On June 6, 2006, I had my performance Morgan, LCS Dark Crystal trimmed by Gwen Santagate.  She had previously been trimmed by Butch Thompson and Keith Seeley (who work with Dr. Robert Bowker) in March of 2006.  I had been encouraged to see people who were experts in the field by a friend who had gotten great results for her chronically foundered horse.  She works with Butch and Keith and set us up with an appointment.  I was very happy with the way Crystal's feet were holding up, but ended up putting shoes on for a 15-mile event after caving in to pressure by those who just 'knew I would make her sore'.  In late May, I had the shoes pulled and had Gwen trim Crystal for the first time in June. 

We were scheduled for a 25 mile competitive trail event that following weekend, and I was nervous about having Crystal barefoot on the Vermont roads, so I ordered some Easy Boot Bares, which have nice gaiters.  Unfortunately, on the morning of the ride, I was informed that ECTRA did not allow boots with gaiters, so I ended up going out barefoot.  Crystal actually came in with her legs in better condition then she had with the shoes on in the 15-mile.  We have been barefoot ever since. 

Crystal competed in a Continuous Driving Event in Vermont on June 25 which is a 7.5 K trot on those hard roads, followed by a dressage test, then the 7.5 K back and a cones course.  The following weekend, she competed at Vermont Morgan Heritage Days in a 1-mile trotting race, a walking race (which she won) and several other carriage classes, where she was 3rd out of 13 horses in one obstacle class and 6th out of 15 in another.

We started a 50-mile in July, but were unable to complete because she tied up.  Of course, the event vet blamed her feet - he said he was sure she was sore in all four of them and I was feeling very guilty thinking I had done something which led to my horse being in pain.  I left Vermont and arrived at my regular vet's clinic two hours later.  He did blood work that confirmed a diagnosis of tying up, and I specifically requested that he use the hoof testers on her.  He said that although he had gotten a reaction, it was minimal and felt that there was no way she was footsore.  I must admit I felt much better after that as several of my friends and acquaintances have been giving me dire warnings about killing my horse by keeping her barefoot!

We have remained barefoot, and have just completed a full week of showing at New England Morgan.  Her feet are in great shape and she is going great.  She was third out of nine in some very heavy competition during Arena Driving Hazards, and would have placed well in cones if her owner hadn't gotten her eliminated by driving off-course. 

Now that it looks as though the heat wave will finally break, we will go back to driving our usual routine, which is 6 miles every other day on blacktop roads, and several miles on the off days on trails that are mostly dirt surfaces.  We will be competing at Mass Morgan in August, then she goes back to being hooked as part of a pair and several events in the Fall.  We hope to do a few more distance events as well.

By the way, Crystal is not a 'Spring Chicken' - she was 23 last April!

Marcy J. Reed
Ellington, CT 06029 
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Shiraz has suffered through several years of on/off lameness issues – some of which were identified, other not.  She had a suspensory injury in the middle of two bouts of Lyme disease, but even when we got past that she was still slightly off.  My farrier worked consistently to maintain her feet and keep her sound, but she was still slightly off.   

In addition to being ‘slightly off’ Shiraz always seemed to have a tight back in spite of the massages she would get from me and others. She seemed to hate her bit, so I tried several different types – she didn’t like any of them. Needless to say, it wasn’t fun riding her, she seemed so uncomfortable, but we couldn’t pinpoint any specific issues.  During one visit my vet recommended a chiropractic visit with Gretchen Hamm.  Gretchen worked on Shiraz and suggested that I pull her shoes and have her maintained with a good barefoot trim.

I reviewed some of the websites Gretchen had suggested to learn more about it and decided that I should definitely give going barefoot a try. So I made an appointment with Gwen Santagate.  We’re about 8 months into the transition period and Shiraz is much improved.  Beginning with the first trim Gwen has walked me through what she is doing, answering whatever questions I have, even the most basic. 

Very early on Shiraz’s back became supple and much more relaxed – no longer tight as a drum.  We were lucky that for the first few months we had a good snow cover and could ride without boots.  Although she was a bit ouchy on the hard ground, once we got on the snow she was happy to move out and was smoother than she felt in a long time.

