Cost is a big issue for most horse owners - there is only so much money to go around and any cost savings are welcome. Here are some common questions around costs associated with the barefoot horse hoof care, feeding and environment.
A: In a word - yes and no! A barefoot horse will need regular trimming every 6 weeks just as a shod horse does. Where some expense might come is in restructuring the horse's environment to give them the best possible chance of hoof health.
Honestly? I have found that it is quite a bit cheaper. I used to spend a significant amount on bagged feeds and expensive supplements, and about £240 every six weeks on shoes with my four.
Now I spend much less on feed, but my horses get much more "bang for the buck" because I am feeding far better quality feeds (put it this way - you can buy a really healthy meal for less than an unhealthy meal if you shop wisely). I have to spend more at one time because of the quantities I buy in, but it works out less overall.
You will be saving money on shoes because a trim is cheaper than a set of shoes. Hoof boots are about £45-£70 each depending on the brand but they do generally last a long time (my two sets of hoof boots are going strong after 18 months and I used them quite a bit, but I have had to replace gaiters at £15 each).
One of the biggest advantages is simply that I never worry about shoes coming off now, and having to get the farrier at short notice, I never lose competition fees or have to cancel days out because a shoe is loose or missing. I've seen far too many disappointed young riders unable to go on days out with their ponies because a shoe has come off and the pony is sore!
Q How do you save money on feeds?
A: I have a personal hobby horse about the cost of horse supplements and feeds! My wallet is allergic to them!
For example - take a leading calmer - it is £23 per 1.5Kg and the active ingredient is Calcined Magnesite. CalMag can be purchased from an Agricultural feed store for around £7.50 for 25Kg. This is 30p a Kg! So I'd say that's a pretty hefty markup.
Many expensive supplements are simply clever packaging of cheaper materials. So check the labels against the cost of the raw ingredients and only buy what you need.
It is often cheaper to buy the componets of a feed than buy the pre-mixed alternative (e.g. Linseed meal, seaweed, brewers yeast and magnesium oxide) than to buy the pre-mixed and then you can set the ratio of the various components to suit your own horse's needs.
Shop around for things like Linseed meal. I purchase mine from Charnwood Mills at £24 for 20Kg - about half the price of an alternative, equestrian specialist supplier. It's much fresher and tastes nicer too with a clean hazlenutty taste and the horses love it (so do the children!).
I buy seaweed from the agricultural store at £19 for 20Kg - working out at about £1 a Kg as opposed to £5 - £7 a Kg from a leading equestrian supplement company. I also buy brewers yeast from the same agricultural store at £3 a Kg.
I use Norvite Feeds in Aberdeenshire, but there are branches of Harbro nationwide who can supply these. Also Charnwood Mills supplies all of the straights mentioned above, and delivers within their area.
Personally I find that my feed bill has more than halved since moving onto the barefoot diets described in this web site. I was rather a sucker for a brightly coloured feed bag, and the high profile advertising of the feed balancer companies is always hard to ignore! Once I developed the ability to "leave it on the shelf" my wallet breathed a sigh of relief, and my horses were healthier as well.
They need you to buy that product much more than your horses really need it! A product that claims to be the "absolute supplement" simply cannot be believed - there are far too many variations in environment, breed, horse types, individual circumstances for a feed company to be able to produce a "one size fits all" supplement.