YOU HAVE DARED TO GO BARE!

This old saying , "no hoof no horse" is as true today as it ever was

What you need to know about taking your horse to a natural trim? Welcome to the world of the barefoot horse and the high performance hoof! You have taken the first step by deciding that going barefoot is for your horse, but you must know some information on the journey ahead and some basic information as to what is happen-ing inside and outside of your horse’s hooves. Depending on the existing damage to the hoof, some horses may transition fairly quickly, whilst others may take well over a year whilst the whole hoof grows out and heals. I have put together some general information as to what has happened to your horses hoof, the changes that will occur during the course of the barefoot trimming; and environmental and lifestyle changes needed in order to support the barefoot hoof and horse. I strongly urge you to get educated in the anatomy of the horses lower leg and hoof, be educated, ask questions, do your homework and the rewards will be grand. I have included some great website links for further information and do hope that you make some time to check these out! Your horse will love you even more for it!

What are the functions of the Hoof? Rather than simply a lump of dead horn at the end of the horse’s leg, the hoof is a very complex organ which performs a variety of functions vital to the horse’s overall health and survival. *Protection from external mechanical forces *Traction, secure footing on all terrains *Shock absorption *Heart-supporting circulatory blood pump (healthy hoof mechanism & the “five hearts”)

Parts of the hoof and lower leg

What is the difference between a ‘paddock’ trim and a ‘natural’ trim? My horse is ‘barefoot’ does not mean that it just doesn’t have any shoes on. A farrier pad-dock trim very much trims the hoof as if it were going to receive a shoe, whilst a natural trim aims to achieve a heel first landing which addresses the hoof break over.

It also aims to achieve a good hoof mechanism, ideal bone alignment in the lower leg and hoof and nice tight hoof capsule.

Characteristics of a natural trim & healthy hoof short toe low heels (level with base of frog and heel bulbs) Coffin bone is ground parallel frog is left thick, wide and weight bearing good pastern bone alignment for shock absorption strong straight bars (non-weight bearing when horse is stationary) bevel (roll) at the base of the hoof wall (the famous ‘Mustang Roll’) that allows perfect break over at toe and prevents any impacting rocks from creating cracks good sole concavity and thick tough sole callus at toe, protective sole Weight bearing is distributed between walls, sole and frog no flares/ no toe pillars/ no cracks / no seedy toe dense well connected white line strong and thick hoof wall with no flaring present the heel buttresses are back towards the rear of the frog and the hoof ratio is 65:35(from the rear of the hoof to the apex of the frog and then on to the break over) making a nice round hoof not oblong

Characteristics of a typical paddock trim and/or unhealthy hoof Long high or long under slung heels (painful) Coffin bone is not ground Parallel Pastern is upright with loss of shock absorption Frog and heels are contracted Bulbs and frog are creased together Heels are forward from the corners of the frog and

hoof ratio is not the ideal 65:35 causing an oblong shaped hoof Bars are squeezed into a curve and overgrown and making ground contact when sta-

tionary Toe is long and creates a delayed toe break over Whole hoof has ‘slippered’ forward Flaring, chipping, splits & cracks, seedy toe is present Flat sole with evidence of bruising A weak and stretched white line Toe callus is trimmed weakening sole and protection of coffin bone Walls are left as only weight bearing structure of hoof

Boxy upright contracted hoof

Can you pick out the healthy and unhealthy hooves here?

Examples of some not happy or healthy hooves with various condi-tions or diseases caused from im-balanced trimming or shoeing

What is break over? Break over is the moment in time when the foot starts to tip forward to lift off from the ground. The heel begins to lift off the ground at the back end of the stride.

The position of a line across the toe, indi-cating where the foot is able to flip forward for liftoff.

Right arrow shows where the breakover is on a flat bottom trim. If the toe is flared, breakover may be even farther out in front. Breakover is delayed and the leg only has time for a shortened stride and a toe first landing. Left arrow shows where the breakover line is when trimmed with a toe rocker and mustang roll. When the breakover is in

this position, the leg has time to swing all the way forward to full extension and can land heel first.

Can you spot the Difference?

What does breakover have to do with heel-first landing? The location of breakover determines whether the foot will have time in the forward stride to land heel-first, or not. If the toe is long-out-in-front, delaying breakover, the foreleg doesn't have time to swing far enough forward to land heel-first - like walking up-hill - and will land toe-first instead; the entire gait is shortened. Delay in breakover also causes forging (hind foot steps on the forefoot) because the forefoot doesn’t get out of the way in time for the hind foot to land on the same spot.

A domestic hoof with flared toe (lower photo). Right arrow shows the breakover at the very front of a flared toe with flat-bottom trim.

