The Barefoot Horse

05/29/2024

This is the truth ❤️ through and through. No matter what, WE need to take responsibility and be held accountable for the horses WE own in order to respect those we hire to do a job WE don't want to do or can't do. No excuses ❤️

RESPECT THE FARRIER!

No, I’m not talking to your horse, I’m talking to YOU.

Recently, I’ve seen posts empathizing with horses who struggle with the farrier, and holding farriers accountable, but I didn’t see any empathizing with farriers, and holding us owners and trainers accountable, so here I am.

I also trimmed today, so I’m feelin’ it.

Sure, I’ve seen the typical posts that talk about disrespectful horses, but I think it’s high time to stop deflecting and blaming our horses for what is actually OUR disrespect and lack of responsibility.

We don’t just have a responsibility to our horses, but to our farriers.

I made a living trimming professionally for about a dozen years, I blew my shoulders out on it, got burned out on it, I know how demanding it is, so I’m a stickler for being appreciative of our farriers and setting them up for success.

If things don’t go well, we don’t get to blame our farrier for what is OUR lack of preparation.

Blaming our ‘disrespectful’ horses is pretty lame as well, no pun intended.

Trimming is physically hard work, it’s dangerous work, and it’s technical work.

First of all, we don’t get to complain about the quality of work if our horses can’t stand still.

Second, our farrier has every right to get firm or use restraints if they are concerned for their safety and we insist they continue.

If we aren’t comfortable with that, yes, we do have EVERY right to stop the session at ANY time and reschedule, but our farrier should be compensated for the missed appointment, and it will be our responsibility to prepare our horse for the next appointment, whether we do it ourselves, or pay a trainer, or plan on sedation, or schedule enough time for our farrier to give breaks or train, IF they agree to that and will be compensated for their time.

We should always compensate our farrier a training fee if they do agree to train on our horse, or reschedule if they don’t have the time or inclination to do so.

We should not complain that our farrier just didn’t have enough patience with poor Fluffy.

It is OUR responsibility to prepare Fluffy to be patient and comfortable with the poor farrier.

We should not blame farrier impatience for what is actually frustration when we expect our farrier to train on our horse without compensation, or without their agreement when they don’t have the time or inclination.

If our horse needs to put their foot down more often than normal for some reason, and doesn’t have good duration, it’s our responsibility to make sure that can happen without our farrier getting torqued on, and compensate monetarily for that extended time.

It’s amazing how patient a farrier can be when they aren’t getting tossed around, and are actually getting compensated for overtime like any other professional.

Our horse’s bad joints are not an excuse to contribute to the deterioration of our farrier’s joints.
If we have an arthritic horse, we should visit with our vet about using some pain relief before the appointment, for the sake of both horse and professional.
If the horse simply needs trimmed with the foot lower, we might consider giving a tip; the farrier will probably need a masseuse, unless they’re fortunate enough to be as short as me.

Farriers love their job, they love our horses, or they wouldn’t be doing what they’re doing, but it’s really difficult for them to love their job and love our horses if we aren’t pulling our weight.

That means doing what is necessary to get our horses comfortable physically, and having them used to getting their feet picked up, handled, tapped on, rasped on, held between legs, with the same duration that will be expected by our farrier, BEFORE our farrier shows up.

But it isn’t always about foot handling.

If our horse can’t confidently and patiently stand on their own for the same duration that it takes to get their feet worked on, adding a stranger who’s asking them to do it on three legs isn’t going to improve the situation.

Our horses should be comfortable standing, whether it’s tied or with us holding them, for the same duration it takes to get their feet done; we can use a hay net to facilitate some patience and peace of mind initially.

Finally, we should never, EVER expect our farrier to put up with herd bound issues. If our horse can’t stand still, we should bring in a buddy so our farrier can do their job.
Separation anxiety should be addressed on our own time, not our farrier’s.

Being respectful of the hard work that a professional puts in not only physically, but intellectually, and skill-wise, doesn’t mean we have to get harder on our horses, it means we have to get harder on ourselves, and show a little more appreciation.

“A person who feels appreciated will always do more than what is expected.”

04/20/2024

This is a great example of why it is sooooo important to work with your horses and get them confident. When you do, you do not have to expose them to every single thing known to man for them to be calm about it.

