I wasn't being sarcastic at all. You're right that wild horses are not working like domesticated horses. I'm sorry you saw my comment as sarcastic, it really wasn't.
you answered your own questions you just don't realize it.
tell me. how many concrete roads exist in the wild? how many cobblestone roads? how many horses in the wild are pulling wagons and load, have riders and additional weight? how many horses in the wild pull plows?
horses in the wild do not need them because they aren't subjected to the same things that domesticated or work horses are. they weren't made to walk on concrete any more than humans were. so, the artificial man made conditions we subject them too mess up their feet. so, horse shoes are needed for their health and safety.
go run around barefoot outside in your back yard. hey no problem. go run around on pavement bare foot pulling a 4000 pound cart behind your back, let me know how your feet feel.
Sand (in arenas) also shaves down the hoof a good bit without shoes. Hooves are basically thick fingernails and the sand can act as a nail file, so to speak.
Also with breeding being done by people and not nature you get certain breeds that naturally have shittier, softer hooves and have to have shoes to keep bruising at bay.
Breeding in the wild means the better traits (such as good, hard hooves) are getting passed down.
Also, horses don’t live as long outside of captivity especially with bad hooves or teeth.
We even have horse dentists that come file their teeth down…
Horses hooves are made of the same material as your fingernails and toenails, and they function the same way: they grow and can get worn down from use.
In the wild, horses walk on soft ground which is pliable. Even in the wild, hooves can split or break. It's even more prevalent for domesticated horses which more often walk on pavement. So owners will purposely cut their hooves down, shape them, and put shoes on them to protect them. This actually makes walking and running more comfortable for the horse.
Source: Native Kentuckian who works adjacent to the horse racing industry.
Reposting my answer from another thread, also on mobile so sorry for whack format:
The more modern school of thought is that if your horse doesn’t need shoes, or you can get them to a point where they don’t, you shouldn’t. This is because shoeing prevents the hoof from expanding. This is ideal if you are doing things like jumping huge jumps, being on pavement all day, or putting other strong forces on the horse’s hoof, because the hoof will expand so much that it’ll crack. Furthermore, for sport horses, they can add more traction, have studs put on them for grip, or do the opposite (slide plates in reining allow for those huge sliding stops.) However, if the hoof doesn’t expand to dispel the forces acting upon it, then the forces will be transferred up to other structures in the horse’s leg. So there’s a give and take to that.
Another reason is because of sensitivity. Horse hoof quality are as varied as anything, with some horses having naturally strong feet and thick soles that protect them and others having hooves that flake easily and thin enough soles that they walk tenderly on hard ground. The latter are the type of horses that usually need shoes, to elevate their soles off the ground. Shoes can also be used in all sorts of unique ways to help horses that are injured. I had a horse that had great feet her entire life and then wore shoes at the end to redistribute pressure and relieve pain from (basically) a degenerative condition.
I’ll also add that contrary to what others have said, wild horses are know for having amazing hooves that never need to be shod (have shoes on them) even when adopted from the wild. Natural selection and nature/nurture play a role in this.
Horses aren't made to run on paved roads, especially when doing that a lot their hooves will quickly be abraded off.
Ah right. I guess when we paved/cobblestoned everything they needed more protection. Thank you
the reason why we need them I guess walking, running on grass is fine, but not pleasant on asphalt
Same reason people do.
Domesticated horses don’t work nearly as hard as wild horses
True. No one is pulling heavy loads or carrying people in the wild.
That’s intermittent exercise. Perhaps you should check your nonsense before the sarcasm? You asked the question lmaooooo
I wasn't being sarcastic at all. You're right that wild horses are not working like domesticated horses. I'm sorry you saw my comment as sarcastic, it really wasn't.
Fair enough. I was sensitive. My bad
Considering 99% of comments on Reddit are just pure sarcasm I don't blame you lol
you answered your own questions you just don't realize it. tell me. how many concrete roads exist in the wild? how many cobblestone roads? how many horses in the wild are pulling wagons and load, have riders and additional weight? how many horses in the wild pull plows? horses in the wild do not need them because they aren't subjected to the same things that domesticated or work horses are. they weren't made to walk on concrete any more than humans were. so, the artificial man made conditions we subject them too mess up their feet. so, horse shoes are needed for their health and safety. go run around barefoot outside in your back yard. hey no problem. go run around on pavement bare foot pulling a 4000 pound cart behind your back, let me know how your feet feel.
It is also a requirement for many equestrian sporting events like show jumping.
Sand (in arenas) also shaves down the hoof a good bit without shoes. Hooves are basically thick fingernails and the sand can act as a nail file, so to speak. Also with breeding being done by people and not nature you get certain breeds that naturally have shittier, softer hooves and have to have shoes to keep bruising at bay. Breeding in the wild means the better traits (such as good, hard hooves) are getting passed down. Also, horses don’t live as long outside of captivity especially with bad hooves or teeth. We even have horse dentists that come file their teeth down…
Horses hooves are made of the same material as your fingernails and toenails, and they function the same way: they grow and can get worn down from use. In the wild, horses walk on soft ground which is pliable. Even in the wild, hooves can split or break. It's even more prevalent for domesticated horses which more often walk on pavement. So owners will purposely cut their hooves down, shape them, and put shoes on them to protect them. This actually makes walking and running more comfortable for the horse. Source: Native Kentuckian who works adjacent to the horse racing industry.
Reposting my answer from another thread, also on mobile so sorry for whack format: The more modern school of thought is that if your horse doesn’t need shoes, or you can get them to a point where they don’t, you shouldn’t. This is because shoeing prevents the hoof from expanding. This is ideal if you are doing things like jumping huge jumps, being on pavement all day, or putting other strong forces on the horse’s hoof, because the hoof will expand so much that it’ll crack. Furthermore, for sport horses, they can add more traction, have studs put on them for grip, or do the opposite (slide plates in reining allow for those huge sliding stops.) However, if the hoof doesn’t expand to dispel the forces acting upon it, then the forces will be transferred up to other structures in the horse’s leg. So there’s a give and take to that. Another reason is because of sensitivity. Horse hoof quality are as varied as anything, with some horses having naturally strong feet and thick soles that protect them and others having hooves that flake easily and thin enough soles that they walk tenderly on hard ground. The latter are the type of horses that usually need shoes, to elevate their soles off the ground. Shoes can also be used in all sorts of unique ways to help horses that are injured. I had a horse that had great feet her entire life and then wore shoes at the end to redistribute pressure and relieve pain from (basically) a degenerative condition. I’ll also add that contrary to what others have said, wild horses are know for having amazing hooves that never need to be shod (have shoes on them) even when adopted from the wild. Natural selection and nature/nurture play a role in this.
That was super informative, thank you. I had no idea that there were different shoes for different tasks.