TOPIC	NATURAL TRIMMING	SHOEING
Is endorsed  by Clinton Anderson	YES- On December 20, 2005 Clinton Anderson's "Downunder Horsemanship" will air a show where he talks about the benefits of this technique and has been using it for quite some time.	NO- No longer shoes his horses.
Natural wear of hoof wall	YES- Normal movement will help wear the hoof wall	NO- Shoes prevent wearing of hoof walls and worse the walls grow at unnatural angles
Allows for expansion and contraction of the hoof during movement	YES- The natural expansion and contraction of the hoof during impact is allowed	NO- Shoes are a solid band of metal, nailed in the hoof restricting the contraction and expansion of the hoof during movement
Allows digital cushions to absorb impact when contacting the ground	YES- Proper trimming allows the heel buttress to be lowered allowing the digital cushion to toughen to absorb the impact.	NO- 70% of natural shock absorption is lost on shod hoofs. This mean the impact WILL affect the joints and bones.
Allows for natural "roll over" of the hoof during movement	YES- Because of the "Mustang roll" from quarters to quarters (side to side), this allows a natural "roll over", no matter which direction the horse is moving	NO- The shoe is a solid flat piece of metal. No "roll over" to it. Watch your shod horse, after time they will create a "roll over", from the way the horse moves. They are telling you that's what they need.
Allows for the natural movement of the hoof-"heel to toe"	YES- The natural trim is will give the hoof a low heel, and promote natural stepping of your horse's hoof.	NO- Picture yourself walking with a flat hard, non flexing piece of metal on your foot. At first you will try to walk heel to toe, but soon you will start walking "flat-footed" or even worse toe first.
Toughens sole of hoof, allowing for "all terrain" travel	YES- With time your horse's hoofs will become compacted, with solid "gravel crushing" soles. Just like you, your soles are protected, but the more you walk barefoot, the tougher your soles become.	NO- You horse's soles are always off the ground, the heels are high, the shoe "protecting" the sole from  touching the ground.
Aides blood circulation in the hoof	YES- From proper trimming, on impact, the walls expand and sole flattens, this allows the coffin bone to descend and the solar corium to fill with blood. Once the hoof leaves the ground, the hoof contracts sending the blood out. That's where the phrase "5 hearts" comes from.	NO- The shoe, a solid rigid band, is nailed and clipped into place. This allows for no expansion or contraction of the hoof. Less blood is circulated in the hoof, causing less growth, colder feet in the winter, and could lead to thrush.
Damages hoof walls	NO- Proper trimming will encourage proper growth and strengthen the hoof wall	YES- Nails are used to attach shoes. Over time the nails loosen, bacteria, and fungus have entrance into your hoof. When horses "lose" a shoe, they usually take a piece of wall with it.
In cold weather will lower the temperature of the hoof	NO- With properly trimming, the sole is concaved creating a "spoon"  like mechanism that digs in and throws out snow with movement.	YES- Metal bands and nails into the wall. We all know how cold metal gets in the winter, and this is a constant on your   horse's hoof.  Ever notice that chunk of ice you have to dig out, like a snowball in your horse's hoofs.   Not to mention less circulation thanks to the constriction from the shoe.
Less chance of injury to other horses	NO- As a defense some horses kick, but if you had to choose, I would take a kick from a horse without a shoe over a horse with a shoe any day.	YES- We all know the damage the kick from a shod horse can do to other horses. There are even some stables that will not allow you to shoe your horse's rear hoofs.
Creates problems such as white line separation, navicluar, laminitis, founder.	NO- Proper trimming has a high success rate in CURING these problems (See my case history page)	YES- After researching these aliments, I   believe that most of these problem are man made problems, through shoeing our horses. Yes, diet will contribute to laminitis and founder, but the shoeing techniques used to correct these ailments only add to the problem