree stumps - gravel - sand - rocks - fallen logs - water - you name it they have it - probably lilly pads too ( add humor ). The process of going barefoot is that these horses need the different types of terrain to walk on for their feet to toughen up. I don't have any objection to feet toughening up but what i saw on the video was interesting - the horses as they walk around the track were advoiding the obstacles that are supposto toughen them up. So that was for starters.
The second thing was the speaker started talking about the sole of the foot and how the horse should stand on it's sole - a direct quote from the Veterinarian associated with this website. To be specific they're proposing the horse should stand 85 percent on it's sole and 15 perent on the hoof wall , and there's a reason - mainly that by standing on it's sole the pressure into the foot would stimulate blood flow and strengthen the foot. Good Lord !
Look - think about this just for a minute - horses shed their frogs and they shed their soles - it's natural ! if they were supposto stand on their soles they wouldn't be shedding all the time , and secondly think about this - how much does a horse weigh on average - 1000 lbs ? easily - well that little bit of hoof wall down there on the end of their leg has to support a huge amount of weight even while just standing let alone running. Well the bone column going down the leg and into the foot is certainly causing pressure and blood circulation inside the foot without having the horse have to stand on it's sole. This supporting of weight certainly strengthen lamina and improves integrity of the foot all by itself.
Horses live in all different parts of the world - some on open pasture land others in the sand of Arabia for example and others in the rocks of mongolia etc etc . It's all different but they all flourish in their particular environments .
I'm going to show you a photo of one of the barefoot practitioners. I've heard from some that they should not ever touch the bottom of the foot - never to remove or work on the sole at all , the photo will show you what i'm talking about.
The website in question here ( interesting enough ) showed an example of their best barefoot horse - interesting that the sole had been trimmed away and the bottom of the foot was concave as it is naturally unless you have a flat footed horse , but obviously this foot was not supporting 85% of it's weight on the sole - rather it was supporting almost all of its weight on the hoof wall. I don't want to confuse you but their example was not in line with what they teach. In the photographic example the horse doesn't stand on it's sole much at all which is contrary to what they said - OH now even i'm confused (-:
Yes horses can and do go barefoot , obviously out in the wild , but not all horses can do well going barefoot. Horses have thin soles , some will never toughen up and be able to go barefoot. Some have very thin hoof wall and will always be tearing hoof apart also not a good candidate for going barefoot. There's is also a long toughening up process that could result if your horse is tender footed. You'd need to ride your horse barefoot - it would come back to the barn limping and you'd need to lay the horse up for a few days till it's foot recovers then you subject the horse to more punishment (toughening) and another layup for recovery and repeat the process hopefully the horse will finally get where it doesn't need shoes. WOW ! I don't know about you but i like to ride and not have to deal with those kind of issues. I mean if i look at my horses feet and i say it looks like it could go barefoot lets try it out then good , one of the lucky ones that can go barefoot.
Where i really had issue with this website is when the speaker said it was Shoeing horses that causes lameness problems. I just about jumped out of my skin - but i saw that coming . Here's the bottom line on that - i've been shoeing horses for almost 18 years now and i've never had a horse come up lame from my shoeing technique. There's nothing wrong with shoeing at all providing it's done right . In fact there are actually some serious balance issues that can only be addressed with shoeing such as pigeon toed horses and addressing what to do with flares and load characteristics on the foot and a few other things. Nope shoeing's not the problem it's incorrect shoeing , and it's incorrect trimming as well including barefoot horses. i think you're getting the idea.
So my job here is to pass on what i know in order for you to make better decisions for yourself and your horse. I always say " It only takes ONCE for you to have a permanently lame horse " much better off educated.
I'm in the middle of a few challenges lately but nearing completion of the Ebook which is FREE like everything else on this site ---------> "Inside Horseshoeing Secrets of Lameness Prevention" You can sign up to recieve it by just leavning your name and email to me at John@Care4Horses.com i'll promptly send it to you.
So here's an example of a Barefoot Horse being treated incorrectly
Look at that ! Can you believe it ? This poor horse.