This horse has never seen or heard a dremel, but he didn't even flinch.

It's so important for your farrier, chiro, vet, massage therapist, trainers and so on to be able to do whatever they need to do with your horse. Calling them out to work on an unruly, distrusting, spooky animal is not ok, unless it's a trainer that fully knows what they are getting into. Even emergency situations are not an excuse because the animal should have been worked with prior to the incident.

Things happen. We may get horses we thought had been trained that aren't, that should be safe, that should know, and so on and so forth... you can't help how they came to you, but you are responsible for how they are in your care.

If you need help, be honest and ask for it. Most professionals have dealt with a lot of crazy cases and behaviors and have figured some things out. It's up to you to do right by your animal and teach them so they can be secure, confident and safe for others to work on and with them and you as well! It's for your own safety as well!

We love our jobs and we love these big, amazing animals. Help us help them by being their biggest leader. Teach them, and if you don't know how, learn ❤️

03/24/2024

How many of you can pick up your horse's hooves and see this type of foot?

Can you identify all the structures and whether they are healthy and robust? If they are not, can you see the difference when they are weak and compromised?

Do you know the course of action that needs to be taken in order to heal the hooves? If not, what is stopping you? Knowledge is power and your horse needs you to be their experienced voice.

If the hooves don't look similar to this one posted below, there is room for improvement ❤️

If you feel confident (or even if you dont) in posting this same view of your own horse's hoof, I will take the time to mark it up and show what is good, and what could use improving and how to go about doing that. No judgement. Just help.

Are you wanting to learn? Feel free to comment below, and I will be happy to answer your questions. We are all here for the horse ❤️

03/16/2024

Drying out hooves for thrush applications! You could also just use sawdust, but I have the pellets for my cats litter box so it was easy to just grab a few handfuls!

03/14/2024

Would you believe this buckskin was formerly navicular, has severe ringbone fusing P1 and P2 and past episodes of caudal failure on both front and hinds?

It's been a seriously long road, but this horse never gave up even though I was at the end of my rope multiple times.

I've also learned that what he was teaching me all along isn't unique to just him, although he's a one in a million horse both in personality and physical issues, his issues have helped me to help other horses as well.

Check out that shoulder and upper body movement, flying lead changes and extension of the front legs. No stiffness there ❤️ we have been pain free and lameness free for 6 months.

03/11/2024

Can you tell me the differences you see in the backs of these horses, good or bad?
There are a few very obvious things that stick out, but I want to bring more attention to them as they are directly related to the hooves ❤️

02/26/2024

This is the same hoof. At one point with some severe thrush that had eaten away the majority of the frog, and the same frog after thrush treatment. This took a couple months of treatment.

The left photo is extremely common (sadly) but is definitely not normal. Please don't think this is OK or normal. It isn't. Thrush can eventually get bad enough to eat through the entire frog and up into the sensitive tissues that the frog grows from.

This is not only painful, but it also destroys the entire back of the hoof (and front if left long enough in this condition) and it's function.

Pain from a weak, infected frog > avoiding pressure on the back of the foot > weak digital cushion > more pain > contracted heels > more pain > weak heels > navicular pain > toe first landings > permanent internal damage > true navicular "disease"

Don't let the thrush become a career ending problem. It's so easy to fix!!

Treat an infected frog daily, just like you would if you or your kid has a good cut or scrape. Keep the hooves out of nasty bacteria laden areas (manure filled lots, muck around feeding areas, dirty stalls, etc). Keep the hooves as dry as possible (this may mean amending your lot/areas the horses stand most and keeping up with picking manure). Keep the horses moving daily for food, water and minerals.

02/24/2024

I've been thinking back recently on all the years of lessons I received from just my one gelding. 11 years.

11 years of constant shifting of everything. Everything I was taught, everything I read, everything I was sold.... everything. Nothing worked how it was supposed to, and when I reported back with dismal results the answer was always defensive and that I must be doing something wrong and not feeding enough of the product, not doing the diet right, not trimming enough, not wrapping enough, etc etc etc. It wasn't EVER - MAYBE THIS HORSE IS DIFFERENT AND MAYBE IT JUST DOESNT WORK FOR HIM. MAYBE YOU SHOULD LISTEN TO HIM. Never.

