If your horse has spent a lifetime
in shoes, or has very poor wall
or sole quality, it's important
to evaluate the environment
he'll be living in so that you
know how easy his transition
will be.
If his living environment
is hard and rocky, it will probably
make his feet tender initially, and will result in super strong feet long term. In a case
like this consider changing
his environment by adding areas of deep
smooth gravel, sand or shavings,
or consider a temporary move
to a gentle environment that will
allow the transition to be a
smooth one.
The ideal transition environment
depends on the individual horse;
ideal is usually lots of room
to move (a large paddock or
a pasture) combined with a variety
of different footing surfaces.
Here are what different footings
do for - or TO - your horses
feet. The best environment contains
many of these different surfaces.
Soft
Grass, Dirt or Shavings - soft surfaces cushion your
horses feet if they become tender
or bruised, and encourage movement
that's essential to stimulate
the sole and encourage the development
of healthy sole, heels and walls.
On the downside, too much soft
stuff doesn't challenge your
horses feet to toughen up.
Deep
Smooth Gravel - This
is one of the best surfaces
for most bare feet because the
deep gravel acts like a bean-bag,
distributing pressure evenly.
The hard gravel toughens the
hall and sole while it burnishes
the edges of the wall. Horses
love to roll in gravel, so if
you keep your horses at home,
consider adding a gravel pit
to your paddock or pasture.
Sand - There are many types of sand,
from very soft beach sand, creek
sand to manufactured sand made
from lava, granite or other
rock. Sand is usually a hard
surface, and while it distributes
pressure, deep gravel is preferred
by most barefoot trimmers. Some
types of sand cause hoof wall
to peel, so check locally to
see what effect it has before
making a major investment to
upgrade a paddock or loafing
area.
Packed
Road base - Sometimes
referred to as "road fines",
road base consists of crushed
gravel up to an inch in diameter
mixed with "fines",
a rock based sand. Laid properly
and compacted, this combination
of rocks and grit becomes a
hard packed surface that drains
well and sheds water. It's a
great surface for developing
tough hooves.
Mud &
Water - Horses often
like to stand in mud and water.
Sometimes this helps a horses
hoof condition, but more often, it can encourage
over softening.
There is some controversy about
the benefits of regular hoof
soaking, so work with your trimmer
and investigate it's benefits
for your horse. Feet that have
a very hard packed sole typical to areas like San Diego and Arizona benefit
from the moisture because it encourages
dead sole to shed and overlaid
bars to loosen and lift.
Deep
Crushed Gravel - This
footing has sharp edges but
it's great for feet that can
handle it, and most barefoot
horses whose feet have passed
the stage where they are tender
benefit from having this footing
available. Horses with very
tender soles or wall separation caused by chronic laminitis may have trouble
on it. The depth (4 or more
inches) distributes pressure,
and the rough surface buffs
and toughens the hoofs surface.
Sharp gravel is more likely
to become wedged around the
frog, so check feet regularly.
Hard
Flat Surfaces - Hard
firm surfaces like mats, concrete
or scraped dirt offer horses
with concavity sole relief.
As long as these surfaces are
smooth, they are relatively
easy for most horses with healthy
feet to travel on, but horses like terrain that offers sole support, such as pasture and 1/16 inch deep gravel.
Shallow
Gravel / Gravel Paddocks - Gravel laid over hard dirt
(as is normally seen on roads
and parking lots) has most newly
unshod barefoot horses picking
their way gingerly... it isn't
a good surface to house a barefoot
horse on initially, although
most barefoot horses with healthy
feet handle it easily after
they've been barefoot several
months.
Shale - Shale can be hard on horses
feet when they just come out
of shoes, but is good conditioning
for fit feet. This is okay to
have in a pasture or field as
long as your horse has other
footing choices; shale packs hard and results in a flatter sole. Watch for cuts
in the frog or heel bulbs.
Large
Rocks & Boulders -
Smooth rock in the soil is good
for horses whose feet have passed
the stage where they are tender.
Many horses that start out
in shoes need to develop the
back of their feet (the digital
cushion behind the heel bulbs)
prior to being sound barefoot.
Shoes "protect" this
area to the extent that it remains
immature - or reverts to that
condition. The secret to getting
the rear foot developed is to
encourage the horse to weight
it fully by making the back
of the hoof very comfortable
to use, and the challenge is
that horses with immature or
weak rear feet tend to land
toe-first to avoid weighting
their heels directly. Pete Ramey
suggests using stiff neoprene
foam (the type used for stiff
western saddle pads) in the
heels of boots to support maximum
heel weighting.
Also according to Pete and
Dr Bowker, the foot appears
to be conditioned not so much
by terrain type as by repeated
weighting and un weighting...
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