History of Barefoot
The barefoot movement gained popularity when farriers in the late 1990’s began to realize that their studies only included horse handling, client relations, forging steel to hoof and running a successful business but were missing the most vital part: the anatomy of the hoof. As time went on hoof practitioners such as Pete Ramey, Marjorie Smith, Martha Olivo, Dr. Bowker, Jamie Jackson, Gene Ovnicek and many others now who have made it their life passion to take horses barefoot.
Who are the barefoot proponents? Right now it is mostly horse owners who are seeing first hand the benefits of taking their horses barefoot. Some use a certified practitioner who has been taught the correct way to apply the barefoot trim while others are simply horse owners who have become desperate to go the barefoot route and have educated themselves by taking rasp to hoof in an effort to help their horses. Right now with the help of the internet and many groups of people dedicated to barefoot soundness, there is a plethora of information available to teach owners the physiological reasons for switching to barefoot as well as the methods used to trim their horse correctly.
As time goes on more veterinarians and traditional farriers are seeing the importance of keeping horses barefoot. This does not mean just taking the shoes off; it means trimming the hoof in a way that resembles the wild horse model. Beveling the edges of the hoof to simulate the natural abrasive conditions that exist in the wild that keep wild horse hooves naturally self-trimmed. Some people may challenge this idea and point out that domestic horses are having the feet bred right off of them…but are they really. Could it be that the improper addition of shoes has causes the very conditions that are causing 70% of the horse population to become unrideable due to lameness issues? Why not step outside of the box and break the paradigm to keep shoes on horses?
Why were shoes started if they don't protect and help the hoof?
When the lifestyle of maintaining horses in fields and open areas moved them into city stalls, the hooves began to deteriorate from standing in their own waste and lack of movement. To protect the capsule edge the shoe was invented. What happened with the application of the shoe was the human could push the horse harder and longer daily. Owners and horse experts started seeing capsules reshape with contraction, noticed the life span declined, noticed disease and illness increased but because they were able to get more usage early on out of the horse with shoes it this became the reason for shoes. The blacksmith business became a big one and it has remained for a few thousand years. People today think shoes are necessary for safety and health when actually it does the opposite.
What is the difference between a natural trim and the trim my farrier does?
Farrier's trim so they can apply a shoe which needs a flat edged surface. When they do a barefoot trim this is generally the style they repeat. A natural trim flows along the natural shape of the sole where it meets the wall. The natural trim provides a 30 degree angle hairline on the sides enabling a ground parallel coffin bone. Also, the natural trim addresses the bars so that they are lower then the outer wall and not covering the sole. Heel purchase location is addressed by the natural trim where farrier trimming seldom pulls this back to the widest part of the frog.