New Mexico and barefooted

["Anna Larson" <hobo14@earthlink.net>]

I have only ridden a couple of rides so far. Two (2 day) novice CRT''s on a mare to young to "go the distance". She completed both rides 40 miles in the two days with absolutely no problems and still needed a trim after the ride.  She just turned 6 but was laid off a year due to an odd and unusual seizure and then a change in jobs for me that left less time off to go to rides. I live along the Continental Divide in Northern New Mexico about halfway between Grants and Gallup.  My riding areas include quite a bit of sandstone, limestone, sandy areas and even lava rock.  This mare has been barefooted all her life in this same country and have had barefooted horses for the past 25 years or so here in NM, and even in Southern AZ.  So far  the past 25 years I have not had a single problem with the horses as you describe below.  All  my horses feet  grow faster then they wear.  My friend who lives down the road also has had no problems with chipping etc. 

As far as edurance riders competing completely barefooted here in NM,  it is extremely difficult because of the fact that nearly all ride managers require the hoof protection.  Based on that alone you will not get barefooted stats for New Mexico.  I Intend to ride here in NM, but will be forced to use some type of hoof protection based on ride rules.

Now before any one starts harassing me here are the "ideals" I follow:

 

1.  Dr. Strasser is not "God" at my house. The trim my horses receive is not 100% one type of trim. It is modified to fit the horse.

2.  I am NOT about putting on hoof boots or  alternative hoof protection of some type "if needed" but so far have not needed them.

3.  I DO absolutely REFUSE to have nailed on shoes put on any horse of mine.

4.  I believe my horse CAN complete a 50 miler here in NM totally barefooted (When she is properly conditioned and ready for it).

5.  I do not mind if other people shoe their horses, but it is just not for me.  I do however HATE when people blame me for abusing a perfectly healthy barefooted horse JUST because the horse is not shod.

 

Now I have a question for every one.

 

1.  Why is it that a barefooted horse only has to "prove" itself in a ride?  If you have the situation like I have here, ride managers require hoof protection for the rides, but the horse is trained totally barefooted before the ride.  The horse will have been ridden a whole lot more miles barefooted in training and conditioning then in the actual ride.   Basically the idea makes it look like all that time spent conditioning and training barefooted is not at all taken into condiseration by those who want to "prove" that barefooted horses cannot compete. 

 

2. Why is it that the instant an alternative form of hoof protection is used then everything suddenly becomes alright with having an otherwise barefooted horse?  A horse could be conditioned all this time barefooted and for a ride have a set of hoof boots on and suddenly " all is right in the world".

 

 

 

Anna
Mules and Other Critters
http://pages.ivillage.com/annalar16/index.html
About Barefooted Horses
http://annalar16.tripod.com/aboutbarefootedhorses/

 

  This is very basic knowledge in NM and I don't think you will find any endurance riders with competing horses that are barefoot in NM..although I have seen some endurance horses that are barefoot on the rear feet, but they are riding our desert rides and not the mountain and/or rocky rides that make up most of our competitions.