It made me feel as though I was failing because of the thousands of dollars I spent on supplements, tests, xrays, vet visits, products aimed at "dissolving away" the issue, learning different methods of trimming, booting, casting and gluing and NONE of it helped. I had people tell me they had never ever seen such bad arthritis in a horse, let alone one as young as him. I'd be lying if I said I hadn't thought of just putting him to rest multiple times over the years.

If I had to add it up it would easily be over 10 grand that I spent over the years. It would be hundreds of hours spent wrapping his legs, questioning everything I was told, over trimming and ignoring what he was telling me all along because others said he was wrong.

This industry is so hell bent on everything being perfect, we forget that a horse is like us- imperfect. We need to learn to accept that and see the imperfections as useful bits of information instead of just jumping on the band wagon to fix everything.

Here's a newsflash- not everything can be fixed. In fact, a lot of times we make things worse by trying to force "perfection."

My gelding's story is quite unique and I have accepted that I will NEVER have the answers I searched for for so long, and that's OK. He has taught me the art of listening and putting my ego aside and healed himself easily once i stepped out of his way.

Long story ahead. I bought him at 1.5 years old. He was lame only on turns on his right front. I was told it was thrush and scolded for it being so bad (it was like that when I got him). I began treating it and teaching him to pick up his feet and that lead to me learning to trim. His first trim by a professional made him lame. His subsequent trims by me after I learned to trim made him lame. His lameness kept getting worse but I kept getting told by vets the bumps on his fetlock were normal and it was thrush causing all of it and it wasn't "that bad."
Fast forward to 3 years old and I had finally had it and took him to an equine lameness specialist. The top xrays in the comparisons below are what they found, but the vet saw the issue as soon as he stepped off the trailer.

Ringbone. He had developed ringbone in both front joints between P1 and P2 before the age of 2. At this point I was told by the vet to just Bute him up and ride while I could because he wouldn't last long in the world. I was heartbroken. I decided I wouldn't ride him unless he was having a really good day and had boots on. That didn't work because the boots actually made him worse.

So ensued the next 7 years of trying everything I could to first reduce the ringbone, and then when that was not working, I moved on to different trims, glue ons, supportive supplements, etc.

He finally came sound when I decided to let go. I let him be a free ranging horse and his hooves developed some bad deformities. It was hard to look at because it wasn't "balanced" or pleasing to the eye. Somehow this period of dysfunction to my eye lead to him creating the perfect balance for his legs and body and we are now riding again. No pain supplements or meds, no crazy diet, no hay testing, no 24/7 boot wear, no sweat wraps, no gimmicky straps around the legs.... just him allowed to be imperfect and happy.

Please listen to your horse. They will tell you what you need to know ❤️

Below I will list out every single thing I did to try and fix this horse instead of just accepting what he was saying.

*Easyboot front boots with gaiters-no pads
*Easyboot front boots with gaiters- with pads
*Dynamite Specialty feeding program with all the extras to help with removing oxidants, adding chelated minerals and the whole 9 yards for 4 years
*Dynamite Specialty Wound Balm for wrapping his fetlocks (this was wrapping 4 hours at a time while he was in a stall at first once a week, then suggested at 2-3x a week and supposedly it would "melt" away the ringbone). This was done for 3-4 months before I gave up due to him actually coming out of the stall worse than he went in.
*Glue on easyboots with sicaflex
*Supplements and herbs aimed at reducing and eliminating the ringbone (tried different ones for a few years)
*Was told he had laminitis (which was actually caused by the trimming prescribed for him) and that he had to be on a dry lot only with tested hay and balanced minerals. Did this for 4 years before giving up with no improvement. (California trace, California trace plus, Vermont Blend, Arizona Copper complete)
*Tried casting his hooves
*Tried casting with DIM
*Took courses to learn massage and manipulation to help his body
*Had 4 full sets of radiography done each about 3 years apart, and lameness evaluation at a university where he was diagnosed 3/5 lameness and Navicular
*Had one round of osphos injections right into the joint with the arthritis
*Easyboot Trails with 2 different densities of pads
*Soaking hooves with all sorts of different concoctions
*Easyboot clouds
*Easyboot stratus
*Easycare Lovechilds (glued on)
*Easycare versa golds (nailed on)
*Easycare NGs (nailed on)
*Easycare Octos with DIM (glued on)
*Hoof Armor
*Had a farrier out to look at him to see if he could see things I couldn't and he found quite a good deviation in his fetlock. This causes a twist in his lower leg and explains why he cannot be balanced to industry standards- on top of the ringbone fusing his P1-P2 joint.
*Started making my own mineral mixes and herbal concoctions and this did show some improvement in coat quality but did nothing for his arthritis or hooves.
*Paid for training in traditional shoeing in order to be able to set him up in shoeing packages myself
*Dove into allowing him to self trim because any adjustment or basic trim from his distorted hooves would make him lame- we did this for 1.5 years before moving across the country
*Didn't touch his hooves, except for routine thrush prevention, for the last 9 months, allowed them to become "ugly" and he became sound. His frogs are now improving as is the shape of his hoof.
*Significant improvement in movement and poature with reduced lower back pain when steel shoes and 3d wedges are placed on the hind hooves.