That poor horse has to walk on it's sole completely. The person who sent me this photo for consultation said this is what the farrier told her needed to be done with this horse. You can see the sole has grown longer than the hoofwall, the frog is buried way inside the foot where it gets little contact with the ground , and you can also see there is some flare at the toe. By popping that sole out of the foot as if it had shed itself the farrier would then be able to shorten the foot to it's natural position as well, right now the foot is too long because of the excess sole. And there's no way you can tell me this horse/ pony actually is happy having to walk on these feet in this condition. Like i said , makes me want to scream sometime.
Ok - so enough said. If you noticed i mentioned "Consultation" with the person who sent me the photo. Yes i do consultation , again , like everything else consultation is no cost whatsoever - that's FREE . (-: right ?
So as usual happy safe and sound riding and always remember to www.Care4Horses.com
John "TheFootDoctor" Silveira
for consultations just email me at John@Care4Horses.com
Hello and what a wonderful day it is here .
First things first - a late announcement , Septembers Custom Hand Forged Horse Head Hoof Pick winner of course !
Bill Eckroth from Mandan ND. Congratulations my friend and enjoy.
There's alot of controversy around the Barefoot Horse. I'm just curious how many go barefoot. A short time back i recieved a link from a friend to a website all about barefoot horses and was asked for my opinions. After looking over the website complete with videos et all , well , this is one area that i could really get set off on. It's not because barefoot horses infringe on my income rather the more i've seen about these barefoot movement people the more i want to scream.
I'm not going to name names but the website i visited was quite elaborate , showing the barefoot facility and what is done there. There was a strong video but after about 5 minutes into the video i got the feeling the speaker was just trying to overwhelm with information - kinda a smoke and mirror approach. I quickly noticed the speaker starting to quote a Dr. of Veterinarian medicine and this is where i noticed the body language of the speaker changing as he obviously was just repeating what was told him and didn't himself have the courage of his convictions. So i quickly became suspect of what was to come and i have to say i wasn't let down.
I have to just jump in here , there was a track all around the facility there where all types of different terrain is set up for horses to walk over - tree stumps - gravel - sand - rocks - fallen logs - water - you name it they have it - probably lilly pads too ( add humor ). The process of going barefoot is that these horses need the different types of terrain to walk on for their feet to toughen up. I don't have any objection to feet toughening up but what i saw on the video was interesting - the horses as they walk around the track were advoiding the obstacles that are supposto toughen them up. So that was for starters.
The second thing was the speaker started talking about the sole of the foot and how the horse should stand on it's sole - a direct quote from the Veterinarian associated with this website. To be specific they're proposing the horse should stand 85 percent on it's sole and 15 perent on the hoof wall , and there's a reason - mainly that by standing on it's sole the pressure into the foot would stimulate blood flow and strengthen the foot. Good Lord !
Look - think about this just for a minute - horses shed their frogs and they shed their soles - it's natural ! if they were supposto stand on their soles they wouldn't be shedding all the time , and secondly think about this - how much does a horse weigh on average - 1000 lbs ? easily - well that little bit of hoof wall down there on the end of their leg has to support a huge amount of weight even while just standing let alone running. Well the bone column going down the leg and into the foot is certainly causing pressure and blood circulation inside the foot without having the horse have to stand on it's sole. This supporting of weight certainly strengthen lamina and improves integrity of the foot all by itself.
Horses live in all different parts of the world - some on open pasture land others in the sand of Arabia for example and others in the rocks of mongolia etc etc . It's all different but they all flourish in their particular environments .
I'm going to show you a photo of one of the barefoot practitioners. I've heard from some that they should not ever touch the bottom of the foot - never to remove or work on the sole at all , the photo will show you what i'm talking about.