A wild mustang hoof (upper photo). Left arrow shows where breakover occurs on this naturally-worn foot.

Why do we want correct break over? When the foot lands toe-first, the pastern bones must change from an upward curve as the toe lands, to a downward curve when the foot becomes weight-bearing. When the foot lands heel-first, the pastern bones are already in a downward curve (full extension of the joints) and the curve doesn't have to change orientation when the foot be-comes weight-bearing.

Everything about the horse's hoof works better when the foot lands on the ground heel-first. The hoof capsule flexes in such a way that you get the best shock absorption, the best circulation, and balanced wear. The digital cushion is tough and the frog and heels are wide; they are able to protect the foot from amazing amounts of hard work. The horse's movement, when the front feet can land heel-first, is big and free. When the foot lands toe-first, none of these things work well. Shock absorption is re-duced, there is less circulation inside the hoof (due to flexing differently), the toe tends to pull forward so that the heels become contracted, the hoof wears unevenly. The horse's movement is short with the front legs "stabbing" the ground; the hind feet may forge. In addition, the impact in the pastern bones puts incorrect stress on the impar ligament, which holds the navicular bone in position. The impar ligament gets inflamed from con-stant toe-first landing. This inflammation can lead eventually to navicular syndrome and/or coffin-joint disease.

What balance does the foot need to land heel-first? In order to land heel-first, the hoof must have a correct toe-to-heel balance. The distance from the toe to the apex of the frog should be 1/3, and from the apex of the frog to the back of the heels should be 2/3 of the total length of the hoof. The hoof on the left illus-trates this 1/3 to 2/3 balance. The hoof in the middle has closer to a ½ and ½ balance. The very over grown hoof on the right has more hoof in front of the apex of the frog than behind it. In this situation breakover is delayed putting extra strain on the tendons and ligaments of the leg.

Also known as the Dorsal/Palmar bal-ance. Dorsal mean-ing front of the hoof and Palmar meaning back of the hoof—so front to back balance

Hoof /Leg Alignment/Balance Viewing the leg from the side (with the horse standing square) a line dropped from the centre of rotation of the fetlock joint should touch the back of the heels. This can be seen in the photo to the left. The long toe/under run heels on the leg on the right results in inadequate support to the fetlock and excess strain on tendons and ligaments.

Medial Lateral Balance - Medial means the inside half of the hoof, and lateral the outside half. So medial-lateral means side to side balance. A line bisecting the hoof along the central cleft of the frog should divide the hoof in two with reasonable symmetry.

The hairline should be level viewed from the front and back.

Broken Hoof/Pastern Axis - Viewing the leg from the side, a line following the angle of the pastern should be parallel with the toe wall. The hoof on the left has a parallel hoof/pastern axis. The

hoof in the middle of the three hooves has a broken back hoof/pastern axis. The hoof on the right of the three hooves is a broken forward hoof/pastern axis, in which case the toe wall will be very steep giving the hoof a stumpy appearance. A word of warning here - the hoof on the left has a correct hoof/pastern axis because the pedal bone is tightly con-nected to the hoof wall. The hoof on the middle has a broken back hoof/pastern axis be-cause the laminae connection is stretched and there is a degree of pedal bone rotation. This damage must be grown out (supported by dietary changes) to achieve a correct hoof/pastern axis. Attempting to correct the hoof/pastern axis by over trimming the toe or heels can only do more harm.

Hoof Mechanism - The hoof mechanism is a complex process that pumps blood around the hoof and back up the leg. The movement of blood in the hoof also absorbs concussion. Basically during the support phase of the stride (when the horses’ weight is on the hoof) the hoof expands and the blood vessels within the hoof fill with blood. During the flight phase (when the hoof is off the ground) the hoof contracts and the blood is squeezed out and back up the leg. The pumping action of the hoof aides the heart in circulating blood around the body.

Indicators of Hoof Pain Stance - Does the horse stand covering enough ground? The horses’ cannon bones should be vertical to the ground. Some horses stand in a way similar to a goat standing on a rock. This stance with the front feet too far back under the horse indicates pain in the back half of the foot. He may also bring his hind feet too far forward under his body to support more weight and try to relieve the discomfort in the fronts.

The photos above were taken 2 months apart. Rem o v a l o f th e shoes allowed improved hoof angles and com-fort. The horse was then able to stand with more vertical cannons.

In the photo to the left the horse stands with all four feet too far under its body, and is also bend-ing its knees to ease the discomfort in the back of its heels. This is termed "over at the knee" and is traditionally explained away as a conformational fault rather than a response to pain. Standing with the front feet out in front of the body indi-cates pain in the front of the foot, commonly seen in laminitis (below).