Moral of the story.... start listening instead of assuming you know what's best and trying to fix what you don't understand.

Buckshot- Doc bar lines
Born May 2012
Radiographs show complete disintegration of the joint and overlapping ringbone to stabilize the two bones, which essentially made one bone over time. This eliminates movement of the arthritic joint and thus "repaired" the damage. Aren't horses fascinating?

02/23/2024

The prettiest pony feet I ever did see 😍

Model is a 7 year old, 11.1 hand pony who started out with clubbed hooves in all 4 laminitis at 2 years old

02/13/2024

If your horse's hind hooves look like this from the back, they most definitely have caudal failure.

What is caudal failure?

It's a common (but not normal) condition of the hooves that affects many breeds of horses, but especially those more prone to having flat feet. The heel bulbs will be on the ground, you'll see flaring of the hoof walls and the heels will be very low and run forward or crushed under the hoof. Looking at the bottom of the hoof you may see a tiny atrophied frog OR you may see a big fat wide frog. Fat and wide DOES NOT mean healthy. Especially when the heels are way forward, flaring is present and the bars are curved outward and laid flat along the sole.

The back of the foot is meant to be lifted and supported inside and out by healthy structures that work like the bump stop on vehicles. A bump stop is a thickened piece of rubber that cushions the frame of the vehicle when the struts depress too much and can't handle the weight or force coming down on them from the body.

Without a bump stop, or with a weakend bump stop, the struts end up taking the brunt of the force, and there is no cushion anymore to stop the force from coming down onto the frame. This isn't a good thing. Not only does it cause a lot of vibration, but it can cause damage with repeated blows.

It's no different with a horse.

When they lack caudal hoof health, the hoof lacks the ability to spring back from each footfall under load. There are several key factors internally and externally that determine a healthy or unhealthy caudal foot.

Starting from the inside out, here is a list of structures that contribute to the caudal hoof:
(Internal)
Navicular bone and its ligaments (frame)
Wings of the coffin bone and collateral cartilage (frame)
Deep digital flexor tendon and superficial flexor tendon (strut)
Digital cushion (bump stop)
Frog spine/stay (bump stop)

(External)
Heel bulbs
Heels
Bars
Sole
Frog

All of these function together for health and longevity, or all of these can work like dominos if one part fails.

In order to get hooves like the ones pictured, all of the structures have failed and atrophied. Nothing was done to help build these structures stronger, so it just kept getting worse.

Now starts the process of slowly rebuilding and rehabbing these hinds to better support the body. The body has stifle and hock arthritis as well as a roach back and hunters bump. I would bet the navicular bone is pretty angry as well. The body issues should improve as the hooves do. This will take no less than a year to really see big positive results. Instead of letting horses get to this point and not recognizing what is going on, let's be proactive and avoid them getting to this spot in the first place ❤️

The place to build knowledge and confidence in hoof care Every owner is just as unique as their horse. My goal is to serve each student in a way they can flourish and learn their own horse's needs with ease. Who is The Barefoot Horse? I'm ready to learn!

01/28/2024

As Farriers we are all connected through our shared passion for our profession and our dedication to our clients and their horses.

