Bucky is an Appendix Quarter Horse in his late teens.  We pulled his shoes about 4 years ago and his owner has never looked back!  He has been a fairly easy case from the start, unlike some others.  Bucky's feet were pretty contracted with unhealthy frogs, underrun heels and long toes - long enough that he demonstrated that "toe flicking" action that occurs when a horse's toes are too long and breakover is incorrect.

He has successfully been ridden in 7-10 mile hunter paces over all sorts of terrain, with no boots.  Don't be fooled at the success with this horse - it does not come without the owner putting her time in!  Boots were used for the first year and then she started to handwalk him over different terrain to see how he responded and did not push him above his spectrum of usability.  On a trail ride, if the terrain was too difficult for him barefoot, she would get off and handwalk him so that his feet were exposed to different types of terrain but within his spectrum at that particular time.