To Shoe or Not to Shoe?

Although there is debate regarding the necessity of shoes for working horses, it is more universally accepted that there are circumstances when it is necessary for a horse to be barefoot, such as during rehabilitation for hoof capsule distortions. Whether there are special considerations or just hesitation over the benefit of repeated shoeing cycles, the transition from shod to barefoot takes time and attention to technique.

“Let me be very clear, this is a farriery option,” said Stephen E. O’Grady, DVM, during his presentation at the 69th AAEP Annual Convention. “As I certainly believe, having been a farrier for 50 years, horses can be trimmed and shod in a proper physiological manner with minimal damage to the hoof capsule.”

An inductee of the International Equine Veterinarians Hall of Fame and a recipient of the AAEP
President’s Award for his work in farrier education, Dr. O’Grady said that there are several situations in which it is beneficial or even necessary for a horse to transition to barefoot temporarily, including:

during injury rehabilitation for out-of-work horses; and
during rehabilitation for hoof capsule distortions, such as soft tissue structures in the palmar foot, sheared heels, and prolapsed or recessed frogs.

Horses with an abnormal gait that can be associated with interfering or forging and those with chronic foot lameness associated with farriery or unexplained foot lameness are excellent barefoot candidates. In addition, poor hind foot conformation is a problem in farriery today, according to Dr. O’Grady, and removing the hind shoes improves foot conformation and appears to alleviate back pain almost immediately.

“The bullnose low-heeled foot in the hind limb has almost become an epidemic in farriery,” Dr. O’Grady said, referencing recent literature showing a clear-cut correlation to this low-heeled bullnosed appearance and problems in the musculoskeletal system further up the hindlimb.

Benefits of Barefoot
Shoes provide traction when working or performing, and they provide protection when there is wear on the solar surface of the foot that exceeds growth at the coronet. Shoes also are used in therapeutic farriery for injuries such as foot lameness, laminitis, white line disease and quarter cracks. Although shoes have demonstrated benefits, they also invariably have consequences on foot function.

“The horseshoe, as we often hear, is not an extension of the horse’s foot,” Dr. O’Grady explained during his presentation. “Placing a horseshoe with different properties other than the hoof capsule between the hoof and the ground creates 2 interfaces, which obviously changes how the structures of the horse’s foot interact with the ground” (Figure 1). According to Dr. O’Grady, when the shoes are removed, these structures have the inherent ability to strengthen, improve and change shape through the process of adaptation, which is very important to the overall health and wellbeing of the horse.

Horseshoes promote peripheral loading, which transfers all the horse’s weight to the hoof wall, and this changes the physiological function of the foot. Horseshoes may decrease energy absorption and influence movement. In 1999, Willemen et al. showed that applying a standard horseshoe increases the stress on the navicular bone by the deep flexor tendon by as much as 14%.

“In my opinion, that’s huge. The higher the frog is off the ground, when you put the horse’s weight on top of it, that frog is going to descend and start looking for the ground and wherever it does that [increased load/stress is applied to the] deep flexor tendon,” Dr. O’Grady noted.

Shaping vs. Trimming
Dr. O’Grady said that he uses a transitioning period of 30 to 60 days, which allows the hoof and limb structures to adjust to load bearing. This period includes 2 to 3 weeks of walking the horse on firm footing under saddle and allowing turnout in a small area. During this time, the feet are shaped at 2- to 4-week intervals.

Shaping the feet may be a tough adjustment for some farriers, as it requires a different technique than trimming. Farriers are used to using there rasp in a horizontal plane rather than a vertical plane (Figure 2).

“[Shaping] is a tough thing for farriers to get used to because they are used to doing things horizontally. When we shape the foot, [however,] we keep the same rules used for trimming the foot for shoes,” Dr. O’Grady said.

After removing the shoes at the end of the shoeing cycle, the hoof should be cleaned with a wire brush. Dr. O’Grady counseled the audience to replace the hoof knife with a wire brush.

“Put your hoof knife in your pocket, and leave it there. If it doesn’t come out with a wire brush, leave it there. It doesn’t need to come out,” he said.

When shaping the foot, the heels should be trimmed to the same plane as the frog, and the border of the hoof wall should be trimmed with nippers (if necessary) or a rasp used on an 45° angle, this will maintain bulk and depth. The rasp is then used in a rounding motion to remove the sharp edge and create a thick bevel.

“A cup will form in the sole when the horse is barefoot, which promotes a nice border around the perimeter of the horse’s foot wall. This is what you want to preserve. Think about if you trim this horizontally, you’re going to remove that bevel,” Dr. O’Grady explained.

Observations based on approximately 60 upper-level horses competing barefoot, Dr. O’Grady has seen minimal lameness issues on horses that were transitioned to barefoot using this time frame and technique. Hoof walls became harder/thicker, natural sole calluses formed at the toes of the horses transitioned, and all horses displayed stronger hoof wall-bar junctions, good cup to the sole, broader frogs, and more depth to the foot (Figure 3). MeV

For more information:
Clements PE, Handel I, McKane SA, et al. An investigation into the association between plantar distal phalanx angle and hindlimb lameness in a UK population of horses. BEVA Equine Vet Education. 2020;32(S10):52-59.

Pezzanite L, Bass L, Kawcak C, et al. The relationship between sagittal hoof conformation and hindlimb lameness in the horse. Equine Vet J. 2019;51(4):464-469.

Willemen MA, Jacobs MW, Schamhardt HC. In virtro transmission and attenuation of impact vibrations in the distal forelimb. Equine Vet J Suppl.1999;(30):245-248.