HorseRiderSam, I wrote an article just last week on how Houston Mounted Patrol were going with natural hooves on concrete and pavement. Vote #7! Do you trim your own horse's hooves?

The issue with this is your making a lot of assumptions about the horse, for example: If you live in a very cold climate, there is a good chance that leaving your horse out 24/7 in the harsh winter is not the best thing for them. Can it be done? Yes. Can it be done safely? Of course. Is that the answer for ever horse? no. Of course barefoot trimming is much cheaper than shoes. However, some horses actually need shoes to help accomplish the jobs that they do. Not to mention that there are many types of shoes, some which don't need to be nailed on at all. You're not going to be saving any money if you have an unhappy horse with unhappy feet. Also, unless you are a trained professional or have been guided on how to correctly trim horses feet by a trained professional, you should NEVER EVER try and undergo your own hoof work unless you want at best, a sore horse, or at worse, a vet bill much larger than if you had called a professional in the first place. Many horses in demanding jobs NEED grain to keep their weight, and also many horses need grain for additional nutritional supplements depending on their build and/or individual metabolism. It's just like an athlete. Sure, someone who's going to the gym once a week and has a normal metabolism isn't going to need a whole lot of extra calories, however, someone who goes to the gym five times a week and has a much high metabolic rate might need to eat double or even triple what the other person eats simply because of the calories they are expanding. This creates the need for 'dense' calories, instead of light calories. Think of it as the difference between eating a fruit salad and a burger for a meal if the burger was to bring you to your caloric goal for the day. The fruit salad might be filling, but it will not keep you full as long as the burger; your body will burn through it and you'll be left with a net number of calories for the day, thus losing weight. The same principle goes for a horse, or rather any animal. Depending on the base metabolic rate, a certain amount of calories is needed each and every day to sustain a goal weight. While some may be able to meet that goal through a low number of calories, the actual amount needed lies in the individual, therefore advice such as this could seriously cause an animal harm. I would much rather use leather than nylon. Leather breaks in cause of an emergency, nylon does not. Not to mention nylon and similar material is rough, course, and can cause rubbing among other discomfort issues. The bitless bridle is a solution for some, but not all animals, it can even be very harsh if the rope is thin, as it will have more bite. Honestly I would rather see a rider with quiet hands riding in a bit than any old yahoo ripping on their horses face in one of those things because they think it's 'natural' when in reality they're possibly damaging nerves and blood vessels. This type of advice is what ends well meaning but honestly clueless owners in over their heads with an unhealthy, unhappy horse. All feeding, trimming, and living advice should at the very least come from a vet or farrier. If they say your horse is fine to live out on pasture 24/7? Awesome. if they say your horse can go barefoot? Great! They say your horse doesn't need grain? Fantastic! But don't assume just because it's labeled as 'natural horsemanship' that it is somehow superior when in fact it could be hurting your horse.