Sore, No More!

Last Updated on Monday, 05 October 2009 01:48 Written by Kim with help from Ruth and Jaye

Too many barefoot horses are being left sore for no good reason. It does not have to be this way to achieve hoof and whole horse health. The transition from poor hoof form to good hoof form does not need to involve pain. If a professional tells you this, get rid of them. If you are doing it yourself and think this is okay, do some more research.

The first step in achieving a healthy hoof is having the ability to recognize healthy and unhealthy, right?

Or is it giving the horse a "hoof" to walk on, so he can get as much movement as possible, which facilitates whole horse health?

Or is it cutting out all the grass and sugars in the horses diet?

Or is it ending the pain cycle thru the use of good shoeing protocol or a booting protocol?

I feel all of the above are important and what you pay attention to, put your focus on depends on the day you are there with the horses hoof in your hand. There is no all or nothing. Sometimes I use shoes; sometimes I leave the horses bare. But with all the tools I have in my toolbox, I do not walk away and tell the horse owner that your horse must be in pain before he can get better. The No Pain, No Gain motto is not one I apply to the horses or myself.

I am very disturbed by the number of "In Transition", sore horses that people are accepting as normal in the barefoot world. To go from bad to good hoof form many feel pain is to be expected and accepted. And what is good hoof form anyway, by which definition do you go by? Recently someone I am helping was told that all life forms need inflammation and increased circulation to heal and often times this involves pain. I am here to tell you that it isn't necessary. A well-known trimmer actually asked an owner "What do you want to have, a horse that is sound or a horse that is in a healing process and moving towards a healthy hoof"? Well, why not both?

Really though, this article is for the horse owners. YOU are the sole provider for your horses well being. YOU are the one who has the final say in your horses care. Do not allow pain to be a part of your horses hoof rehabilitation protocol.

Do you know that pain can cause laminitis? Do you know that pain causes the body to release cortisol (a steroid) into the body? Many horses are sensitive to steroids and for some it causes inflammation of the corium and laminae. This in turn leads to thin soles, which leads to more pain, which leads to more cortisol which leads to.... Well you get the picture.

So I will repeat an important statement. Your horse should not be sore, or in a painful transition period on his or her way to hoof health.

Am I implying that horses hooves should be unhealthy in the pursuit of soundness? No. What I'm saying is that hoof health and in turn whole horse health can be achieved over time, while keeping your horse sound and moving.

I am bothered by certain factions of trimmers who lame horses in the pursuit of the "perfect hoof". They carve concavity, or they think that the wall should be relieved completely off the ground. Another faction believes that the sole should be the only weight-bearing surface for the horse. The bottom of the hoof is designed in a very precise way. Weight-bearing in a healthy hoof should be shared amongst all structures on the bottom of the hoof. The problem arises when an unhealthy hoof is forced to function like a healthy one. If it isn't healthy forcing it to be utilized creates stress and further ill health. Here is where we need to understand protection and how to utilize it for each horse.

Another disturbing trend by the Over Trimming Crowd is to blame the owner for the horses soreness. I have heard many stories that it is the owner's fault because they didn't soak the feet everyday, they don't have Pea Gravel in their pens, they blanket, they use a stall, etc. Recently someone I've helped was told that it is normal for a horse to be sore for a week after the trim, it means the horse is healing.

I know a lot of people don't like human to animal analogies, but sometimes it does help get the point across. Put a muck boot on one foot and a hiking boot/riding boot on the other. If you don't have a muck boot use a slipper. Now go walk out on hard ground and see which foot feels better. You don't need gravel to experience this, just find some uneven, pitted ground, some rocks and see which sole feels the terrain. Some professional trimmers feel that if your horse can't feel the rocks he doesn't have good hoof form. These are more strasserisms - my advice is run away from these people. Don't let them touch your horses' feet.

If your horse is going to be barefoot and you are going to expect to ride him, then leave as much mass on the bottom as possible.

This insane obsession with the Specimen Hoof is harming horses. I have to give Jaye Perry, GA Farrier credit for terminology, The Specimen Hoof. He is the one who first noticed how many horses were being harmed by the barefooters in their pursuit for the specimen hoof. I have a few pictures of some Specimen Feet; I'll be sure to point them out in the photo gallery.

I lurk on a lot of barefoot boards, and last week I saw this little gem by someone who professes to be a "professional" trimmer.

"Today the owner asked me if I had trimmed her too short.... sigh I guess my frustration lies with the fact that no prominent trimmer has stated that the trim, no matter how conservative, can bring hoof soreness more to the surface. So in other words it is not really the trim but the bad health of the hoof that's the real cause here."

She also wrote:

"People also need to finally realize that there is such a thing as hoof rehabilitation process that may involve some pain,"

Sorry for the bad grammar, hers not mine. This is insanity and the horses are paying the price. No, we don't want soreness and if it means using shoes to get a better form, than do so. The problem is finding the right person to apply the best shoeing protocol/trim paradigm.

I understand how hard it is. It took me almost 7 years to find the Epona Shoe and their shoeing protocol. Before that it was barefoot or nothing. I now know that I can get almost any horses hoof in a healthier form without ever having the horse suffer through a transition.

The whole point of having shoes/boots is to leave the horse sound when walks off your mat. I will give you a hint, about the only time I see sore horses before and after. If the horse is sore before the trim, then 99.9% of the time, after you trim the horse will be sore. So protect the damn feet! The horse does not, nor should not be sore due to "transition". Your job as the owner in conjunction with a vet, your farrier, your trimmer is to determine why the horse is sore. Utilize x-rays, change the diet, turnout environment, and think about your exercise regime. All important aspects, but remember, protect the feet.

People this is supposed to be fun, I assume most of you want to ride your horses. Well make sure you can. Make sure they are comfortable on their own feet! Remember, sound movement creates health as well.

I have put together a photo gallery of hooves that the barefooters are showcasing on a variety of sites. They are told it is okay for the horse to be sore; it is okay for the horse to go through a three-year transition. It isn't, plain and simple. I will add comments to each hoof; some of these I'm ashamed to say are from my early trimming days. I will say it again, I could never be here if I hadn't been there.