Hoof Soreness - refuted

[Randy H Eiland <renegade12@juno.com>]

Cheryl,

 I don't think horses are foot sore after rides as a matter of  course,
unless they show clinical signs of being lame...if they don't act foot
sore, if they don't flinch when you put a hoof tester on them, if they
willingly move around without showing signs of being lame then I don't
think they are foot sore or lame...that is true for horses with hoof
protection as well as unshod horses.  I manage a great number of multi
day endurance rides and my family competes in a number of multi day rides
each year, using the same horses ride after ride.  Based on my own
experience, it is my opinion  that a "foot sore" horse is not going to be
allowed to start a subsequent multi day nor could a foot sore horse 
finish a consecutive multi day- shod or unshod...but, the facts show that
many many horses not only start and finish consecutive days, they do very
well for 5 consecutive days in very rocky, rough terrain as long as they
have proper hoof protection.  I don't believe horses that successfully
complete multi day rides have their "foot pain" masked by wearing shoes
or other hoof protection - even drugs are not going to make a lame horse
sound.   There is a substantial difference between "protecting a foot
from getting pain" and "masking the pain of a sore foot".  Proper hoof
protection is a credit to caring owners/riders that take precautions to
ensure the horse's welfare .  I do not understand the debate of "hoof
protection vs barefoot" since it seems to be based on what is best for
the horse and it makes no sense at all to compete a horse without being
properly prepared for the conditions the horse will face.  I am sure that
it is much more likely a barefoot horse would be very sore after
finishing one day of the New Mexico Renegade Ride and it would be nearly
impossible for a barefoot horse to complete all 5 days of any multi day
ride..especially those in the SW.   

Randy Eiland
 "Cheryl Shelton" <toltallyice@onewest.net> wrote
Okay I truly hope for this to be my last post on this for the year!! I
will
try very hard to not respond even if someone directly questions something
I've said.
 
IMO, if you ride your horse 50 or 100 miles whether shod, shod and
padded,
shod with hoof boots, barefoot with hoofboots or barefooted.... your
horse
IS going to have sore feet!! I have a feeling if you asked a marathoner
if
their feet hurt after a marathon the answer would be YES... in spite of
the
best, most advanced running shoes technology can offer or money can buy.
IMO
if you pound your feet (or your horse's feet) on the earth for mile after
mile after miles... your feet ARE going to be effected. If you think your
horse's feet are any different, IMO, you ARE in denial. Plain and simple.
If
you say your shod horse's feet are pain free after a long endurance
race...
for me this only proves the theory that horse shoes are masking the
horse's
ability to feel the pain, soreness, damage, what ever.
 
Cheryl
 
 
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