Namaste Barefoot Trimming

10/15/2025

Neutral posture before and after trim, 5 week cycle. This pony has a twisty left front so I will be tracking any changes in her posture with the corrections I'm making.

Excited to deep dive into the effects of posture and conformation on hoof balance at the Podiatry clinic hosted by The Humble Hoof later this month!

10/14/2025

A big abscess blowout almost grown out. 5 week trim cycle.

10/12/2025

Carlos the donkey made an appearance at farrier night and got some fresh radiographs confirming he is on the healing path! It was a great event to be a part of, we appreciate Dr Lara bringing farriers in the community together for discussion.

10/11/2025

I still get people wanting to extend the trim cycles in winter (or skip altogether). While growth rates do generally slow down and in some cases we can get away with going an extra week, the longer I do this the more I see the repercussions of "getting away with" longer cycles. If we want to truly build good feet we need to take advantage of the slower winter growth to really make some gains. And winter is an excellent time to make progress on rehab.

Contrary to some beliefs, horses need regular hoof care in the winter just as much as the warmer months. 4-6 weeks is an ideal trimming and shoeing cycle.

10/08/2025

Stops today. Beautiful fall colors and this smartest bestest girl joined the "trimmed at liberty" club.

09/28/2025

Setup trim on an elderly donkey. He and his companion both have some white line infections which should grow out without complications with treatment and 4 week trims for the time being.

The purple is from Durasole and Artimud.

09/22/2025

Latest trim on Carlos the donkey, growing out nicely almost 4 months post resection

09/08/2025

The smallest details mean a lot to a horse. If they can feel a fly land on any part of them, they can also feel any inconsistencies underfoot.

This little mare has really nice feet now but she didn't always have the best feet and she has also struggled with balance issues and anxiety while being trimmed.

This latest trim I was able to apply what I've recently learned. Her trim itself changed only very subtly, but I was able to understand and receive her communication when she was asking to put her foot down. We got into a nice rhythm of allowing her to check her balance midway through each hoof after which I would double check and do a little more detail work. She was very happy with this new arrangement and with her mind at ease she willingly had the next foot ready each time.

Horses think and react quickly, but they process slowly. We need to slow down and quiet our mind if we want them to come "online" and communicate with us.

I am finding that by intentionally slowing down, it most often doesn't take any longer to do the work and in many cases like with this sensitive, anxious girl, the trim actually went quicker.

Slow is smooth and smooth is fast.

09/05/2025

Yesterday I said goodbye to my very first horse Sofie aka Sofa after 16 1/2 years together. She was the horse that introduced me to hoof rehab and the horse I learned to trim on. Life and humans were not kind to her in her 7 years prior to me and I learned a lot from her on how to work with, not against horses with compromised bodies.

She lit a fire in me to do my best to help horses, particularly those that have fallen through the cracks of traditional methods and chronically misunderstood, and she will be missed but never forgotten, the light of her spirit will burn bright in the work that I do.

09/03/2025

Zero was grateful for his shoes today and Bucky was great emotional support as always

08/30/2025

Soft tissue development on a founder case

08/29/2025

This sequence of photos is from a recent trim on a rehab mare. Notice how much the hairline and the tissues above the hoof have settled and relaxed immediately post trim, and 20 minutes later. She normally avoids fully weighting this foot and after the trim she fully loaded it and leaned into her new balance for probably 15 minutes which resulted in the change between the middle and bottom photo.

This mare has been on my schedule for 6 months, previously she arrived to her most recent barn with her feet trimmed too short and metal shoes improperly applied. After the shoes were pulled she would not let any farrier work on her and went about 10 weeks without a trim. She has allowed me to work on her but I had to be very conservative. She has been comfortable throughout the process and her new growth has come in tighter and healthier, but the amount of distortion she was requiring me to leave was keeping her from truly developing her feet.

Distortion in the feet also has an impact on the body. This mare has a lifetime of compensation and pain to address in her body and we decided recently that it was time to "overrule" her and give her a proper trim. With Dorm gel on board the process went smoothly. The following day she was feeling the ground a bit more thoughtfully but had no lameness or soreness. She allowed me to inspect her hooves and test with my knife to see if any more dead retained sole needed to let go and her whole attitude had visibly changed.