I prefer barefoot if possible. My horse goes barefoot, we go riding outside the arena at least twice a week, some weeks every day, and here that means riding over asphalt and gravel roads for most part of the rides (20 - 30 kilometres of asphalt in one ride isn't an exception). He also does dressage, showjumping and eventing barefoot on grass and he never slips. But I know this is an exception, I've ridden very few horses that had that kind of hooves and were that sure footed.
I'm not opposed to shoeing at all, but I do believe there are many horses that just have shoes because there owners think a horse is supposed to. I am opposed to 'natural' hoof trimming, I think hoofcare should be left to professionals, and I don't think it's natural at all. In most cases I see people adjusting and trimming the hooves in a way they THINK natural hooves should look like, not minding the angles of the lower leg and foot or the horses own hoof shape.

About the statement in the first post, yes it's rude and ignorant. I believe breeds that have been fully domesticated for a very long time were not really selected on hoof quality, because in most cases, they were shod anyway and didn't have to walk on hard terrain al the time. And that isn't going to be fixed just by some 'natural' trim. Horses that have not been fully domesticated for a very long time have had way more natural selection on hoof quality and hoof form.
It's also not entirely true that shoes don't allow for 'hoof mechanism', a shoe is nailed to the hoof only in the front of the hoof, the sides that are not nailed to the hoof can still move outwards, and with a properly fitted shoe and good trimming the frog still touches the ground.

I've also found the 'natural' trim often goes hand in hand with NH people, and those people usually don't seem to be able to think outside of their own little box. I think it's like a sect, they only believe what their NH guru's tell them and they tend to see things very black and white, no grey area in between.


HUP HOLLAND HUP