The Barefoot Racehorse

See Prt 1 for HoofCast Application. This VideoCast with Derek Poupard discusses the benefits of training racehorses barefoot. The system he created enables this and allows conservation of the compromised thoroughbred foot. This system is being used on some of the worlds best racehorses at the Godolphin stables in Dubai. Modern Farriery appreciates the ancient and miraculous evolution of the horses hoof while still addressing the needs of todays top equine athletes.
.
An article on the subject can be read at my website.
www.theequinedocumentalist.co...

[@wmbair8565]

The picture at 3:25 shows it all. The coronet band on the right is straight, on the left it sinks in the rear of the hoof. This indicates that the heels have been lowered, which is standard practice for farriers who don't know any better and just keep mindlessly doing what they've been taught without challenging the method they follow. The heels should never be lowered to less than a quarter of an inch above the sole plane, measured at the seat of corn. Do not measure heels by looking at the back of the hoof! The sole is the intuitive structure of the hoof and it dictates where it wants everything to be in regards to the hoof wall and heels. When the heels are "taken back and down" like is preached by farriers abroad, the hoof is on its way to pathological breakdown and ruin. It's really that simple. Bevel the hoof wall at a 20 degree angle down to the sole plane and leave the heels one quarter to three eights of an inch above the sole plane at the seat of the corn. Back the toe when a ridge forms to indicate that the hoof wants it backed. Nature knows. Ask any wild horse, they'll tell you the same.

[@jacquisims2054]

What a great discussion! Thank you! It is so heartening to hear such a successful stable trains barefoot. I recently got my trainers license and have my horses barefoot but do have to have tips applied under race rules for raceday that i then take off that night when we get home. Their feet are doing so well

[@nrhoofcare7724]

Sheesh these TB's leave farriers scratching their heads! Excellent discussion and ideas here, thank you. Just some side thoughts. Could the barefoot racehorses in Newmarket simply have boots put on when walking on the tarmac to the track for training and then taken off? What are the legal requirements regarding types of shoes on the track? I would love to see more Epona style shoes that reduce concussion and distribute load across the solar structures rather than just the hoof wall. I hope Derek purchases Metron hoofscan software, he could provide some very interesting data following the morphology of the horses under his care.

[@CarolaAdolf]

I am so excited that barehoof racing has come more seriously onto the radar of ‘the establishment’. Listening to the presentation I can clearly hear and see where ‘us bareHoofers’ could foll in the gaps and assist with our point of understanding. It’s a great start to more cooperation of conventional and natural and to look at other valuable research in addition to Prof Bowker’s.

[@kittybecker-smits154]

Ditto... For the Love of Horse

[@pacobarr9710]

he idea that they need shoes to walk on te tarmac seems astonishing to me, to way the least, my barefoot horse runs on tarmac and stony tracks and i still have to rasp the walls to stop them overgrowing, wonder if the fact that the speaker is a farrier has something to do with it, since his conclusión seems to be that shoes are necessary

[@SueLangford-pz6ue]

Use Scoot boots to walk on tar roads and then take off to race. I am in Australia.

[@LaizyDaisy]

Why can't the TB's wear boots on the metalled roads and abrasive surfaces? My TB (ex racer) had his last set of shoes taken off at 11yo and his foot shape has changed in the way you describe, but needs the protection of lightweight boots for hacking. My farrier keeps the hoof tidy as he would normally. We don't hack much and do get plenty of time on the beach.

[@theequinedocumentalist2132]

I don’t know the ins and outs of the training regime. But this would certainly be a question for the trainer.

[@comesahorseman]

Now, what about Standardbreds??

[@comesahorseman]

👍👍

[@jamesgoodman2267]

Top stuff

[@alenadudaronak6771]

Gallop training does not reduce the angle of the hoof, shoeing does!

[@theequinedocumentalist2132]

That is a study that would need to be done. Someone would need to compare the findings of Peel et al. (2010) with a cohort of barefoot horses undergoing the same regime. However the gist of the discussion would suggest your point my well be valid. 👍