Barefoot advice

[kizi]

Most of my ponies are barefoot, infect the only one shod is so because she's old and had a lifetime of poor nutrition and her feet just don't grow much but I have her onto only fronts now, tho her hind feet are a bit bare she is retired from work and is managing.
My own riding mare is shod, every 5 weeks, despite being injured a year ago and still not back to work. I am soo desperate to get her barefoot but am not sure if it's for her...
If she looses a shoe she's a total woose and says ouch all day until the farrier comes, if he doesn't get there same day her foot wears down very quick. She had beautiful feet before being broken and shod, and she does have nice feet now but they are sooo soft....
My question is this, would there be a best time to take the shoes off ground wise???
How long (average obviously) would one like that take to be happy about it?
She is shod ATM with road pins as she slipped last year on the ice in the field and I am paranoid about her doing it again.
But she's still not 100% sound and if (a) she never comes sound I cannot be reshoeing her every 5 weeks and (b) despite the fact the injury is high up I just wonder If trying barefoot mite help her or infact make her worse, by tensing if tender I feel she might tighten the muscles I have spent months rebuilding from nothing....
My bare foot ponies are all so easy, most have never been shod, they live out or in on bad nights, and most keep their feet naturally in great order, I have little problems, tho this week one was in a walk out the road and we did lead home the last 5 mins as he'd not been out in a while...
What to feed a good doer to give her best chance of change to barefoot? She currently gets very good Haylege, happy hoof chaff, speedibeet and balancer, she is also on horse first keep me sound which has all the necessary joint/muscle/foot etc etc stuff....
Since I've started her back to ground work the past few months her feet have stopped growing despite being in fab condition, well toned and fit etc (lameness is less that 1/10 and not constant, it's an ongoing process) and being fed all that time.....
Do their feet slow down in winter while shod? I know the bad ground is a bit tougher on my barefoots but never thought it could be the slowed growth in conjunction with winter ground??
Is it? Could it be? Can she do it? Or am I best to keep going and try get her sound before making her feet sore and mask other problems??? So confused!!!!!

[ladyndibs]

I don't know a huge amount about it but for what it's worth my understanding is that often to take a shoe the hoof is trimmed more than it would be if the horse was barefoot as the hoof is in effect being lifted so when she losses a shoe it is like someone has instantly taken the thickness of her shoe from all around her hoof, I have mine trimmed every 6-8 weeks depending on the time of year and have never seen the farrier take off the thickness of a shoe.
I have just gone from 7 weeks to 8 as I find their hooves grow more slowly in the winter as we come out of winter it will become 6 weeks again in the summer when their hooves grow more quickly.
I did used to have a pony that needed shoes, his soles were so soft they would visibly flex with very little pressure but he never lost a shoe and once I stopped riding him I had the shoes removed with no problems.
I'm sure you will get loads of great advice from people who really know what they are talking about but I think most people feel if there is a foot issue the first place to start is feed, a bit like gelatine for finger nails but it does take a very long time for the hoof to re grow especially with the slow growth through the winter.

[kizi]

Ok so you have noticed a slower growth in winter, because most of mine are not shod I couldn't be sure, that's why her feet are slower growing between this set and last. It's the first time i have noticed it but all last winter she was out of mind on very strict paddock rest and as she was unable to lift hind feet she wasn't shod for a few months!
If it's just winter slow growth I think I will see if I can let this set on a while linger and see what we have to play with then.

Do they have more or less grip on ice when barefoot?

Her feet have always been good and healthy etc never any foot problems at all whilst shod other than being footsy if she lost one but you have a good point about them taking more off etc...so that does explain that too....
The set on her now are only 2 weeks on so I should get a month of growth before I have to decide, but obviously want to know all the if's or buts first!!!!

[kizi]

Weird, I do know all this stuff but hearing other people's exp's helps me decide! There's too much going on in my brain to think clearly sometimes!!

[ladyndibs]

This time of year you would probably be ok going at least 6-7 weeks maybe even longer, I'm sure if I'm wrong someone will let you know. I'm not sure about grip in ice though, generally their grip is better barefoot than shod and also they have slightly better feel but with shoes you have the option of some kind of stud in the shoe to aid grip.