I took my horse barefoot in June 2014. He is still in the transition phase and we are in an area with a lot of large, sharp shale rock so we use boots on the trails. I tried the Renegades and they fell apart after 5, one hour rides! Then tried the Cavallo but couldn't get a good fit. I now use the Easyboot Glove Trail Boot and love them. They fit great and are easy to put on and clean up afterwards. Just make sure you get a very accurate measurement before ordering. My farrier has the complete fit kit so you may want to ask your farrier to help measure your horse.

UT,,, that makes sense to me...would definitely take time to get several horses booted up. Hoping to only have to do the one I will ride and then use them for hard pavement, gravel or areas I ride where there are large rocks and rocky creek and river beds. Hopefully their feet will toughen up and get conditioned/sound enough to do fine with pasture and woods riding. Thanks to all for the input. Will let y'all know how the Easy Boot Trail works for the me and the "paint brothers"~

I took my horses barefoot for 5 years. My two youngest were just coming under saddle and never had shoes as we began this journey. I could ride ANY where for a day. But I couldn't do hard rides 2-3-4 days in a row. So I had to use boots. With four horse and a lot of friends riding those horses, I ended up booting them up before each ride. 4 horses with at least 2 boots ( sometimes 4) I was putting 8-16 boots on before and removing them after a ride. It was taking me 30 minutes before a ride and 10-15 minutes after a ride messing with boots. It seemed I was always damaging a boot. Granted I ride some rough country. No wandering down a country dirt road form. So after every ride I was replacing a gaiter, buckle, power strap, something. This got expensive and time consuming. Periodically I was loosing a boot. This was frustrating when I was 10 miles from the trailer on wilderness ride and even more frustrating if I was on a multiday trip and now didn't have protection. I came to the conclusion that IF my horses could not go barefoot 100% of the time, then shoes were the answer. Boots work for that occasional use. But it was costing me more in buying, repairing and replacing boots, Than to just pay for shoes. If you are riding around the corn field or across the grass lands. Bare foot and boots may be just fine. But having to boot up multiple horses. All with different size hooves, and ride the real west. Just was too much work.

I found the easy boots difficult to use...both for horse and rider...LOL! Of course, this was years ago and perhaps they have improved them to work better now... ?? I think with most things, one product works well for one horse, not necessarily for another. As experience has taught me, and for the riding I do, I'd much rather use hoof boots over shoes, more affordable and healthier for the hoof. My humble opinion of course.

Qhr, and Hdg, thank you for the info. I am trying to learn as much as I can about the boots and the process of transitioning them to going "barefoot". Have either of you seen or used the Easyboot Trail boot? I will look up the others you mentioned and also will check on some of the blogs or facebook groups, Thanks again!

Now GM, no smarta...s remarks about horses going barefoot. :) After shoes have been removed, there is a period of transition before a horse can be completely be barefoot all the time. Some horses may always need boots if their lifestyle prevents their feet from toughing up. For instance if they're on irrigated pasture, if they're always stalled and have no movement, or if area they're kept in is always soft (hard packed dirt is better than soft sand/dirt). Pete Ramey and Jaime Jackson have good material to inform yourself about keeping your horse barefoot. Sometimes transitioning can take months so please don't give up. Your horse really is better off in the long run. Why do "they" say to pull their shoes off in the winter to give their feet a break? Mmmmmmmmm.... My gelding has been barefoot for about 6.5 years now. Shoes are a thing of the past in his world and mine. Hoof wall is nice and thick. I still have issues with some rocky places as his lifestyle is not conducive (sp?) to always being barefoot where we ride. Thus the boots. I have Renegades which I like for their durability, but those dang elastic bands can be troublesome for my puny strength fingers. If you have long fingernails, forget it. :) Cavallo Simple Boot is good, yet if riding through a bunch of cheatgrass, there's a poopload of it to pick out of the velcro. Easy to put on and take off. The Cavallo Sport boot is narrower than the Simple. More for horses with narrower feet or for some horses back feet which tend to be not as wide as front feet. Still have a pair of Old Macs I used on my big ol' Thorobred. I like those. On Facebook you can join barefoot sites where folks are selling boots as their horse's hooves change in size. I had to go up a size in the front, so now his Renegades fit his back feet. There's lot of information out there. Ask around in your local area. You can get some prices on boots that have barely been worn. Most folks won't take the time to help the horse transition so they go back to shoes and sell the boots. Lot less expensive for a trim every 6-8 weeks than a shoeing every 8 weeks. My 1-1/2 cents. :)

My boys are barefoot and get trimmed regularly, no shoes. Usually my guys are good for a ride without their boots, yet if I ride in rocky terrain or are going to be out for a long while, they get their boots. I like the BOA boots. Easy and affordable.

Isn't the "barefoot" thing about not needing any added protection?

I have recently had the shoes on both of my paint horses removed, had them trimmed, with my intentions being to achieve good strong barefoot hooves with time and good trimming practices. I have begun researching and reading about this. I want to buy the hoof boots to use when riding them on hard surfaces and rocks. What types/brands have some of you used and what are your preferences and also problems you have had with different boots. Comments and recommendations on the "mustang" or natural barefoot trim are also welcome ~ Thanks!