Why barefoot is better? “The primary factor that has led the horse world to being convinced that the horse must be shod is waiting until the hoof looks damaged to trim.   we must trim before damage is done, not after” 
Pete Ramey


It is more then just a trim!!!  There is a lot more to Natural Hoof Care than just pulling your horses shoes. It is more than just "going barefoot".  It is a commitment to return your horse to soundness no matter what it takes.   A new generation of Natural Hoof Care Practitioners has begun to challenge tradition.  We neither shoe the horse nor coddle their feet once they are set free of the shoe.  On the contrary, these unshod horses in our care are trimmed & expected to out-perform their shod brethren.  They are trimmed to most closely match the wild feral horses of the world, such as those studied extensively by Jaime Jackson & Pete Ramey.

Your horses new hooves will be perfectly balanced & the hoof wall will almost always be in perfect alignment with the pastern & shoulder.  The horse will appear to have extremely short heels but they will be thick & solid.  The toe will be short & have a perfect, smooth, natural  break over point.  Contracted heels will spread & the sole will become more concave.  Your horse will move as nature intended:  agile, quick, comfortable, smooth & full of stamina :)

remember a horse’s hooves grow until he is about 5 years old.    if a horse is shod young the coffin bone can actually be deformed by placing a shoe on the hoof, contracting it & permanently altering its shape!!   contraction robs a horse of its natural ability to pump blood, absorb shock almost as much as a nailed on metal shoe.  The internal structures of the hoof can also be ‘stunted’.   The hoof has an important role in locomotion beyond merely being the base of support for the limb & protecting the coffin bone from injury. The bottom of the hoof is the horse’s only means of direct contact with the ground while moving, so the hoof’s function in “reading” the ground surface (the slope, hardness/softness, irregularities, slipperiness, etc.) is very important for safe & efficient movement.  A Natural Barefoot Trim’s goal is to aid in optimum movement as well as keep blood flow & nutrients IN the hoof.  Years of shoeing damage cannot be undone in one trim.  If a horse is lame without a shoe he is lame with a shoe!!  The shoe is hiding the lameness just like a boot could.  Isn’t it better to put a boot on for a little while & allow the hoof to function as nature intended then to keep a shoe on for weeks & weeks & weeks & weeks & weeks???  The action of putting the foot down on the ground allows the hoof to spread in ALL directions, pumping blood & nutrients throughout the hoof & lower leg, the hoof is loaded & unloaded then the process is repeated with each step.  shoes restrict this; the foot cannot spread 100%, the sole cannot spread &  it is flattened against the coffin bone because it can’t move freely.  The nails act as a brick wall; they tear the lamina & can cause the hoof wall to weaken, break, chip etc...  They also open the white line making it vulnerable to disease & improper function.  Since the blood supply is not flowing at optimum the needed nutrients are NOT getting into the hoof.  Not to mention the concussion each & every step resonating from the metal against the hoof structures.

“How long before I can ride after we pull his shoes?”   If the natural trim is done correctly there will be no pain created by the trim.   The horse should walk away from the trim feeling the same or better. He should improve over the course of 5 weeks as a better hoof grows, then again in the next 5 weeks, etc... Most horses usually need a few weeks for their hooves to get enough callous on their feet to ride over rough terrain.  Here on the Island most trails & arenas are soft enough to make this switch easily.  The only time a transition time can be difficult is when the foot has chronic problems to begin with that need to be healed.  if the horse can’t perform without hoof protection we must figure out WHY he can’t perform.  You can successfully hide problems with steel shoes for some time but not forever. On a barefooted horse it will show up right away.  Hoof boots can be a great aid during this time.   Anything you do to encourage movement will speed up hoof growth.  It will increase blood flow through the entire hoof capsule.  Every step on the ground will tell the hoof to grow a little.  Working horses feet grow much more quickly then horses that spend hours in a stall or small area.  Mileage not time is the best thing for your horse.  Movement stimulates growth, growth means a new, healthy, strong hoof.  By riding, hand walking or turning out with a buddy your horse will build up internal hoof structure more quickly. This makes you, the owner, in the position of playing the role of physical therapist. There is a commitment in time & effort to exercise your horse as well as a monetary commitment to have your horse’s feet trimmed every 5 weeks to keep them growing properly & in balance.   You must be committed.  Don’t be selfish if you can’t ride for a few weeks, take the time it takes & you will be Blown Away with the results by increased performance, better traction & best of all improved health.  You wouldn’t ride your horse if she had an injury; shoes injured your horse - now allow her to heal.  spend undemanding time with your horse through the healing process.   Take time with your horse rehabilitating the hoof by hand walking your horse on hard & soft ground, your horse will love you for it.  Rebuild a healthy frog, open the heels - let the hoof breathe!  REMINDER NOT ALL HORSES NEED TO STOP FROM BEING RIDDEN WHEN TRANSITIONING TO A BAREFOOT LIFESTYLE, ESPECIALLY IF YOU USE BOOTS.   The shape of the external foot dramatically changes with the first trim, the internal structures follow suit & you should be able to see a change in your horse’s overall ‘way’ within 5-10 weeks.  It takes 8+ months to a year to grow an entire new hoof wall - at this point the changes will be obvious to all, even sceptics.
 

