Absolute Hoof

“Trimming hooves naturally
 for the health of the horse.”

Going Barefoot/Going Natural

Will your horse be able to go barefoot, or go "natural"? This depends on a lot of different factors in your horse's everyday life.

A natural equine lifestyle entails lots of movement and exercise, interaction with other horses, and plenty of forage throughout the day. These factors must not be underestimated when considering your horse as a barefoot candidate. Everything in your horse's environment affects the feet.

All horses, domestic or not, are designed to eat forage or roughage constantly throughout the day and to use that forage to fulfill their nutritional needs. The addition of grains and commercial feeds helps reduce the amount of forage the horse actually requires for nutrients, but doesn't change the horse's physical need for a huge amount of roughage throughout the day for the health of its entire digestive tract. The "richer" style of feed provided for many domestic horses (bagged feeds, alfalfa, even rich pasture grass), all plays a role in the health (or lack of health) in your horse's hooves. A natural equine diet that promotes optimal health of the digestive tract, and in turn the rest of the body including the hooves, is one that is high in forage or roughage and low in concentrated nutrient sources.

Movement and exercise wear the hooves down and pound them into very strong, capable feet for the natural horse. The old adage "use or lose it" is a perfect way of describing the relationship between a horse, any horse, and its feet. Giving your horse ample opportunity to move and use their feet on a daily basis is essential to healthy hooves. Interacting as part of a herd, even over a fence, also allows horses the chance to move around more than they would on their own, as well as providing the security and comfort of a herd environment.

Domestication dramatically changes the natural lifestyle of the horse, but hardy, sound, barefoot horses can be made from meeting as many "natural" conditions as possible. It cannot be done with the trim alone. The good news is that there are many creative solutions to the problems we face with keeping horses domestically in New England in order to provide an environment that promotes strong healthy hooves and also healthy horses.

Trim Details

The trim I provide for your horse is geared toward removing excess hoof growth and setting the hoof up to grow in properly. Allowing the hoof to generate healthy new growth encourages a stronger, thicker, tougher hoof and ensures the hoof is receiving the proper stimulation it needs with each step. It helps open the door for the hoof to heal itself from common afflictions like flaky walls, chips and cracks, flat soles, thin walls, and the like. Every horse is dealt with as an individual, since everything in that horse's environment is going to go into the health of their hooves. The basic principles of the natural trim are adjusted to each horse's needs to ensure the horse remains comfortable and active.

A natural trim is not a magic bullet. Hooves take time to deteriorate, and similarly, they take time to heal. Whatever damage the hoof has sustained must grow out with the old hoof, and this takes time. It could be a matter of a couple of months to over a year or more, depending on the damage sustained and the ability to address the root cause of the damage. This does not mean that the horse must be sore while they heal. "Comfortable and active" are my goals with each trim, regardless of the state of the hoof. A comfortable horse will use its hooves, which speeds up the healing process, so we want movement and activity, always, along with a horse who is comfortable enough to do so.

Hoof boots should be used wherever and whenever the horse cannot move out comfortably. This may mean using boots only over rougher terrain that the horse is not yet ready to handle completely barefoot, or during everyday exercise on easy terrain if the horse is uncomfortable. Comfort is very important. Unless the horse is able to move on its feet, the hooves will not receive the stimulation they need for growth and maintained health.

The success of any trim is wholly dependent on the day to day care the horse receives from you, their owner, which includes exercise and freedom to move around, their daily rations including grain, hay, pasture, and supplements, and the environment the horse is living on, be it rocks or grass. Healthy hooves depend on all of these things, not just the trim!