I should also mention that Shiraz has an old injury on her coronary band which causes a very fine crack down her hoof wall.  People were concerned that losing the support of shoes would cause the crack to widen and become worse.  Just the opposite has happened.  With the correctly balanced trim there is no undue pressure being exerted on her hoof – the crack is the same from top to bottom. Hoof cracks are not necessarily a barrier to natural trimming.

No thanks to the awful spring weather and my travel schedule – we haven’t been able to ride as much as I’d like, but the improvement continues and is particularly noticeable when lunging.  I got a new/used saddle that is a better fit than my previous saddle, and that combined with more comfortable ‘feet’, Shiraz no longer has an issue with her bit. Due to some early-life experiences she’ll always need extra warm-up, but she now looks better than she has in years and I think I have my old horse back again. 

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J. Coluntumo
Bolton, MA
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Riding Barefoot through New England Trails

PERFORMANCE HORSES!   ... Pete Ramey's book was awesome!!:) I flew through it--the illustrations and text were very clear and helpful. I'm going to loan it to S., who can't wait to see it!!

Hey Gwen -- By the way S. called me out to check her mare's feet last week--they look GREAT!! S. is doing an awesome job trimming, and her mare who had been diagnosed with Pedal Osteitis has been doing terrific--no lameness/ouchiness/bute, etc., & they've been doing hunter paces (wearing Old Macs) and she's going nicely:) Now S. has to get *two* horses in shape--she's very happy about it:) S. told me that when her gelding was in 4 shoes, he was super-ouchy over rocks. Her goal is to transition him in the next year--she's eager to get started! Also, S. told me that H.'s gelding is doing GREAT, too! She can get him to gait in-hand much more easily than when he was in front shoes;) She took him on a hunter pace recently, and he went barefoot with complete success! S. said that she and H. did a big *Happy Dance* in the rain when they met up after the pace:) I so happy for them and their horses! And they're very appreciative of everything you taught them:)...just thought you'd like to know;)

Talk to you soon,
Jen

Transitioning from Shoes to Barefoot
6/04/04
   

I recently have had my horse, a 6 year old gelded appendix quarter horse, converted to be totally barefoot.

He has been wearing shoes for as long as I have owned him (coming up on two years) I recently began learning about a "barefoot trim" as an alternative. The long term physical and health benefits and general philosophy of encouraging "nature" to work as it should/would without intervention (nails & shoes) appealed tremendously to me.

Being barefoot for any "foot" that has been wearing shoes for so long is definitely a new, albeit delicate sensation. The reaction my boy had to his new found freedom was initially terrifying, then humorous! He was so unnerved, so unsure of this new feeling that he just about wanted to "sit down" and think about it for a while !! He had always been barefoot in the back, but the front - whoa when he started walking around you would have thought he was a robot. He was so scared of this new feeling his knees were literally shaking! His world was turned upside down! Once we realized this was not a physical reaction it was a sweet endearing moment in which lots of encouragement and reassurance resolved his uncertainty.

Three weeks after his initial trim Ben and I were out on a (rocky) trail! With lots of time and patience and getting used to his new way of moving (heel/toe vs. toe/heel) Ben really has responded well to being barefoot. Although we are still in "transition" he remains sound and moves beautifully. It is a great feeling to be able to eliminate a man-made element for such a willing trusting "partner".

JS, Braintree, MA

NOTE FROM Gwen:

My initial reaction to Ben's response to my removing his shoes and trimming him barefoot was extreme apprehension. I had never seen a horse react to the new "feel" of his hooves quite in the manner that he displayed. The poor boy just did not know WHAT was going on with his hooves! He was trembling so badly that my first reaction was that he was tying up but for the life of me, I couldn't figure out why! He actually "sat down" when asked to move. But then he settled a bit and it was obvious that he was just overwhelmed with new feelings. And, we all know what TB's do with new "things"!  My relief is great in receiving this note from his owner and speaking with her on the phone. She reports Ben is VERY happy with his new "feets" and is striding out happily even over hard, rocky New England trails after only 3 weeks of being barefoot.

Thank you, JS, for sending this note to me! :)