Just released! The Horse’s Hoof Trimcast - FREE DOWNLOAD from Apple iTunes or click here to watch online! A 1/2 hour long step-by-step barefoot trimming video by James Welz. The Horse’s Hoof Trimcast is an informational series intended to assist those already trimming their own horse’s hooves. The first episode is a general introduction to how James trims. For more information on the tools he is using in this video, here's a reprint of our article from THH issue 21: "An Introduction to Power Tool Trimming"

The Horse’s Hoof 2008 Special CD - Get the entire collection of The Horse’s Hoof Magazine back issues (30 issues) on one single CD, available for the first time at a special introductory offer price of $49.95! Click here to order.

Click here to watch: Finding The Soul of a Horse

This website was last updated on 08-22-08

Your Barefoot Horse Resource!
Photos above, clockwise from top left: 1) Yvonne Welz riding Gezebella, 5 yo warmblood mare (always barefoot); they compete in dressage. Read about them in every issue of THH! 2) Karen Chaton riding her endurance champion Granite Chief+/, who has over 7,000 AERC miles; barefoot since 2005, they use EasyCare boots for protection on rides. Issue 29 of THH. 3) Lt. Randy Wallace of the Houston Texas Police Department riding barefoot police horse Chance up the stairs. The department has 29 barefoot police horses. Issue 29 of THH. 4) Rick Dabner riding To Liberate, a barefoot showjumper in Australia. Issue 30 of THH. Center hooves: Gezebella's feet - warmblood hooves that look and function like mustang hooves.

Welcome to The Horse's Hoof, News for Barefoot Hoofcare

"The Horse's Hoof" is this informational website, as well as a quarterly printed 24 page magazine, published since 2000, that is available in our online store. The Horse’s Hoof, both magazine and website, is a generic barefoot resource for both horseowners and professionals. We welcome and encourage all methods and theories of barefoot trimming, and support all forms of hoof care that focus on creating healthier hooves over the long-term. We advocate finding compromises to create more natural, healthier living conditions for all horses. We believe that a good system of barefoot horse care is the ultimate prevention against most serious hoof ailments that affect our domestic horses.

While barefoot can be used successfully for the rehabilitation of unhealthy feet, our main focus is on preventing unhealthy feet in the first place - through education and awareness. It is our goal that barefoot becomes a widely accepted choice for performance horses around the world, with hooves raised carefully from birth to be superior in every way. It can be done - we have that information available now, and many people are putting that to action (see the Barefoot Performance page). Using this knowledge, no horse should ever need to suffer catastrophic founder. The younger you begin a barefoot program with your horse, the better (ideally, at birth), but most horse's hooves can be significantly improved, and even become healthy enough to do whatever activity you desire. Barefoot is NOT a fad, or anything new - after all, horses were born with bare hooves. Learning to keep them that way successfully is the job of the barefoot horse owner, and we're here to help. Healthy hooves create happy horses!

The Horse’s Hoof includes a wide variety of information and links throughout this website, and in our magazine. We are completely advertising-free! The magazine contents are mostly different from the website, though we do include some articles on here from past issues (Click here for the Contents List). You will find articles and information from and about all the leading experts in the field, including Jaime Jackson, Dr. Robert Bower, Dr. Hiltrud Strasser, Pete Ramey, KC La Pierre, and many others, as well as experiences and stories from various practitioners and owners. We include a wide variety of material, some of it contradictory, as there are many differences of opinion - and we don't personally agree with everything we publish. We encourage and promote this interchange, because we feel this is what will kick barefoot hoofcare up to the next level! If you would like to read the personal opinions of James & Yvonne Welz, please visit our section (see left bar). In particular, our new Hoof Corner will present our ideas and philosophies on hoofcare that we have personally developed over the past decade.

Barefoot hoofcare is a young, developing art and science. There is so much ahead to discover. After nearly 20 years of hoof study, the leading hoof researcher in the U.S., Dr. Robert Bowker, says, "There is so much that we still don't know about the hoof!"

New! EasyCare Magnetic Hoof Pick

These magnetic hoof picks are made from steel and are super strong.  They are great for cleaning hooves as well as using to work with Easyboot cables and buckles.  Each hoof pick has a small powerful magnet embedded in it that will stick to any metal surface - never lose your pick again!  Color:  EasyCare blue.

EasyCare Magnetic Hoof Pick $7.95

We LOVE these Hoof Picks!!!