Boots will aid your transition.  Don’t look at them as a failure - they can help speed the transition by using special pads inside to stimulate frog growth, increase circulation & yes allow you to ride on a day when your horse might normally feel ‘ouchy’.   Look at the boot page for a complete selection of hoof boots by  Renegade, EasyCare & Cavallo.  There is a boot available to fit your needs, riding style & tastes.


I’m here to help your horses with healing & repair from the first trim, no masking of problems with shoes & pads.  YOU are an integral part of the process - without your help it cannot be done.  You need to be committed to scheduled trimming, exercise for the horse, quality feed, mental stimulation, living arrangement


Example of what Mother Nature gives Horse’s at birth. ←Example of Foundered Mare on the road to recovery with NO INVASIVE trimming! “Typical” Pasture Trim overdue for a trim↑ & After↓ a Natural trim.

Contact:
Jeannean Mercuri
PO Box 136
Ridge, NY 11961-0136
631-345-2644
info@gotreeless.com


©Pride Treeless Saddles 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 & 2009
{If you see something here that shouldn't be, please let me know.  I tried my best.  If you see something you'd like to use just ask :) }


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Diet, laminitis, navicular, splits, cracks, white line, thrush, abscess......


Most ailments of the horses’ hooves come from an unnatural hoof form.    the closer you get your horse’s hoof back to the wild model, the healthier the hoof & horse will become.  Technology isn’t always the answer.  All too often man interferes with ‘modern technology’ when all we really need to do is allow Mother Nature to take over.  A Natural Barefoot trim in conjunction with a healthy lifestyle, a proper diet that is low in sugar & education will do just that.  We have to allow new growth to surround the bones inside the hoof in a natural position.  It will take time but it IS possible.  Lower the heels, align them with the frog, put the weight back in the back of the foot, don’t lift the heels with pads - it just keeps pushing the weight forward to where the pain & damage already is!  The horse is standing in the ’founder stance’ to pull his weight off his toes.

Move your horse to a dirt paddock.  Movement is great!  put him out with a buddy.  Feed grass hay - no grain or alfalfa.  Anti-inflamatory & pain meds are OK to allow the horse to be free of pain & allow movement but don’t RELY on them.  Reduce & eliminate them asap to lessen the chance of side effects.  Yes, it is difficult to watch the horse in pain but it can help keep the horse from further damaging a weakened situation in the lamina.  Pain tells the horse to be careful.  Don’t put her through unnecessary torture but don’t overuse pain meds.

Feed a natural diet free from grain, sugars & legumes.  Full of fiber, fruits & vegetables.  Let the horse eat all day as he would in the wild, that is what his stomach was designed for.  It will keep digestion flowing smoothly, allowing for heathy bacteria to promote good health.  Slow feeders work well.  Horses are grazing animals.  They have evolved to be eating machines.  A horse in its natural environment will eat almost all the time. They are in motion as they eat, a bite here, a bite there... these steps add up to miles of movement a day. He will digest small amounts of food all day long. That is how a horse's digestive system was designed.  Domestic or wild, no difference. We feed our horses abnormal amounts of Non structural Carbohydrates which they are not built to digest. They eat standing still.  They go without food for hours. Most of our horse's illnesses will come from this. Colic, laminitis, founder etc. You can eliminate so many things by giving your horse a healthier diet less in sugar & non structural carbs. Alfalfa is very often a danger to horses & many will founder on it.  Try to minimize these things in your horse's diet & you will get positive results. SaferGrass.org, RuralHeritage.com & DrKellon.com are three excellent websites to  help you learn about diet. Hard to read through as they can leave you feeling helpless at times but very informative. If you have a horse that does not tolerate sugar at all then Safergrass web site is a must to save your horse, if you have a Draft the Dr Beth Valentine at RuralHeritage.com is an excellent help. If you don't get rid of the diet problem you will never get a healthy horse. One big relief for at least some is that you can get rid of most dietary issues if your horse actually uses up what you stuff in him. EXERCISE! Not a few times a week. Every day and lots of movement (turnout etc) in between.

