The evidence base for this argument is much smaller than the volume of the argument suggests. Two published studies are worth knowing about: an 11-horse crossover study that measured hoof shape changing measurably in both directions over seven weeks, and a 14-horse study that found lower lameness scores in previously barefoot horses after 12 weeks of shoeing. Both are small, both state their own limitations, and neither settles the question for your horse. Nothing here recommends either option. The decision belongs to you, your farrier and your veterinarian, looking at one horse's feet and one horse's job.
Why the debate is louder than the evidence
Two things drive that.
The people arguing are usually arguing about different horses. A barefoot horse doing light work on soft ground and a shod horse in regular work on hard surfaces are not a controlled comparison, and most of the argument is people generalising from the horse in front of them.
Almost nobody in the argument is citing a study. When you go looking for the measured work, what exists is a handful of small studies rather than a body of evidence, and the researchers themselves are more cautious than the advocates.
That is not a reason to dismiss the question. It is a reason to be suspicious of anybody who answers it confidently.
What was actually measured: hoof shape
Malone and Davies published in Animals 9(12): 1017 in 2019. The design was a crossover study using 11 adult Quarter Horse mares, mean age 13 years, each of which went through both a shod and a barefoot period of seven weeks, with measurements at baseline, midpoint and endpoint (Malone SR, Davies HMS, 2019, read 2026-08-28).
What they found:
- Hoof angle: "hoof angle increased slightly (became steeper) when horses were barefoot but decreased (became less steep) when they were wearing shoes."
- Proximal hoof circumference, measured at the coronary band: "PHC decreased when horses were shod and barefoot, but this decrease was greater when horses were shod."
- Solar circumference: "solar circumference increased when horses were barefoot but decreased when horses were shod."
Their conclusion: "this study demonstrates a significant effect of shoeing on hoof shape," and they suggested "shod horses may benefit from a shorter shoeing interval to help mitigate the changes in hoof angle."
Their own stated limitations: a small sample of 11, an unbalanced crossover design because one horse withdrew, and measurement reliability concerns for some variables including heel height.
Note carefully what that study is and is not. It is evidence that shoeing changes the shape of the foot in measurable ways over seven weeks. It is not evidence that either state is better for the horse.
What was actually measured: movement
Panos, Morgan, Gately, Wilkinson, Uden and Reed published a short communication in the Journal of Animal Science in 2022 (101: skac374). Fourteen horses from the University of Connecticut riding program, all initially barefoot, were shod and assessed after 12 weeks (Panos et al., 2022, read 2026-08-28).
What they found:
- Lameness scores were lower after shoeing: "lower AAEP lameness scores were observed in shod horses…barefoot: 1.8 ± 0.2; shod: 0.8 ± 0.2; P = 0.001."
- Hock angles increased, with no difference in hock range of motion.
- Gait symmetry did not differ: "no significant differences in AIDE scores were observed between barefoot and shod for the front limbs, hind limbs, or whole horse measures."
Their conclusion: "shoeing previously barefoot horses improved AAEP lameness scores and increased hock angles, regardless of the type of shoe."
Their own stated limitation, quoted because it matters more than the headline: "a limitation is that the study was not designed to include a barefoot control group…we cannot definitively state that there were no other factors (such as continued exercise) that may have also contributed to the outcome."
That is the authors saying, in their own paper, that they cannot rule out that the horses simply improved over twelve weeks of work. Anybody citing this study as proof that shoes make horses sounder is citing past the limitation the authors wrote.
What both studies have in common
Small samples. Eleven horses in one, fourteen in the other.
Specific populations. Quarter Horse mares in one, a university riding program in the other.
Honest authors. Both papers name their own weaknesses, which is more than most of the pages in this argument do.
Neither is about your horse. A study of fourteen riding program horses does not tell you whether your horse should be shod, and no study of that size could.
What the decision actually turns on
Since the evidence does not decide it, here is what the people who can see your horse are weighing. This is a list of considerations, not a recommendation.
- The job. What surfaces, how often, how far, how fast.
- The ground he lives on. UF/IFAS Extension notes that overexposure to wet conditions can lead to hoof infections and that excessive moisture can weaken hooves (UF/IFAS, Hoof Care for Florida Horses, VM265, read 2026-08-28). The environment is part of this decision and it is covered separately in wet paddock management.