We do what we do because we care, we try to be all things to all people, we rarely say no, we take care of emergencies when most people have already called it a day because horses don't pull shoes, develop abscess, as well as a multitude of other issues at convenient times. We strive to restore I higher level of comfort to animals that can't tell us what's wrong, aren't always cooperative and are large enough to kill us or deliver a career ending injury. And we don't do it because it's so financially lucrative, as we will never be counted among "the rich and famous." We do it to improve the lives of the magnificent animals we call our clients.

On my drive home the other day, I reflected on how grateful, thankful and blessed I am in life.

Be kind folks, Be a good human, smile more, stay humble and most importantly keep your ❤️ Heart Right

Have a Blessed Sunday.

Post credit to Harry Serio

Photo Courtesy of Maureen Reuffer

01/18/2024

Horse math 😅

11/17/2023

A lot of people like to point out the negatives when horses are posted on social media (really, they can be negative with just about anything), picking out every single detail that isn't perfect.

I used to be one of those too. I held an impossible ideal of every hoof needing to look like whatever image I had engraved in my brain of being "perfect." If it didn't fit it must be unhealthy or fixed in some way.

The truth is, LOTS of horse's hooves will never be perfect because of innumerous things no one can control.

It took me nearly a decade to accept that and actually start seeing the horses as real, live beings that use their body and hooves just like we do.

Asymmetrically.

There is no human on this earth that you can divide in half and mirror up the halves to match. Top athlete or not. The muscles are different side to side, the hips sit unlevel, the jawline is not even close to being the same on each side. Horses hooves are not used symmetrically, nor are they even symmetrical if you divide the hoof in half. Yet I see so many posts explaining that the horse is unbalanced and needs to be balanced to mirror each other in order to be perfect and move well. This just simply isn't true. Balance IS important, but I think we've taken it a bit too far and have begun nitpicking things that are just normal.

Nearly 90% of the horses I have worked on have major differences between their left and right sides. The right side is nearly always the dominant side. The right hoof will nearly always be the more upright hoof, even if only by a few degrees. The right shoulder will nearly always be more built up and fit tighter under the saddle, and because horses work off of a diagonal, the left hip will almost always be more muscular. These are my observations on tons of different breeds over my years of working on them daily. I'm no body expert, but I do pay attention to themes and similarities.

Most horses will have a higher and narrower medial (inside), a lower and wider lateral (outside) to the hoof. The coffin bone mimics this. Unless they are base narrow, then the opposite happens. The medial heel will be more upright and the lateral more forward.

Once you start seeing these imbalances, you can start looking at how the horse naturally uses itself and you'll start putting the puzzle pieces together.

Aren't horses fascinating?

11/14/2023

Love seeing hooves develop that were once NPA, thin soled, weak, thrushy frogs and generally caused body issues ❤️
Not any more.

11/04/2023

Thrush thrush thrush thrush thrush.... I cannot emphasize enough that you need to be able to identify this in your horses frogs and take care of it Pronto! Owners, this is your responsibility. It needs daily care until it is eradicated.

This will take a cycle or two to fix and he was VERY sensitive with me cleaning it out. Thrush is painful, especially when it gets this deep.

Oxine soaks, white lightning, hooflex, hoof doctor and artimud are your best friends. Find them. Buy them. USE THEM.

08/24/2023

💔 please, if you love them, let them be horses. Let them interact in a herd. Let them get scrapes and scars. Let them use the legs they were born to run with. They are not hamsters.

Trapping a horse in a stall---

Outdoor horses get hurt, absolutely, and sometimes they die. But a stall-bound horse leads a daily life with no way to move, and movement is critical to well being.

I know that for many, there's no choice, but for all the risks of having the horse live out, more stress is caused by being stuck in a 12 by 12 stall.

No easy answers, but if your horse is a stalled horse, get it out every single day as long as possible. This little cartoon is right on point.

08/23/2023

The last and final way to lose a GOOD Farrier/Hoof Care Professional, is to put all the responsibility of your horse's health on us.

We come out to work on the hooves for an hour every 6 weeks. That is about 8.6 hours a year that we are there.... do you know how many hours YOU are responsible for working on the hooves?

8,736 hours... that's 1000x more than us.

This is the reason why no matter how good we do, you are the ultimate reason the horses hooves fall apart or become better. If we are doing the right trim, warning you of negative things we are seeing in the hooves, giving advice on what to do for them as well as the health of the entire horse and you aren't following through, their hoof failure is on you.

