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Before anyone reads this and puts me in the barefoot or anti barefoot
camp, I have one well shod horse and one well barefoot horse. Both are
happy, healthy, and sound.... I'm clipping several emails down into one

My now barefoot horse wore shoes, synthetic shoes, metal shoes, glued on
shoes, nailed on with pads, cast on shoes. My now barefoot horse has
worn two kinds of hoof boots, Easy Boots and Swiss Boots.

My now barefoot horse suffered severely contracted heels at the hands of
a Jamie Jackson disciple, an 8 year experienced farrier. She then tore
all 3 tendons in her left fore and spent almost a year in shoes undoing
damage done to her. I had to threaten to take out warrants for
trespassing to get this man to quit coming because he believed he was
helping her. The last time he came he beat her left leg bloody with a
rasp, she had several scraped places that obviously came from being hit
with a rasp.

LTYearwood said>>I am SO frustrated with barefoot evangelists and
trimmers who don't educate their clients enough about the rigors and
committment it takes to go barefoot

Barefoot does take commitment and is NOT for every horse. My mare, she's
sure footed and comfortable just about anywhere barefoot. We, too, did
the handwalking on gravel routine last summer. Only thing different is
that I was barefoot as well, then I could walk on gravel barefoot!

Windswept said > Gee, I wonder who puts shoes on all those wild Mustangs
to >>protect their feet from excessive wear.?

I will make the brash statement here... With proper trimming I doubt if
my mustang would ever need to be shod if she were just running around
like a Mustang. There are advantages to being barefoot, my horse is self
cleaning now! >ggg<

However, I'm taking her to Alaska as a pack horse. She will wear shoes
up there or be booted everyday. That's only fair to her... She's a
working girl then and her hooves wouldn't hold up to the wear and tear.

Windswept >I never said all horses should go barefoot;

Heidi >You certainly insinuated it, and inferred that shoeing was a
cruel >>and unwarranted process.

I think that many and probably MOST hardcore barefooters have had bad
experiences with shoeing. I did, hence the reason my horse went
barefoot. However, they go off the deep end the other way and go with
ideas like all shoeing is cruel. There is a happy medium, and I think
finding a good farrier who will do the BEST for the horse is better than
having a rabidly barefoot or shod farrier. My farrier, after going
through 10 in 5 years, is one of the few that will recommend barefoot
and doesn't charge $50 for a trim like the barefooters.

Yes, some shoeing is cruel. We've spent about 6 months rehabbing
mother's horse from poor shoeing. He was pretty pitiful when we first
got him, but now he's happy and sound, in shoes. Barefoot he's ouchy.
Will he ever be barefoot, happily?


Heidi>>And JMHO, but when people say they are promoting
"barefooting" and then put boots on, that's kind of contradictory.  The
horse still requires hoof protection to do the job.)

Yes... It is funny isn't it? When my horse was barefoot if we were going
out with a group where I knew forcing her to maintain a slower pace over
certain terrain (Pea Gravel was the worst for her!) then I either shod
her or booted her. Why? It wasn't worth the fight and being different to
keep her purely barefoot. And rearing and fighting is probably harder on
them than just trotting through things!

Heidi>>Or did it ever occur to you that your article may have been
rejected for reasons totally unrelated to the subject matter?  Most
publications get WAY more articles than they can use, and one of the
most common things in the mailbox of even the most successful of
freelance writers is the 
rejection letter...

Maybe it's because she has faulty sources? "Enlightened VET" The website
referred to WAS NOT WRITTEN BY A VET. 

Quite from EquineExtion.com >> Lisa's post graduate schooling is
extensive. 2 yrs pre vet, a 2 year animal science course and the 2 year
Equine Science program at Olds College (1988-90). She continued her
riding schooling by attending many clinics in a wide range of riding
disciplines

SHE DID NOT GRADUATE VET SCHOOL!!!! SHE IS NOT A VET!!!! She does not
even appear to have a post graduate degree... SHE IS A RIDING TEACHER!!!
AND THIS PERSON IS SUPPOSED TO KNOW ABOUT HOOVES???

What's more... This person rides Dressage, not endurance. 

Steph


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