Our latest blog series is taking a look at barefoot hoof care with a variety of Questions and Answers from our customers. The questions will be answered directly by our very own barefoot hoof care expert The Saddlery Shop’s proprietor Lucy Nicholas in this five part series!
Question 4:
I’ve had my horse barefoot for three months, but he doesn’t seem to be adjusting very well. His hoof horn is breaking off and he’s been footsore quite a bit. What should I do?
Lucy says... "This is almost undoubtedly due to dietary issues. Only a horse with an optimised, balanced diet will have truly healthy feet.
Modern hoof care professionals (including farriers that specialise in barefoot horses) will place great emphasis on diet. Domestic horses are often fed a diet high in starch and sugar, and may also have periods with no food to eat. Neither practice is good for an equine’s nutritional status.
Some horses can do well on a less-than-ideal diet and still have the quality of hoof you need to work them without shoes, but most barefoot horses need a natural diet. Good quality, low-sugar forage should form the largest part of the diet; sugar beet, linseed and copra meal [a coconut blend] are all useful for providing ‘cool energy’. Many owners of barefoot horses give supplementary vitamins and minerals. Biotin famously promotes hoof quality, and should be ideally fed in conjunction with methionine and often zinc, to aid absorption. One of the most significant minerals used to improve poor hoof quality is magnesium. I also advocate feeding a good prebiotic and probiotic. This serves as a very good nutritional insurance policy! Free choice salt should also be available.
Seek nutritional advice if you are unsure; remember, good barefoot hoofcare practitioners will offer advice on your equine’s diet."
A wide range of Hoof Boots and Hoof Boot accessories are available from The Saddlery Shop why not visit the website today at www.thesaddleryshop.co.uk to find out more or send your own enquiry via the Hoof Boot Enquiry Page.
If you keep your horse or pony barefoot or are interested in barefoot hoof care make sure you catch up with the rest of our Q&As on barefoot via our blog. Next week we will complete the 5 part blog series with our final customer question- don't miss it!
Friday, 30 January 2015
Question and Answer Series on Barefoot Hoofcare; Part 4
Our latest blog series is taking a look at barefoot hoof care with a variety of Questions and Answers from our customers. The questions will be answered directly by our very own barefoot hoof care expert The Saddlery Shop’s proprietor Lucy Nicholas in this five part series!
Question 4:
I’ve had my horse barefoot for three months, but he doesn’t seem to be adjusting very well. His hoof horn is breaking off and he’s been footsore quite a bit. What should I do?
Lucy says... "This is almost undoubtedly due to dietary issues. Only a horse with an optimised, balanced diet will have truly healthy feet.
Modern hoof care professionals (including farriers that specialise in barefoot horses) will place great emphasis on diet. Domestic horses are often fed a diet high in starch and sugar, and may also have periods with no food to eat. Neither practice is good for an equine’s nutritional status.
Some horses can do well on a less-than-ideal diet and still have the quality of hoof you need to work them without shoes, but most barefoot horses need a natural diet. Good quality, low-sugar forage should form the largest part of the diet; sugar beet, linseed and copra meal [a coconut blend] are all useful for providing ‘cool energy’. Many owners of barefoot horses give supplementary vitamins and minerals. Biotin famously promotes hoof quality, and should be ideally fed in conjunction with methionine and often zinc, to aid absorption. One of the most significant minerals used to improve poor hoof quality is magnesium. I also advocate feeding a good prebiotic and probiotic. This serves as a very good nutritional insurance policy! Free choice salt should also be available.
Seek nutritional advice if you are unsure; remember, good barefoot hoofcare practitioners will offer advice on your equine’s diet."
A wide range of Hoof Boots and Hoof Boot accessories are available from The Saddlery Shop why not visit the website today at www.thesaddleryshop.co.uk to find out more or send your own enquiry via the Hoof Boot Enquiry Page.
If you keep your horse or pony barefoot or are interested in barefoot hoof care make sure you catch up with the rest of our Q&As on barefoot via our blog. Next week we will complete the 5 part blog series with our final customer question- don't miss it!
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