very nice site.
I do not ride on a high level. i do not like competitions. But i ride a lot on the road and woods.
My horse has never had iron on his body, not in his mouth or veet. He walks very good over hard and soft way's. i walk every day a minimum of 20 minits on a hard ground. So i have to do less. He shape it by his own. Ones a year i call a farrier and he check if everything is okay. He says always lovely feet, no problems..go for it..beacutyfull feet...
i check it every week and keep the litle "mustangroll" in shape
So i say to everyone why irons?? But yes they said the same as you wrote.
My horses were a year before in a field which was 3 mile of the woods, i rode that every day. It was normal carway at first it was flat but after awaile they put on a kind of gravel. The horses did not like it much, but they get used to it and walked after a few weeks normal again.
My litle ponie have had a pair of shoes during a short period (6 months) he had some terrible sore feet. So i have helped him with the shoes. it was a perfect sellution for that period. He was happy again.
Now we do not uses the shoes anymore, but i have them for...??...you never know...
I have trimmed him differend in that time till i had found the perfect feet for him.
the horses are happy so i am too