Remember to trim the hind feet as well.  If it is  too painful to stand use a sling, have people help hold her up. But trim those backs.  By letting them go unchecked she will continue to lean back on them forcing the back feet out of balance even more.

When heels get long & under run it moves the weight bearing part of the heels further forward, directly under the navicular bone instead of behind it where it is supposed to be.  It puts pressure on the bones that isn’t supposed to be there.  It also allows the bars to get too long adding even more unnatural pressure to the back of the hoof just like contracted heels do.  As a defense the body attempts to remove the bone just as it would in any joint in an unnatural pressure being applied to it. The pain is not caused by the loss of bone rather it is the cause of the bone loss.   Many barefoot horses with Navicular Syndrome & Navicular disease can be ridden comfortably, some require booting/padding for rides.

When hooves get too long they adapt to lack of wear.  This lack of wear allows the walls to thin & become weak.  A natural response is for the horse to do a “self-trim”.  It is unsightly but it is trying to rectify a situation in the only way it knows how.  A crack is never the problem rather it is a symptom of a problem.  It is OK for a hoof to be rock solid.  A rock hard hoof functions much better then a moist wet one.    Bacteria & fungus thrive in wet conditions.  No need for fancy cuts or shoes to stop cracks; just a return to the proper shape allowing for proper functioning.  

An abscess is dead material trying to leave the hoof.   It is quite common in foundered horses.  There is not much to do about one but wait it out.  Opening an abscess invites more bacteria in which can lead to secondary infection.  Scraping or paring the sole removes live sole which is there to protect the horse.  If they keep coming under the sole it is a good idea to have an x-ray done.





Some must reads
Jaime Jackson’s books “The natural horse”, “Paddock Paradise”  & “Founder”
Pete Ramey’s Books & DVD’s are also a must have.
Another good read is Dr. Ric redden’s  “the wild horse hoof” {2001 Laminitis Symposium, see Redden’s lecture notes}
www.safergrass.org
www.ruralheritage.com
www.DrKellon.com
























BETTER OFF BAREFOOT

better off barefoot The Natural Hoof Care Advantage

by Dr. Tomas G. Teskey D.V.M.

Arizona, U.S.A. {This & other related articles can also be read at www.easycareinc.com}

 

Ask your veterinarian, farrier or trainer about hoof care and the majority will freely admit that all equines are most healthy if they can be kept without steel shoes. Some believe, however, that shoeing is a necessary evil, evidently important for today’s working horses, mules and donkeys.

Veterinary medicine has its roots in blacksmithing, branching directly from the iron-working profession. The two developed into their own specialties, but the hooves continued to be the “territory” of the iron men. With the ever-increasing knowledge of the hoof, farriery and veterinary medicine struggle for understanding and reason after a thousand years of tradition. As time marches on, a new paradigm for hoof care that does no harm is replacing methods that misunderstand the hoof.

 Given the latest exciting hoof research, the finest in hoof care today is focusing on maintaining normal hoof form and function to achieve optimum health:

   1. ensuring the hoof can flex in all directions to handle the terrain
   2. promoting fluid movement and circulation
   3. protecting sensitive structures inside the feet and legs
   4. wearing evenly through movement and growing in evenly and strong
   5. helping engage and sense the environment

These are all achievable with natural hoof care and impossible using steel shoes or improper trimming. In fact, placing shoes on hooves fixes them in two dimensions, forcing the joints above to twist and torque—arthritic changes such as ringbone result. Normally shaped, healthy hooves are made of a specialized skin that can be conditioned to handle any terrain, flexing the proper amount to prevent damage to all joints in the body.

