What is a barefoot trimmer?

(Smoke after I first began trimming. Sound on frozen, hoof-pocketed ground.)

There are many different terms used to refer to the person who takes care of your horse's hooves. Farrier, trimmer, horse-shoer, black smith, and I'm sure many others. One of the terms I listed stands out from the others. Trimmers do exactly as the word implies, they trim and only trim. They do not apply or handle shoes in any way unless they are simply removing them, and some won't even do that if they don't have the proper equipment.

The reasons for why a trimmer doesn't deal with shoes vary depending on the person. One may not believe in them, or they may not have the training to do it. Some trimmers deal with their own horses and maybe a few of their friends', and those horses may already be barefoot.

In general, a barefoot trimmer does not believe shoes are the answer to a hoof problem. Instead, they trim each horse according to its specific needs, helping them to achieve the natural shape that's right for them.

A barefoot trim and a pasture trim are not the same thing, and this is important to remember. Any farrier or blacksmith will trim your horse's hooves even if they don't wear shoes, but are they doing it correctly? While I don't agree with horses being shod, I know there are some fantastic farriers out there that truly know what they're doing. These people are usually very experienced with horses and have a great hoof education, and unfortunately, they don't come around very often. Most traditional farriers will look at a hoof and trim it the same way they would any other, regardless if the horse wears shoes or not. What this usually means is a horse tends to start growing high heels and short toes, giving the hoof a boxy look. Higher heels are necessary if you are going to be nailing on a horseshoe without doing serious damage, but for a barefoot horse they cause a whirlwind of problems.

I've experienced this with every traditional farrier I've ever encountered. That is not to say they are all bad, only the one's I have met, and it is usually just a lack of information on their part. A barefoot trimmer focuses on each individual horse and recognizes that they are all unique and cannot be trimmed in the exact same way. They trim to compliment the horse's conformation, not to "correct" or change it. (Corrective trimming can be detrimental to an adult horse, and should usually be done very early in life if it is truly necessary.) In the natural world, horses trim their own hooves by constantly moving over rough terrain in their endless search for good grazing. These hooves are not perfect, and sometimes they may not look like what you would expect, but they work for that horse, and that is what's important. If you're doing something wrong, the hoof will let you know, you just need to know how to read it.