Need boots before someone gets hurt

[Tsavo]

We pulled the front shoes to grow the heel about a week ago in an effort to resolve a slight lameness. A few days ago I started walking him on the lunge in the arena a little bit each day day. I keep him on the track so we are not circling. His stride length is about 80% of normal on soft ground.

He is rearing, bucking and striking out rather than walk to the left. He will walk straight and to the right. We are just walking so I thought this was just bad behavior and him wanting to move after such a long rest. I don't think he is objecting to walking without shoes because he has no problem going right or straight. It is ironic that he was lame only when going right and now this is all he will do.

His feet hurt and this is killing me, figuratively and potentially literally while lunging left. I decided I won't lunge him any more until he has shoes or boots on. We take a long route around the pastures to avoid the pebbles in front of the barn. He is very lame going over those. Like almost falling down lame.

I can't possibly tell if/when his lameness has resolved even on soft ground because he is so ouchy on his feet and his stride length is not normal. I decided I want boots. I have several questions:

1. Will I need two different sizes since one foot is a club and the other is very flat?

2. Will any boot stay on a club?

3. Do I leave them on all the time? I assume he will grow the heel identically whether boot or no boot, yes?

4. I have given up on the thought that he can come out of front shoes and still do hills and trail. So once we recover the heel he is going back into shoes or into boots.

5. What is the status of the velcro-on shoes? Is is on the market yet? I forget the name.

Thanks.

[silk]

1. Possibly. Most retailers will sell single boots so this shouldn't be a problem. Just get the measurements right.
2. It should, if correctly sized and proportioned wrt the hoof.
3. You can, but it is better to have them on for a maximum of 12 hours. The boots (and the hooves) need time to air and to dry out (they stay surprisingly damp in the boots, in part due to the sweat that does not evaporate). If you leave them on too long, the hooves can get thrushy very quickly, especially if they are not in optimal condition to start with. If you absolutely need boots on full time, get two sets, so they can be swapped out.
4. You can use boots for almost any sort of riding. You will probably find boot use will decrease as his hooves improve, over time.
5. No idea but IMHO these things are a terrible idea - they rely on the strength of the glue keeping the Velcro to the hoof, and the Velcro itself. Recipe for failure if you ask me.

[Tsavo]

Thanks, Silk.

I am pretty sure I can't keep my horse barefoot here. I have the experience of seeing two other horses who came in barefoot. One only goes in the ring, does minimal low level work, and does not appear to be striding out. And she gimps noticeably on the pebbles in front of the barn. The other goes in boots but started having all manner of issues with abscesses. That horse is ridden quite a bit and the owner just decided to shoe because the booting was too much all the time.

A few days ago I called my horse and he cantered across the pasture to me. I took that as a sign that I could start trotting him a bit on the lunge in the arena. Maybe that wasn't a sign for that because the next day after the trotting was the spectacular display of naughtiness.

Can a horse grow significant heel on the front with one cycle of barefoot? How long might this take? I am not putting a shoe on that heel until it grows out.

There is a bewildering array of boots out there. I was told the one owner who went fro boots to shoes had to try several brands. What are the variables? I think the kind that straps around the pastern will certainly stay on a club. Not so sure about the other styles.

[Abby Kogler]

You have received reams and reams of good information regarding barefoot through the years. There is a ton of good info on the web. You could also ask Cindi Long, she is on FB and I know would be happy to help you.

If you are under the care of a good trimmer, who may or may not be your farrier or vet, they can best advise you on the best boots for him. There are many good ones but the fit is very individual and it takes some experience IMO to fit them correctly/well.

Magic Cushion is your friend!

It can take several months to get the heel tubules to correct their growth pattern. A very light rasping of the heels and taking back the toe every couple of weeks is the best way to encourage growth. Do NOT let your trimmer/farrier/vet take off sole.

Source and ELM are the two products I use together to grow hoof. I have never had any of the other so
called hoof supplements work or do anything. Feeding them together makes feet grow so fast and so hard, its crazy.

I have yet to have a horse that could not get to the point that they can trot across the gravel with no issue. Ever. TBs with no sole, WBs with that over long heel and saddlebred shoeing style that I see at all the big show barns, old horses that have been in shoes their entire lives. They all come around and do fine. I don't even boot any more. I just go slow and let them grow foot and do a little bit, often.

When I get a new horse or client to take barefoot, I let their feet get long with their shoes and then pull the shoes and do not trim them or do it just a little. Just leave them alone as much as possible, just start improving the angles/balance if you can without being invasive. The wall will start to break up, its ok.

Sulcus cracks hide thrush. They can look very innocent. DryCow Tomorrow should be going in every sulcus crack. Frogs should not have any crack...they should be full and open.

Good luck. After all these years! Im proud of you.

Can you post pics?