Shoes disrupt normal energy and circulation patterns body-wide, forcing the heart to work harder, stagnating energy flow and causing abnormal hoof growth. Healthy hooves pump large amounts of blood to keep themselves strong and all body systems vital and energized.


Instead of protecting the hooves, shoes cause concussive damage, promote weak growth and allow infection, heat and cold to invade the hooves, causing health problems for the entire body. Normal hooves are perfectly protective, insulate against temperature extremes and prevent injury from rough terrain.

Hooves can’t wear themselves when shod—without a little bit of normal wear, they become deformed and infected better off barefoot with fungus and bacteria. Exfoliation keeps hooves healthy and free from infection and stimulates strong, new growth.

Shoes prevent the horse from sensing the earth and their own hooves — stumbling, loss of traction and increased injuries result when shod. The loss of a shoe and the lameness that follows demonstrates the underlying unsoundness of the shod horse. If shod horses suffer no ill effects from their shoes, as many professionals contend, why are they so lame within minutes when walking a short distance without them? Soundness in horses has come to mean moving with animation and impulsion on unfettered feet. These horses appreciate normal sensation and feel comfortable around us, place their feet accurately, with superior soundness and traction, keeping themselves and their riders safer. When in need of protection on rough terrain or during rehabilitation, flexible, removable boots that complement hoof form and function are most appropriate, providing superior protection and doing no harm to the horse.

Just as it was a change in horsemanship practices that allowed horses’ health to deteriorate, so a change in horsemanship is required for them to regain their vitality…achieving peak performance takes more than just trimming hooves a certain way. Proper nutrition and lifestyle are critical for success.

Natural horsemanship practices today go hand in hand with natural hoof care—together they are unbeatable! These horses and their astute caregivers are leading the way in all parts of the equine industry, demonstrating the efficiency of the natural hoof care paradigm which raises horses with superior hooves and prevents all common hoof diseases. These are the priceless advantages that are bringing horses and their owners greater enjoyment all over the world.


More valuable and exciting information is available on www.easycareinc.com, www.equethy.com, www.hoofrehab.com, www.equinextion.com and in an upcoming book by Dr. Teskey which explores the details required for achieving and maintaining a sound high-performance horsehttp://www.safergrass.orghttp://www.ruralheritage.comhttp://www.DrKellon.comhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fql-xsofeg0http://www.easycareinc.comhttp://www.easycareinc.comhttp://www.equethy.comhttp://www.hoofrehab.comhttp://www.equinextion.comshapeimage_8_link_0shapeimage_8_link_1shapeimage_8_link_2shapeimage_8_link_3shapeimage_8_link_4shapeimage_8_link_5shapeimage_8_link_6shapeimage_8_link_7shapeimage_8_link_8
This horse was trimmed a few days before I arrived.  He was ‘ouchy’.  Not much foot to work with but after the Natural Trim he was moving pain free & smoothly.
Left:  Pre-trim
Right: Post-trim neanpiggy© neanpiggy© neanpiggy© neanpiggy© neanpiggy© neanpiggy© neanpiggy© neanpiggy09 neanpiggy09 No matter the size  of the horse - we can’t let this happen! neanpiggy©
“Pete’s Goo” (50/50 mixed triple antibiotic ointment with athlete’s foot anti-fungal cream.   This is what Pete Ramey has found to be the most effective treatment for Thrush.
 
The cream mixture is inserted into a syringe with a thin, flexible plastic tube applicator.  This allows you to insert the ointment exactly where it is needed – deep into the central sulcus (center of the frog) of the hoof.  Use it every single day until there is no longer a crevice to squirt it into.  IT WORKS, but you have to be consistent & committed. You can buy the ingredients at Walmart.  The catheter tip syringes can be bought on line or through your vet or some feed & tack supply stores, or you can use an old wormer tube with a long tip.
 
 
Why is this accepted? neanpiggy09 neanpiggy09 neanpiggy09 neanpiggy09 neanpiggy09 neanpiggy09 Shame on you Ferrari !!  would you use tires that would effect your cars performance as these feet will effect the horse’s???? LOL neanpiggy09 Trimming & Consultations available by appointment
631-345-2644
referrals available