The website in question here ( interesting enough ) showed an example of their best barefoot horse - interesting that the sole had been trimmed away and the bottom of the foot was concave as it is naturally unless you have a flat footed horse , but obviously this foot was not supporting 85% of it's weight on the sole - rather it was supporting almost all of its weight on the hoof wall. I don't want to confuse you but their example was not in line with what they teach. In the photographic example the horse doesn't stand on it's sole much at all which is contrary to what they said - OH now even i'm confused (-:
Yes horses can and do go barefoot , obviously out in the wild , but not all horses can do well going barefoot. Horses have thin soles , some will never toughen up and be able to go barefoot. Some have very thin hoof wall and will always be tearing hoof apart also not a good candidate for going barefoot. There's is also a long toughening up process that could result if your horse is tender footed. You'd need to ride your horse barefoot - it would come back to the barn limping and you'd need to lay the horse up for a few days till it's foot recovers then you subject the horse to more punishment (toughening) and another layup for recovery and repeat the process hopefully the horse will finally get where it doesn't need shoes. WOW ! I don't know about you but i like to ride and not have to deal with those kind of issues. I mean if i look at my horses feet and i say it looks like it could go barefoot lets try it out then good , one of the lucky ones that can go barefoot.
Where i really had issue with this website is when the speaker said it was Shoeing horses that causes lameness problems. I just about jumped out of my skin - but i saw that coming . Here's the bottom line on that - i've been shoeing horses for almost 18 years now and i've never had a horse come up lame from my shoeing technique. There's nothing wrong with shoeing at all providing it's done right . In fact there are actually some serious balance issues that can only be addressed with shoeing such as pigeon toed horses and addressing what to do with flares and load characteristics on the foot and a few other things. Nope shoeing's not the problem it's incorrect shoeing , and it's incorrect trimming as well including barefoot horses. i think you're getting the idea.
So my job here is to pass on what i know in order for you to make better decisions for yourself and your horse. I always say " It only takes ONCE for you to have a permanently lame horse " much better off educated.
I'm in the middle of a few challenges lately but nearing completion of the Ebook which is FREE like everything else on this site ---------> "Inside Horseshoeing Secrets of Lameness Prevention" You can sign up to recieve it by just leavning your name and email to me at John@Care4Horses.com i'll promptly send it to you.
So here's an example of a Barefoot Horse being treated incorrectly
Look at that ! Can you believe it ? This poor horse.
That poor horse has to walk on it's sole completely. The person who sent me this photo for consultation said this is what the farrier told her needed to be done with this horse. You can see the sole has grown longer than the hoofwall, the frog is buried way inside the foot where it gets little contact with the ground , and you can also see there is some flare at the toe. By popping that sole out of the foot as if it had shed itself the farrier would then be able to shorten the foot to it's natural position as well, right now the foot is too long because of the excess sole. And there's no way you can tell me this horse/ pony actually is happy having to walk on these feet in this condition. Like i said , makes me want to scream sometime.
Ok - so enough said. If you noticed i mentioned "Consultation" with the person who sent me the photo. Yes i do consultation , again , like everything else consultation is no cost whatsoever - that's FREE . (-: right ?
So as usual happy safe and sound riding and always remember to www.Care4Horses.com
John "TheFootDoctor" Silveira
for consultations just email me at John@Care4Horses.com
Great article. We have one of these self proclaimed experts within about 50 miles of my ranch. I looked through the site and saw many of the things that you pointed out. It is really scary when you think about it: someone takes it upon themself to start a "new" trend without true scientific / vet advice, AND usually charge more money than a regular farrier for a basic trim. I have yet to see any of these natural shoers provide any appreciable number of X-rays to back up what they are claiming.
I would like to point out one fact about barefoot horses, and please feel free to add your own thoughts.
There is a large difference
in "training" young horses here in the U.S. compared to overseas. In the U.S., just about any horse that is raised to be shown, whether it be roping, cutting, racing, etc., is usually raised in a controlled environment, i.e. a barn stall with a limited turnout.
As has been proven in most mammals, young horses (and all ages for that matter, but especially young ones) need proper feedback in their feet from a variety of surfaces to ensure proper hoof and leg development. By allowing a colt to run in an "uneven" pasture or step on rocks every now and then or just walk and run anywhere but "groomed ground" will allow the proper structures to develop in the foot and legs. This in turn allows for a better development of foot circulation (better blood flow means healthier feet), higher bone density (less chance of fractures) and better tendon / ligament development (less chance of joint injuries).
Now, if you are raising your own stock, you can usually control this and have a much higher chance at having a barefoot horse. But, if you buy a horse older than 2 (after the growth plates have closed) you have to work very hard to get the same results, as John has already pointed out. There are two simple things you can do: 1. Have an experienced farrier look over the horse and help you decide if you can keep it barefoot. 2. If the horse comes to you shod or has evidence of past shoeings, this is probably a sign that this horse cannot be ridden barefoot without problems.