Other signs of hoof pain are thrutching when a horse constantly shifts its weight from one foot to the other; consistently ‘pointing’ one hoof; shortened stride - which can happen over time, and also toe first landing. Naturally many behavioral problems can also stem from unbalanced or painful feet.

Hoof Deformities Flat Soles - The sole should have concavity, like a shal-low bowl. In healthy hooves the depth of concavity var-ies depending on the surface the horse lives and works on. When the laminar attachment between hoof wall and pedal bone is strong the pedal bone is suspended high inside the hoof capsule. This allows the sole to have concavity. When the laminar attachment is weak and stretched the pedal bone sags to a lower posi-tion in the hoof capsule. It then presses down on the sole causing it to flatten. A flat sole cannot have concavity cut into it with a hoof knife. In the barefoot horse the thickness of the sole is crucial for comfort, live or calloused sole is never removed in a natural trim.

Which hoof looks healthier

to you?

Bulging or curved hairline - When viewed from the side the hairline should slope towards the ground from toe to heel in a fairly straight line (left). It may bulge upwards at the quarters which can indicate the wall at the quarters is too long and pushing the hairline up (right).

Hoof Wall Rings - It is widely accepted that horizontal rings in the hoof wall occur when there is a nutritional

change, such as winter grazing to summer grazing. Each ring marks an episode of metabolic or dietary stress. The hoof walls of a horse on an optimal diet are smooth and free from rings all year round. Hooves that are producing rings tend to be sore over stones. This is why diet is such a crucial element of riding bare-foot.

Frog - Ideally this should be broad, the central cleft should look like a thumb-print or wide and open dip (left). If the hoof in narrow or contracted across the heels, the central cleft can become a deep, narrow crack, which provides perfect conditions for fungus and bacteria (right).

Hoof Cracks - Develop due to im-proper hoof balance, neglect or incor-rect hoof function.

White Line Separation - If your horse is shod you will only be able to inspect the white line when the farrier re-shoes. It should appear narrow and tight. It may be stretched and wide, or be a depression which will fill with dirt. Either way it indicates dietary and/or mechanical stresses which have weakened the attachment between the dermal and epi-dermal laminae, causing the white line to stretch. The left photo below is a hoof that has a severe stretched white line and flaring and also suffered from laminitis. A good natural trim can remove the worst of the flare, but only time and regular trims can grow out the underlying damage. Middle photo is an example of white line separation causing a dip be-tween the hoof wall and sole. In bad cases this separation can extend high up the inside of the hoof wall and provides a perfect environment for fungus and bacteria. Note the much narrower white line on the hoof to the right. This indicates good attachment of the hoof wall to coffin bone.

Heel Length - Heel length varies from horse to horse depending the health of the hooves. Ideally the heels should allow the frog to make light contact with the ground when viewed on a hard flat surface. On an uneven or yielding surface the frog will then re-ceive the correct amount of pressure and release stimulation as the horse moves. This is essential for the development of the frog, digital cushion and lateral cartilages, the important shock absorb-ing structures in the back of the foot. Note on the photo below right of the shod hoof how the frog is unable to make contact with the ground and is therefore non-functional and has poor hoof mechanism.

Poor/Weak digital Cushion - A fibro-fatty pad that sits in the back half of the hoof, above the frog and between the lateral carti-lages (the green area on the middle top photo below). Functions in the hoof mechanism and as a shock absorber. When a foal is born he has digital cushions that are made of soft fatty tissue. This is tough enough to ab-sorb the impact of the foals light weight. As he grows and gets heavier the impact forces increase. Fibrous cartilage begins to grow into the digital cushion and it turns into a fibro-fatty pad capable of absorbing greater impact without the horse experiencing any discom-fort. However, for this to happen the horse must be able to move around as it is the pres-sure and release stimulation and expansion and contraction of the hoof that makes it hap-pen. If a foal has little opportunity to move around or lives on soft ground the digital cushions don't develop properly. Coupled with early shoeing with prevents full expan-sion/contraction of the hoof the horse can reach adult weight with immature digital cush-ions. Continued stimulation is necessary to maintain the health of the digital cushion. The good news is the digital cushions will build up again once work recommences. Below top left is a photo of a foot with a well developed lateral cartilage and digital cush-ion. And for comparison on the bottom left a less well developed foot. In a healthy foot this part hits the ground first to absorb concussion (heel first landing). If it is poorly de-veloped the horse can move with a toe first landing, this puts unnatural strain on the deep digital flexor tendon, which compresses the navicular bone eventually leading to navicular syndrome. These structures need stimulation to develop and stay healthy. Shoeing stabi-lizes the hoof, reducing expansion and contraction and reducing stimulation. As a result the lateral cartilages and digital cushions become weaker. Going barefoot reverses this process. The photos top and bottom left below show the improvement in 4 months.