Barefoot…
I have a very questioning nature. I have never been very accepting of the “do it because I said so.” school of thought. Possibly because my parents never gave us that response, possibly because I just enjoy being a pain in the @$$. It is not that I mind following instructions – but I do tend to want to know WHY you want something done, or WHY it needs to be done in a specific fashion. If the answers are logical enough – then there is no reason to debate and I tack those lessons into my arsenal of things learned. If, however, the answer is flawed… I have no problem questioning it. Now, keep in mind, I am not the sharpest tack in the box, so I know if I see the gaping logic hole, there is probably good reason to be suspicious. I may not always be right –but I strive to always be learning.
Can you see this coming???
I have been reading a lot about the barefoot debate recently. I was told by my vet – in no uncertain terms – because Hawkeye has mild ringbone (arthritis) that I should keep his shoes on. Grow out his heels, shorten his toes. My thought at the time was “Great! Easy. No boat rocking. No research. No pissing off the farrier (who I adore).” Keep in mind, he flip side to easy tends to mean no independent thinking.
So, recently, I was reading a book where the author was questioning metal shoes on his horses, and he was asking the same questions I had asked when I first started riding. My ears perked up. Horses in the wild don’t wear shoes nailed to their feet. The traditional answers about terrain and cement don’t make sense to me. I don’t ride my horse on cement roads – so that is beside the point and Wild mustangs live on some pretty harsh terrain. The research is showing that they don’t have the issues with laminitis and founder that domesticated horses have so you have to wonder why that is.
So much for easy.
When you consider how the hoof is supposed to flex with each step. How that flexing increases the blood flow through the leg and the hoof. How flexing is better for shock absorption than the hard, rigid, horse shoe surface. It makes me wonder if the shoes, in the long run, are not part of the CAUSE of Hawkeye ringbone. All the “wild horse trims” advocate short heels… not longer heels… and the importance of getting the horse to strike the ground heels first. I have Hawkeye in “rocker shoes.” The wild horse trim rolls the toe over to match the hooves of mustangs who roam the west – as they naturally created that same break over as they wear away their toes. Toes that metal shoes prevent from wearing away. Hmmm… Am I trying to create something artificially by using a tool (the shoe) that actively prevents what it is trying to replicate? Does this feel like taking pill B to counteract the side-effects of pill A – which I may not need to take anyway?
Annnnnd now I am doing more research.
I have a long way to go before I commit to pulling his shoes and attempting a barefoot path, but the questions have started, and will not stop until the answers make sense. I have to find an answer that is best for the HORSE – not just easiest for me. That is how I see our relationship. Hawkeye chooses to trust me, therefore I must ask questions and do the work required to provide the best existence for him.
It is how I prove to both of us that I am worthy of his trust.
