I have a simple and a quick answer for you. Every 6 to 8 weeks, 12 months of the year. Now we can go into different discussions about why and we can have some tell us that "we do our horse in the spring and fall and they are just fine" and some other person telling me "wild horses are never trimmed" and soooo on :)
Now as per "wild horses". Well the honest answer is most of you never saw wild horses. We see many in the wild and we trimmed many after they were caught also. And believe me, if you want your horses feet too look like wild horse's feet, then you are completely clueless because they are usually so bad that the horse gets eaten by other critters often simply because he can't run away due to his feet any more. The pictures you see online of these super wild mustangs feet are very nice and I wish for all wild horses to have feet just like that, but it only happens in Walt Disney movies.
It comes down to expectations. We expect a lot from "our" horses and we try to give them a lot of care and attention back as I think it's only fair and simply it just makes sense to us. If your horse is only a pasture ornament and lives in a big pasture and is genetically one of the luckier ones that have good feet and wears them out straight and you are fine with neglecting him, then he probably will survive without ever seeing a farrier in his life. Will his life be fun, no, but that already comes back down to one's expectations.
Often there are people that don’t think much about their horse till July when they want to go camping and their feet are so bad that they want shoes to "keep his feet together" or to "fix the cracks" etc. Well that usually doesn't work this way. And most likely the same person will forget all about the horse at the end of August again anyway. Shoes are a necessary evil that in my opinion is needed when you go on terrains that require hoof protection (unless you need them for some very specific problems, which is maybe 1% of the cases). They rarely fix problems, but they often can prevent them! As much as cause them tho, there is a fine line. But that’s a different article all on it's own. I almost guarantee you that you wont fix cracks because you put shoes on, probably the opposite will happen. You will fix cracks by getting your horse on regular 6-8 week schedule and do it properly. If you do fix it with shoes, its because its done proper and regularly. As a matter of fact "I" often recommend pulling shoes off if the feet are falling apart and have bad cracks. Again the most important is to do it regularly and year round.
Horses feet grow in the winter just as much as in the summer. Ok, they might grow slower then July and August in Alberta Canada, but then they might grow some years slower in July because its dry and twice as fast in May because its warm and wet and grass grew fast. That's why if you do it year round, 6-8 weeks apart, I will guarantee you that you will be fine. One time your horse might be a bit longer then lets say perfect scenario and one time he might not need it really as much yet, but at the end of the year it simply evens out and you should never run into any major issues. Again, if it's done right. If someone doesn't know how to do it, well then you can have your horse's feet trimmed or shod every 3 weeks and he will still be sore of course.
When it comes to "fixing" hoof issues, foundered horses, bad cracks, stretched tendons due to very bad angles etc, then we often start with few 4-6 week sessions to do gradually and not let it get out of our hands sort of speak.
Money wise. Well what is your horse worth to you. Really that’s what it depends on. I can tell you that if you will stretch your farrier dates, you might save $100 a $150 or so a year and it can cost you a lot more when he busts a great big chunk off his hoof and will be lame or if his angles get compromised.
This leads me to another point. For "me" chips are a normal wear and tear and are not a big issue unless they are extreme due to overgrown feet. Lot of people worry when they see a chip in their horse's foot and call us all freaking out and sending pictures :) No no, its not the thing to worry about.
The biggest problems with not regular trimming is compromised angles! Big time. I carry about 5 examples of feet that I trimmed off of horses to show what can happen and what happens very normally and regularly every day. If your horse's foot is off, he will be sore, he wont travel straight, his tendons will hurt, his muscles will hurt and eventually his joints will deform. Fetlocks, knees, hocks and then the spine. Then you need a chiropractor (in good cases), massages or whatever.
The biggest problems with not regular trimming is compromised angles! Big time. I carry about 5 examples of feet that I trimmed off of horses to show what can happen and what happens very normally and regularly every day. If your horse's foot is off, he will be sore, he wont travel straight, his tendons will hurt, his muscles will hurt and eventually his joints will deform. Fetlocks, knees, hocks and then the spine. Then you need a chiropractor (in good cases), massages or whatever.
Next bad thing to happen is bad cracks, especially the ones that go all the way to the coronary band. They are often hard to fix and take 12 months or more of regular trims to grow out.
Last things to consider is a training aspect and safety of your farrier. Is it fair to your horse or to your farrier to be done once or twice a year? How is the horse suppose to know what to do and be good with it? What kinda farrier do you think you will get that does horses like this? Well I guess if its a complete grandma's horse that just stands for anyone no matter what, then he will.
So, it's up to you. :-)
J.K.
J.K.