Yet I hear time after time after time, owners blaming the farrier for poor quality work when it's clear that the hoof does not have good nutrition, it has weak brittle walls, it has laminitic rings, the withers have white spots from ill fitting saddles (yes how you ride can and does effect the hooves) or the horse is kept in a manure muck hell that even a miracle wouldn't fix the hooves in.

Start taking responsibility for your horse. It's yours! The whole darn thing! Yes even those hooves! Get acquainted with them. Learn the basic structures. Get comfortable picking them up and picking them out. Gain knowledge on what a frog should look like and how your horses' frogs look in comparison, and then do something about it if there's a difference! Do something with YOUR horse.

Certainly we all don't just get horses to let them rot in pasture, stalls or dry lots. Right?? Take them out for walks. Ride them. Train them. Work with them. Ultimately you are their caregiver no matter who or how many people you hire out for their care. It still falls on you. These animals need a lot. I get it. It may be more than you originally bargained for, but you either need to buck up and learn, or find someone willing to take them and do the right thing with them.

Stop blaming ALL the hoof issues on your farrier or HCP, unless you know for a fact you are doing literally everything to keep them healthy, because if you are, you wouldn't even really need a hoof care provider ;)

Sincerely,
An HCP who quit due to all 7 of these posts and more

If we are only operating out of our biased opinions, we are missing the larger part of the picture.

08/21/2023

7 ways to lose a GOOD Farrier/Hoof Care Professional..... #6

Having us work in unsafe, inappropriate environments.

This is probably the fastest way to get rid of us next to #3 of having us work on spoiled or untrained horses.

Having us work in a crowded, junk filled barn where if the horse steps too far one way or the other it's going to cause a whole cascade of bad events is an absolute no go.

Allowing the horse to play with stuff while we are working on them is a no go. The first time I ever had my foot smashed was when an owner was not paying attention and allowing the horse to mess with a box fan tied to the stall door. Of course, the fan fell, scared the crap out of the horse and she slammed her hoof down toe pointed right onto the arch of my foot. That was a bad day. It could've been much worse. It could've easily broken my foot.

Having us work in stalls is also quite dangerous as we all are boxed in if something goes wrong.

Always having to drug a horse for us to work on them because no training is provided is unsafe and I refuse to work on drugged horses as I've had several nearly fall over. Plus, there is absolutely no reason to not work the horse through whatever issue is going on. Drugging them is taking the easy way out for you and never taking the time to teach them. That creates an unwantable horse if something should ever happen to you and a slot filled on the slaughter truck.

Thinking that we can just stand in the mud or trim in the mud is absurd. We have no balance or traction and neither does the horse. If they have to put their hoof down, we have to start all over cleaning the hoof so that we can actually see what we are doing. It also ruins our tools and causes us to smell like a rotten pig farm the rest of the day.

Keeping horses in p*e, poo and water filled stalls and expecting the farrier to be able to make any sort of difference in the hooves...... I think this is pretty self explanatory and yes, I've personally been through each and every one of these scenarios...

Thinking farriers can just work outside in the rain.... the sun beating down.... storms blowing in.... wind picking up....snowing and freezing...with horses tied to the fence is 100% wrong. This job is hard enough let alone trying to do it with excessive heat on our backs, or rain making it hard to see and hold onto a horse, etc. Please do us a favor and do all the things you think are ok for us to do and see how easy it is to get seriously hurt, exhausted, pull muscles or be completely unable to do anything properly.

Having us work in shelters.... now this is out of the rain, snow, heat and elements, but the ground most likely is very uneven and the lighting probably sucks. A horse trying to balance on 3 legs on uneven ground is putting even more pressure on us while we are also trying to balance ourselves. If its shady and dark, we can't see to do our job well.

We need a wide open, clear space, level concrete or mats (gravel also is unpleasant for most horses to try and balance on), good lighting and good air movement in the heat of summer.

It's really not much to ask since you also should have a safe space like this to be able to work on your own horse and give them a place to be safe as well.

When you're hiring any professional to come out and work on your horse, it is your responsibility to provide a safe environment where if something goes wrong, everyone still has a good chance of coming out whole. This should be a no brainer because you should always be thinking of the horses safety, health and well-being on your property.

Signed,
An HCP who's been hurt and put in bad situations more times than she can count