Bailey is an Irish draught x TB whom we bought as a 3 year old in Ireland. She had terrible, full-depth cracks in 3 feet, which was one of the factors that made us try barefoot originally. The cracks healed pretty easily once she was out of shoes, but it became clear that she was a horse whose feet were immediately affected by any problems with her diet. Too much sugar - Bailey was footy; too much grass - Bailey was footy; inadequate minerals - Bailey was footy. For a while I wondered if there really were horses who "just couldn't go barefoot" - and if she was one of them - because her hooves seemed unable to reach a high enough level of performance.
The truth is that although Bailey (like most horses) has the potential for rock-crunching, incredibly healthy feet, they don't happen by accident! Unlike Felix and Ghost, everything has to be "just right" for Bailey's feet to be fantastic, and the most crucial element is her diet.
Once we managed to fine-tune that, she amazed us by her ability to be totally sound and tough over the stoniest terrain.
Like Felix, she has hunted 7 seasons barefoot, as well as covering miles and miles out hacking, jumping and schooling.
