Barefoot soreness after trimming?

There were so many responses to last weeks e-newsletter question "A question for those with their horses barefoot - is your horse lame for a couple of days after he's been trimmed?" that I figured it would be easier to post them as a blog and link to here from the newsletter rather than try to squeeze them all in amongst everything else!

Hi Sue,

I wanted to respond to your question about barefoot horses and whether people have found that they’re often lame for a day or two after being trimmed. 

I’m a trainee equine podiatrist with (hopefully) just a few months left of my training before I qualify.  In my experience, a horse should only be sore after a trim if there is a major underlying problem with the feet prior to the trim e.g. laminitis, neglect.  It worries me that there are horses out there that are suffering, even if only for a couple of days, due to the type of trim applied by the farrier / trimmer.  In fact, one of the reasons why I decided to train as an equine podiatrist myself was because my pony would often be sore after the farrier trimmed him and I felt as though that wasn’t right.  One of the rules that practitioners registered with the Equine Podiatry Association work by is ‘do no harm’ and we will always walk and trot up a horse after a trim to make sure that it is moving well (and certainly no worse than it was prior to the trim).  Owners should challenge their farrier or trimmer if their horse is consistently sore after a trim.

Kind regards,

Nicky

Hi Sue

I changed Buster to barefoot at the end of last year.  I have not experienced lameness after they have been trimmed up to the present time.  On the other hand the quality of the hoof has improved dramatically.  After two trims he was noticeably less pigeon toed and he has been far better going overall.  Hope this helps.  I have details of an excellent young girl that trained in Denmark that does his feet if it is of use to anyone highly recommend her she is excellent with the nervous young or difficult.Su

My horses (two ex racehorses, one 13 the other 7)  are both barefoot.  I trim them myself weekly and they are never lame after a trim.  I'm convinced that trimming little and often is the answer as, if they were in the wild, they would be on diverse terrain which would
self trim their hooves.  Trimming little and often mimicks this.
Regards, 

Lesley

Hi Sue
I have 2 native ponies 1 Fell gelding and 1 Welsh Sec D mare both ridden barefoot, Fell has been barefoot for 2 years and Welsh for 1 year, both are trimmed every 8 weeks by my farrier who is very supportive of barefoot and they are never sore after a trim.  I have a riders rasp which I use between trims to remove any rough edges which may otherwise break off.  I did find with both ponies that it took about 6 months for their feet to adapt and get really strong, during this time I used front boots on the Welsh if doing lots of road work.  I found the worst thing was grit getting stuck in white line when feet were wet and softer during last wet winter but never had a problem after a trim, my farrier never takes too much off and just balances the foot and the Welsh who is ridden 5-6 days a week more or less self trims especially the back feet, the Fell who only goes out twice a week needs more trimming.  I also think diet plays a big part, I reduce sugar intake as much as possible by soaking hay in winter and strip grazing in summer (also keeps them slim) and feed linseed, brewers yeast, rose hips and magnesium which I belive all  have a positive effect on hoof quality and give their coats a fantastic shine.
Regards,
Andrea

Hi there,

In response to barefoot soreness after trimming... absolutely never... I use my original farrier to trim her hooves, not an equine podiatrist, and I've never had any lameness at all.

Emma