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RE: [RC] to shoe or not... - Linda CowlesQuestion: Should I have my mare shod if most of our riding will be on rural roads, i.e.: tar and stone, lots of texture?? I made the decision to get out of shoes almost 2 years ago, and don't regret it for a minute. I hated having shoes come lose, trying to figure out why they were always losing shoes or going lame, having to schedule & meet the farrier, trying to find a good farrier, trying to coordinate shoeing schedules with riding schedules... And it bugged me that every shoer I had swore that the other shoers didn't know how to balance a hoof. And my shoers started charging $90 to shoe... I love being barefoot... I now trim my own horses feet using Pete Ramey's methods, and have 40+ client horses too. I enjoy trimming so much that (at the age of 52) I sold my tack store business so that I could focus on it. Going barefoot is becoming very popular, so my business, trimming specifically for barefoot, is growing fast. The best part is that my horses haven't had any lameness or tendon problems at all since I pulled their shoes, and I haven't had to use a chiropractor or acupuncturist in 4 years, where I needed to go to a chiropractor or acupuncturist every 3 to 4 months for the 4 years prior to that. My 3 guys (Gavilan, Shatirr and Kadence) are doing great on most rock and gravel roads, but I carry Boa boots for the fronts in case I need them, because I ride pretty hard. I recently bough a dozen Epics, (I sell boots to clients) and if the work out as well as I suspect, I may switch to using them in emergencies. Boa's are extremely easy to put on, and have never come off, and my horses love them, but Epics are cheaper and supposedly better for endurance. I prefer not having to use anything, and 90 percent of the time I can get away no boots at all. The easiest way to deal with gravel roads for barefoot is to use deep pea gravel or rough river rock in your run-ins, paddocks or stalls. The horses feet get super tough, and eventually gravel roads become a non-issue. Barefoot is much better for your horse, too. Good luck!! Linda Linda Cowles Certified Hoof Care Provider 707-869-8270 - Home 707-621-0240 - Cell HealthyHoof@xxxxxxxxxxx www.HealthyHoof.com =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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