One P.S. If you have a shod horse that will never be ridden again, i.e. broodmare or just yard art, you can usually convert them to run barefoot. But as before, consult a good farrier before you try this on your own. It will save you some heartache, time and money. I know from experience...
=============================================
My comment.
Hello , you sound like you're right on base . You're learning much i see.
always good to see others that get it.
I will say one thing. Horses that have been shod all their lives
certainly can be perfect candidates for going barefoot. Alot depends
on how thick their sole is and how sensitive they are to pain in the first
place. Some horses are just much more sensitive to a pain barrier
than others, while some plod through anything feeling no pain
whatsoever. I've pulled shoes off horses that have been in shoes
for years and had no problem at all when they were barefoot. These
are all things that need to be weighed when taking shoes off a horse.
well thanks for stoppin in . good luck , and as usual happy and safe riding
and always remember to www.Care4Horses.com
Reply to this
I am curious how you feel about Peruvian Paso being barefoot? I am a first time horse, so I am limited on my knowledge of horses' hooves. I was told not to put shoes on my Peruvian Paso unless if I started riding on pavement..which I do not plan to do. I know if I decided to show him, I would not be able to have shoes on him.
All I want is a safe and happy horse. I do not want to be the one to cause lameness in my horse because I didn't make an informed choice.
Thanks in advance for any comments you might have for me. I am going to continue my seach on Peruvian Horses' and their hooves.
Thanks again, Michelle in Western KY
==================================
Hi Michelle
thanks for the question
Most every Peruvian i've ever seen was barefoot , although i have seen some with poor feet. Within the Paso world it's understood that they be barefoot. If you have one that has good feet and isn't coming up sore after a ride there's not much reason to put shoes on. On the other hand if the horse needs some corrective work there are times that the only way to make the right changes to feet require shoeing, It could be a temporary issue, such as to correct an extremely pigeon toed foot.
There's only one way to find out if your horse has good feet is to ride. Every horse has different tolerance to pain ( bruising of the sole ) for example , just go forward with care and patience and thoroughly pay attention , chances are you and your horse will be just fine.
Let me know if you need any further help and assistance. I'm just an email away - John@Care4Horses.com
thanks again.
john "TheFootDoctor" silveira
Reply to this
Very interesting picture. Tells a lot, but most glaringly, the tip of the frog and toe callus is taking a huge amount of abuse. The heels on this horse are too high...essentially tipping the coffin bone on it's nose (which is why the horse has built up callus there) and the frog has come out of contact and atrophied from lack of blood flow.
There is plenty of stretching in the white line (flare) at the toe from the force coming down the bony column. Lowering the heels and rolling the toe (not touching toe callus under P3....recipe for disaster) will shift the weight to the back of the foot (where it belongs) and allow the horse to build uniform sole thickness under P3 and avoid prolonged laminitis/or even founder.
Without seeing the full context of the pic it's hard to tell if this was a before or after photo....I'm praying before. But there are just as many bad trimmers out there as there are farriers.
=======================================
Ah yes - that particular photo was sent in to me from a reader and i believe it was right after the farrier had come out.
yes too much heels. thanks again.
john
Reply to this
That is a horrible example of what a healthy bare foot should look like.
That is no toe callous that's a dropped coffin bone!
Sadly there are people out there who call themselves natural hoof care providers who just really have no clue. I am in the process of fixing a horse that looked exactly like the picture. She's still barefoot at pasture but in boots for all riding outside a ring and she is sound now. and the person who messed her up was a certified trimmer. So yes owners need to be careful when they choose a hoof care professional no mater whether they choose to shoe or not.
==================================
Thanks for writing in Cherie,
good to see there's people who understand these things .
it still blows my mind though that people who practice these methods
don't have more of a clue , it appears so obvious to me but i guess for
others not - just don't know what the hell they're thinking.
thanks again for stopping by. I'm at half a chapter left for my ebook
INSIDE HORSESHOEING SECRETS OF LAMENESS PREVENTION.
