Nature knows best. Here at Cabalgatas Canoa we believe that a barefoot horse is a happy horse. What is a barefoot horse? The answer is pretty simple, a horse that does not have metal horse shoes. In Ecuador it is common to see horses without shoes.
Sometimes our clients are surprised when they meet their horse for the first time before they depart on their horse riding tour, that there are no shoes on the horse. Quite simply, this is much more natural and healthier for the equine foot. A hoof is not solid. It is a highly flexible, shock-absorbing and living organ with a great blood and lymph supply. When we nail iron shoes to a horses hoof, the hoof is unable to flex with every step the horse takes and therefore the blood circulation and shock absorption qualities of the natural hoof suffer. When a horse carries a rider it is even more important that the hoof is able to behave naturally. A barefoot horse is a happy riding horse!