- The foot he has. Wall quality, sole depth, conformation. Your farrier can see this and a page cannot.
- Any existing condition. This moves the decision from farrier-and-owner to veterinarian-and-farrier.
- Wear against growth. A shod foot does not wear at the ground the way a barefoot one does, which is one reason the two states do not share a cycle length. We work through the published intervals in how often does a horse actually need the farrier.
- Whether a transition is being managed or just started. Changing state is a period, not a day, and the Panos study measured its horses at 12 weeks for a reason.
Two claims this page will not repeat
That barefoot is "natural" and therefore better. That is an argument from category rather than from evidence, and neither study above supports it.
That shoes fix or prevent lameness. The one study that found lower lameness scores after shoeing says in its own limitations that it had no barefoot control group and cannot rule out other factors.
Where a claim has no source, this site's rule is to leave it out rather than to hedge it, and that rule has removed more from this page than it has added.
If you are considering a change
Three things, in this order.
Talk to your farrier before you decide, not after. They have seen the foot at the end of a cycle, repeatedly, which is information no page and no forum has.
Involve your veterinarian if there is any existing problem, or if the change is being made in response to lameness rather than as a management preference.
Plan the transition period rather than the day. Both studies above measured at seven and twelve weeks, which tells you something about the timescale on which the foot responds. Whatever changes, it changes slowly, and UF/IFAS's three-eighths of an inch a month growth average is the reason.
Keep a record through it. Photograph the feet from the same angle at each farrier visit and note how the horse is working. The value is in the series, which is the same argument as in a per-horse health log your vet can actually use.
FAQ
Is barefoot better for horses than shoes?
No study located while writing this page answers that. What exists is a small body of measured work: an 11-horse crossover study finding that shoeing changes hoof shape over seven weeks, and a 14-horse study finding lower lameness scores after 12 weeks of shoeing, whose authors state they had no barefoot control group and cannot rule out other factors.
Does shoeing change the shape of a horse's hoof?
Malone and Davies (2019) measured exactly that in 11 Quarter Horse mares and found hoof angle became less steep when shod and steeper when barefoot, proximal hoof circumference decreased more when shod, and solar circumference increased barefoot and decreased shod. They called it a significant effect of shoeing on hoof shape.
Do shod horses need trimming more often?
Malone and Davies suggested that "shod horses may benefit from a shorter shoeing interval to help mitigate the changes in hoof angle." That is a suggestion from an 11-horse study rather than a rule, and your farrier's judgment on your horse's foot is what sets the interval.
Will taking my horse's shoes off make him sound?
Nothing on this page supports that and the one study that looked at the reverse direction found lower lameness scores after shoeing while naming its own inability to rule out other explanations. A horse who is lame needs a veterinarian rather than a change of hoof management chosen from a website.
How long does a transition take?
No source located gives a figure. The two studies here measured at seven and twelve weeks, and UF/IFAS puts average hoof growth at three-eighths of an inch a month, so the honest answer is months rather than weeks. Plan it with your farrier.
Why is this argument so heated if the evidence is thin?
Partly because the evidence is thin, and partly because the two sides are usually describing different horses doing different work on different ground. Almost nobody in the argument is citing a study, and the researchers who did the work are more cautious than the advocates.
Sources consulted: Malone SR, Davies HMS, "Changes in Hoof Shape During a Seven-Week Period When Horses Were Shod Versus Barefoot", Animals 9(12): 1017, 2019, read 2026-08-28, for the 11-horse crossover design, the hoof angle, proximal hoof circumference and solar circumference findings, the conclusion and the stated limitations; Panos KE, Morgan K, Gately R, Wilkinson J, Uden A, Reed SA, "Short Communication: changes in gait after 12 wk of shoeing in previously barefoot horses", Journal of Animal Science 101: skac374, 2022, read 2026-08-28, for the 14-horse design, the AAEP lameness scores, the hock angle and gait symmetry findings, the conclusion and the stated limitation about the absent control group; UF/IFAS Extension, "Hoof Care for Florida Horses" (VM265), read 2026-08-28, for the moisture statements and the three-eighths inch per month growth average.
This site is not written by a veterinarian or a farrier. Nothing here recommends shoeing or barefoot management for any horse, and nothing here is a diagnosis or a trimming instruction.