I'll put you on the list to notify , should be done any day.
talk to you , don't be a stranger.
john "TheFootDoctor" silveira
Reply to this
Natural balance trim nightmare..My two haflinger mares, after two trims were left with abscesses in every hoof, laminitis, one hoof had seven abscesses in it! Almost a year later, one mare is now suffering with another episode of abscessing to her both her front feet and is in severe pain,again!Proof was in the x-rays to the massive damage done by a so called experienced barefoot farrier, who by the way,has posted a comment on your site!It was my fault for hiring this woman. I believed in her so called, experience. Vets that have viewed her "work" cannot believe that much damage and lameness could have been caused by a so called professional. My mares had no hoof wall left to hold up their 1000 pound body. These are draft haflingers.The blood bruising is still present!One mare is doing very well thanks to a real balance trim farrier who cared enough to help them through their pain. The other mare was coming along real well until this last four day rain storm. I try to keep her feet as dry as possible but, she now is in extreme pain, lame in both front feet, and becoming depressed!She has an amazing story from her first abscess nightmare...with the help of homeopathics and her natural healing instinct and a caring, educated,professional balance trim farrier, kept her well until two days ago...almost a year without lameness. So...be very careful who you hire.They sure can talk the talk! When I left a message about the serious condition she left my mares in, she never even called back!! Maybe, she should have sat in the stall of my mare unable to stand, leg swollen above the knee, spiking fevers,moaning in pain with her head in my lap..day after day after day!!! So, the nightmare has become a cronic condition and both my farrier and I will deal with her pain and hope that she will be able to live with the damage done by a so called professional barefoot farrier that is hidden among real professionals...Be very careful she can talk the talk.
======================================================
Hello Ann,
Thanks for writing in , really appreciate hearing from others that have information and experiences to talk about that others can benefit from. thank you.
I've been hearing this Barefoot crap long enough now that i'm not going to just say barefoot proponents are just wrong i'm going to say " THEY'RE OUT OF THEIR FRICKEN MINDS" ----- > There i said it !!! Oh i feel so much better now. I'm going to guess but i suspect the barefoot trimmer you mentioned that left a comment here on the blog left some kind of negative remark right ? Very few barefoot trimmers write in here with an open mind or kindness so i just will risk it and assume she's no different. This barefoot debate might take another 20 - 30 or 50 years before the opposing sides come to grips with each other - and it's going to have to be those stubborn asses , barefooters who are going to have to change their attitudes not the other way around. ( excuse my frankness - i've been in a mood lately with issues i'm dealing with child custody and my 7 year old Son Tristan ) - I've so learned this lesson the hard way - i'm begining to understand why should i pull punches and be the nice guy when that's not what i'm getting from some others in the first place. So i just don't care anymore and will just stand right up and speak my mind - let me do that again - it feels good - here you go " THEY'RE JUST PLAIN NUTZ " why should i dance around that - my experience with them is no matter what you tell them they just refuse to give in and it just seems like they turn a deaf ear...
i might as well say this again - i'm not against barefoot horses , it's just not all horses can or should go barefoot , some just can't go barefoot , One needs to weigh all the facts and be well informed - and proceed with great care. However i am against hearing barefoot trimmers/believers say that "Shoeing Ruins horses" , my response , since i've not had a lame horse due to shoeing for over 18 years is " NO shoeing is not the problem it's incorrect shoeing that's the problem.
every farrier out there has most likely made a horse sore - trimmed too short. It can be the difference of a hair that can make a horse sore , and what looks right and works right on one horse might just be that extra hair on another horse and you have a sore footed horse on your hands. I'm no exception. But enough is enough . people really just need to get a clue sometimes - a closed mind just isn't a good thing in this case.
With people like yourself who take the time to write in , things can change slowly for the better ..
Thanks Ann.