Breaking Hoof News.... (for archive of all previous news items, please visit our news page)

Classical Training DVD from barefoot advocate Manolo Mendez
"Riding in Lightness, Classically Based Training for the Young Horse," part 1
This beautiful and inspiring DVD from a master of classical dressage. What makes it even more wonderful is knowing that his young horse Dario Fo, a Warmblood grandson of Donnerhall, is barefoot, and that Manolo embraces the barefoot movement. Manola's background is the Royal School of Equestrian Art in Jerez, Spain. He now resides in Australia and gives clinics around the world. A must-see DVD for training enthusiasts.
Now available from Australian Equine Arts http://www.ausequinearts.com/About_ManoloDVD.html

Slow Down Hay Feeder/Soaker
What an interesting product! It looks like it is basically a large bucket with a special feeding plate on top to slow down hay/feed consumption. As the horse consumes the hay, the feeding plate slowly lowers in the bucket. It looks very simple and easy to use, and could easily be added to any horse’s living area. The bucket doubles as a convenient way to soak hay, as well as being very portable. With the high cost of hay these days, the promise of less wastage is a big plus!  For the natural owner, it might actually pay off to buy several of these and install all around a paddock paradise. The price for one complete kit is $395.00. 
http://www.slowdownhayfeeder.com

The August 2008 issue of Horse & Rider Magazine has a couple of barefoot items: First, an article "New Stretegies for Going Bare" by Jennifer Forsberg Meyer. With input from Pete Ramey and Garrett Ford of EasyCare, this article covers new boot options, hoof casting, farrier training, and helpful tips for transitioning to barefoot. Next, Joe Camp shares in his article, "Horse Sense for the Soul" that an issue of Horse & Rider served as his starting point into the barefoot world, ultimately leading to the publication of his bestseller book, The Soul of a Horse. Read more barefoot items this month at HorseandRider.com

Just released! The Horse’s Hoof Trimcast - FREE DOWNLOAD from Apple iTunes or click here to watch online! A 1/2 hour long step-by-step barefoot trimming video by James Welz. The Horse’s Hoof Trimcast is an informational series intended to assist those already trimming their own horse’s hooves. The first episode is a general introduction to how James trims. For more information on the tools he is using in this video, here's a reprint of our article from THH issue 21: "An Introduction to Power Tool Trimming"

New website: Belhaven Equine Solutions
Leah Hinnefeld is an attorney in Georgia, specializing in Equine Law. Her developing website is also a resource for natural hoof and horse care information, including a trimmers list, diet recommendations, and natural training information.
http://www.belhavenequinesolutions.com

Nevzorov Haute Ecole Worldwide Representative, Michael Bevilacqua, will be offering a weekend Seminar in Quebec, Canada this November 1 & 2, 2008. Alexander Nevzorov and his wife Lydia Nevzorova endorse the barefoot movement.
Further info about the seminar can be found on www.equiforme.net
For further info about NHE see: www.hauteecole.ru

Rule change to allow Barefoot Racing under consideration in California!
From an article on Fran Jurga's "HoofBlog" on July 20, 2008: "Dr. [Diane] Isbell continued, 'A number of trainers in Northern California are starting to train their horses barefoot. There are an increasing number of trainers doing that (and those horses are) working as well or better as they did when they had shoes on. We do know from research work that the bare foot is better able to utilize the internal shock absorption system of the horse, which does help to take some of the stress off the legs.'" Read the entire article here: Barefoot Racing in California?

The AANHCP Comes To Europe!
The skilled practitioners of the Association for the Advancement of Natural Horse Care Practices (AANHCP) are proud to introduce the science, principles and methodology of Natural Hoof Care based on the Wild Horse of US Great Basin.
The Symposium takes place on Saturday, November 1st 2008, from 9am until 5pm in the large event room of the facilities of the Pferdesportverband Rheinland e.V. (PSVR), Weissenstein 52, 40764 Langenfeld in Germany. Tickets: 20 Euro
For further information check www.naturhufpflege.com or e-mail: Gudrun Buchhofer (German speaking) at gudrun@go-natural.ca or Nick Hill at nick@cloverroseequine.co.uk

New program schedule for Strasser World Conference:
September 25, 26, & 27, 2008:
World Conference 2008 for Natural Hoofcare and Holistic Horse Care
Dr. Hiltrud Strasser, Tuebingen, Germany
Conference speakers include Dr. Robert Bowker - see NEW program below for complete listing!
Click here for Strasser World Conference Program PDF - Click here for Strasser World Conference Program .doc file - Click here for Registration Form 2008 PDF