-- Rancho Occhialini "Where the fat guy lumbers"
I meant to respond earlier to the request for info about equithotics or "sneakers." We have had a horse in sneakers for about 4 years. He is a 14 yr.old, 15h gelding with a large flat foot. (size 2 ez boot) His feet are so flat that he was pulled from more than one ride for sore feet and stone bruising. We tried pads, but even those were irritating to him. We decided to try sneakers, and have been using them ever since with great results. Rocks and rough terrain are not a problem and in fact he finished Tevis this year, a ride with its fair share of rocks, boulders and difficult footing. On the negative side, they are slick in wet conditions and you should be careful. They are expensive(50.00) a pair, and this year we have had a problem with delamination. I don't know what is different about the manufacturing process, but we were always able to get a reset. However this year we have needed a new pair every shoeing. My farrier is going to use a small screw on the back to see is he can stabilize it and get us some more miles out of them. Hopefully Equithotics is going to be addressing this problem.
On the subject of electrolytes and 25 milers. I lyte when necessary and that includes endurance competition and training rides. I am more aggressive during the endurance rides, every 2 hrs if needed, but depending on the pace, weather and terrain, I will lyte as necessary during training. I usually always give lytes at the end of a ride when I unload from the trailer. It seems to help with the amount of H2O they drink when they get home and if it's been a hot, difficult ride they don't have to stay on the salt lick. Again, this is what works for me and my equines. I use Enduralytes in the powdered form and have been very satisfied with all my horses' hydration