The Institute for Barefoot Equine Management Ltd. (IBEM) is dedicated to providing high quality education about equine management and hoofcare. We view the world from the horses’ eyes and base our management on what the horse needs to thrive as a species, not necessarily what is most convenient for the human.
Our approach is holistic. We look at the entire horse and how the horse is affected by its environment and human. We are striving to achieve long term soundness, not quick fixes. To do this, we must identify and remove the cause(s) of unsoundness and allow the body to heal itself.
Our Trimming Philosophy is:
“Do as little as needed, but as much as necessary. ”
This means, when you have achieved a certain trim where the horse is comfortable, you leave it at this for now. If the horse is not loading properly, more needs to be done until such good loading is achieved. As a result, each trim is slightly different for each horse, or even each hoof on a single horse. We want the horse to load its feet better after a trim than before. This is a key requirement to be able to progress the horse.
We offer education that is based on logic, science, and proven management approaches – but also, the often hard to find, Common Sense. We believe that each horse owner, given a sound knowledge base, will make better decisions regarding their horses’ care.
Our goal is to offer training for horse owners to be able to provide a lifestyle to their horses, that allows them to go barefoot successfully. We also provide training for people who want to learn Holistic Hoofcare as a trade and work in this field on a professional basis. The current situation is that there are more people who would like their horses to go barefoot, than there are people who can look after those horses’ hooves.