I've been reading a lot about the strasser method and leaving horses barefoot. I'm very interested in it, and would like to hear from anyone who has taken a horse from shod to barefoot. I tried removing just my gelding's back shoes, and he was so lame for two weeks he could barely walk. He has white feet and lives on a hill with some stones. Its SoCal, so there's no grass. I couldn't stand to see him hobbling around, so i broke down and put the shoes back on.
I might try it again, any thoughts?
I might try it again, any thoughts?
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Los Angeles
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Re: barefoot horses
Wed, July 5, 2006 - 11:31 PMI just joined but i have little suggestion..........if your intrested. I had a mere, quarter horse and she had shoes on 3/4 of her life before i got her. When i took her shoes off she was lame right away.... i put hoof flex on her hooves you can find at any "horsE" store and used the Green cool for her legs. Hoze her legs down for 20min if there swollen and hot. if not just use the green cool for a few days. If the swelling and hot spots dont go away then maybe your riding your horse to hard on the rocky areas your talking about and he might just need to keep the shoes on b/c the grounds to rough for his feet.
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Re: barefoot horses
Wed, July 19, 2006 - 1:01 PMMy girl is barefoot and I love it. But she has always been barefoot so I've never had to transition a shod horse. What I've noticed so far though, when she was confined to a small paddock (24x24) she would get sore on gravel. Also, if trimmed by the wrong person she would get sore. I would be careful with the Strasser method of trimming. I think it's easy to misinterpret and apply incorrectly. I also feel it can be a little invasive.
I trim myself and basically all I do it scrape away the chalky sole, trim the walls/bars back to almost level with the sole, apply a little bit of a toe rocker and then apply a mustang roll. My girl is never sore on gravel anymore and is always ready to ride immediately after a trim.
As far as transitioning, I've heard that hoof armor is good as well as painting the soles with iodine. -
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Unsu...
Re: barefoot horses
Sun, July 30, 2006 - 9:58 AMUntil I met our new blacksmith I never would have considered letting any of my horses go barefoot but I trust this guy, he has a great reputation, and over the past year I have seen amazing results after letting two of my three horses go barefoot! I use an older less known hoof oil for my horses it is called "Old Timers" - a few tack shops have it or can order it. Or you can mail order it from my local tack shop called Smuckers at:
www.smuckersharness.com/
I'm working on going barefoot with my third horse. He is a Quarter horse and has soft hooves so we are playing it by ear. Right now we are keeping two front shoes on him until his feet grow out (I just bought this horse a few weeks ago). My blacksmith has suggested letting him go barefoot and riding him with Boa horse boots. I just got them and will be trying them out soon. My blacksmith highly recommends Boa horse boots. You can check them out at:
www.boahorseboot.com/
From my experiences if you can let your horse go barefoot you should. -
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Unsu...
Re: barefoot horses
Sat, August 5, 2006 - 8:59 AMAlso for my QH with weak hooves my blacksmith has me giving him a supplement called Farriers Formula. Check their products out at:
www.lifedatalabs.com/ -
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Re: barefoot horses
Wed, December 6, 2006 - 6:12 AMThe Strasser Method of trimming is not simply a trim. It was developed by Dr. Strasser a german vet and research scientist to return a horse to it's more natural lifestyle. Like starting on any holistic method you need to look at your horses care, use, conformation, environment and develop a system that treats all off these aspects. Simply trimming the hoves without that care can lead to serious ramifications.
The method when uses properly returned horses that where lame to soundness, but only when combined with proper diet, different stall footing that didn't absorb bacteria and amonia, 24/7 herd turnout, and a specialized trimmer. Some of these horses needed a lot of time to heal properly and adjust, it was not an overnight process. Just as getting your own body into a more atuned state, it takes time and energy, and a willingness to do whats best for the horse.
If that interests you there are great websites on holistic care and trimming with lists of certified natural trimmers and supplements that can strenghen a horses hoves and maintain healty cirulation. Help the holistic horse community grow!
www.holistichorse.com/
www.strasserhoofcare.com/
www.shirleys-wellness-cafe.com/horse.htm
www.harmanyequine.com/
www.holistichorsekeeping.com/art...html
www.naturalhorsetalk.com/
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Re: barefoot horses
Tue, March 11, 2008 - 9:16 PMOften when taking shod horses to barefoot just takes time. Just like if you decided to go barefoot it would take some time for your feet to toughen up. Taking the back shoes off and trimming lightly is a good place to start. If the horse has no heel or the sole of the foot is too close to the ground, growing the feet into a more concave shape would help. Often though, it just takes a period of adjustment. If the horse doesn't have good feet though, and you're planning on riding on uneven or rocky ground, shoes or boots are probably the way to go. All of the horses at my barn, show and pleasure alike, go barefoot in the winter. The shoes come off when snow hits the ground, and that way they can spend the winter growing their feet into a more natural state and toughening their soles with some snow as a cushion.