Best wishes : John Silveira
Reply to this
John, My mare was very lucky this time!I could tell a problem was brewing on Friday, just a different look in her eyes,her walk,and turns were slightly off.Sat.,slight lameness in her off front..Sat.afternoon, extremely lame on the left front. Walked her on the road to see extent of lameness. Dosed her with Arnica 30c. Sat. evening,Dosed her again with Arnica 30c. Now lame in both front with slight warmth in both but digital pulse seemed normal.Presenting like abscessing.Did some research and found an old case study of a retired race horse that they were trying to pasture barefoot.This case was similar to my mare.After trying Arnica and Hepar Sulphur 30c remedies,with no results, they tried Carbo animalis 30c. His lameness/stiffness disappeared!I tried this remedy with two doses on my mare.She is now shifting weight to both feet,turning well, a little hesitant at backing but will back,no heat in either foot and walking well on the road test.I,m going to keep her in the sand paddock until the fields dry and get the ok from my farrier.This mare made it through mud season with out a problem but, now I realize she does have a chronic condition and I must be very careful of wet conditions!!I have been doing Homeopathy for twelve years(self taught)and have had some amazing provings!!This remedy worked with my mare!!So, I wait for my farrier with a mare that is out of pain and presents as being sound. I hear her raising hell out in the barn, better turn her out in the paddock!!I'm glad I found your web site!!!Ann
==================
Hello Ann.
Thanks for stoppin in, interesting story and nice to hear your committment to your horse.
i'll be talking to you. Have fun
John Silveira
Reply to this
Ann / John,
Another thing that works is a supplement called Remission. I was told once that it helped cure abcesses and chronic founder and I called B.S. But, it was cheap ($10 or so for a couple months worth) so I tried it out. With some excellent help from my farrier to get her feet right and this supplement, she is like new. Matter of fact, we just had one of the wettest springs on record and my mare never had a single abcess. And she is kept in a communal paddock with just a run-in to get out of the mud.
Look into it. It is a mixture of probiotics and minerals. It helps regulate the hind gut. Just an idea but it sure worked on my mare. *Chris*
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hi Chris. thanks for stoppin in. I think i vaguely remember hearing something about remission from somewhere , thank you for bringing that up.
REMISSION !!! great !
John Silveira
Reply to this
John
I barrel race and I want to know your opinion about putting the shoe back and taking off more toe and changing the breakover. This seems to be a trend and I keep having front lameness issues with more than one horse. I have used two different farriers that are highly respected in my area. I am curious if more natural shoeing would be better. I feel (could be wrong) that changing the breakover seems to change the horses gait and stride. I would love some information on this without challenging my farriers knowledge or expertise.
Thank you,
Char
=====================
Hello Char - thanks for stopping in and the great question.
Moving the toe rearward is a great idea, always. it eases breakover and stress to the joints tendons and ligaments. But like anything else too much is not good. You'll want to evaluate the horse's Angles , i do that by looking at the grain in the foot directly mid point of the hoof while looking from the outside (lateral side) of the foot - there are some photos in the blog that show the method.
If your horse has extreme toe you'll not be able to rasp enough back the first time - or even concurring times. It can end up being a process of re-stimulating new hoof wall to achieve the desired amount of changes needed. When you move the toe rearward the hairline will reflect the change and you'll need to continue the process till the whole foot grows a new hoof capsule , Now you'll have hoofwall that's grown at a better angle ( natural angle ) aligned with the pastern bones more correctly - however if the hoof still has stretch ( forward stretch ) from that long toe then once that new hoof has grown (approximately one year) you'll want to take another Bite and continue the process through another "Cycle" of shoeing ( one year ) ... So the correct foot may take several cycles to achieve correctness in severe cases.
What you may want to be more astute about getting correct is whether or not your horse is "Level" - the following links will bring you to a short clip on how to achieve true level.
This is the URL for the blog page.
http://farrieritis.care4horses.com/2007/11/15/visualizing-a-level-foot.aspx
This is the direct URL for the download of the video file.
http://media.podcastingmanager.com/58900-51686/Media/newFile.MP4
Not having a level foot can really tweak the joint .
other than all that consider adding some good heel support for the horse by fitting shoes just a slight bit longer and wider in the heel, just know if you're horse is an over reacher then pulling/throwing shoes can become an issue.
Feel free to keep in touch - i'm happy to see a photo of your horse's feet to give you recommendations -
take care - and as usual happy and safe riding and always remember to www.Care4Horses.com
John "TheFootDoctor" Silveira
Reply to this