Barefoot horses, shod horses - shock absorption and balance

[WTP7]

Horses that have thrush will land toe first regardless of trim. Shoes or no shoes, thrush will cause heel pain so severe that even horses with toe pain as well will land toe first to stay off their heels. Diet, environment, hygiene & correct (barefoot) trimming are all the factors in keeping a horse sound. A horse in a stall with shoes and stuffed full of sugar will never be sound.

[NicBarkerRockleyFarm]

"Additionally, toe- first landing predominant in shod horses? not likely"

For footage of many shod horses landing toe-first just look at my blog: rockleyfarm.blogspot.com and any footage of rehab horses when they arrive at Rockley :-)

[76joeljames]

@Jillian

I think honestly that we're just arguing the same points, but from different sides of the fence. wild horses develop callouses that allow wear to exceed growth - of course wear can exceed growth- you just don't see see those to whom that has happened because they're dead! Additionally, toe- first landing predominant in shod horses? not likely... the circumflex and the flexor structures make that difficult- not impossible though.

[jillian328]

.......... so shoe or no shoe (yes I believe bare is better) yes I do agree that if there is different farriers that could be a factor. But in most cases you will generally see a shod horse landing toe first.

[76joeljames]

I would just warn the viewers of this footage to be aware of a few elements of uneven comparison here: did the same farriers work on the various horses shown?

and also, whilst of course heel landing is optimum, the degree to which horses do so varies between each equine example. The toe landing is not as severe as the footage tries to portray it, though it does a great job of trying to present the illusion.

Final word-shoes are only used in select circumstances,namely where wear exceeds growth

[jillian328]

@76joeljames

Even in the wild were horses run on rocks all day there is never any circumstance were wear will exceed growth. I have run into awsome farriers who shoe, but cant do a propper barefoot trim to save their life. These same so called great farriers lame a horse when the owner says lets take the shoes off because they dont know how to care for a foot. Some barefoot horses land toe first from improper trimming..................

[BonnieLY]

I would never put shoes on my horses again.