Grooming, Caring for the Outside of Your Horse

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General
This is a collection of various grooming articles. If we get a number of them on the same subject we will make that a new sub topic.
Horse Shoeing	The Equine Hoof Madalyn Ward Common Hoof Ailments Madalyn Ward What Makes a "Good" Foot? Madalyn Ward
Horse shoes, farrier techniques, foot care are part of this subtopic.
Show Grooming
This subtopic is dedicated to getting your horse ready for a show or riding event.

Latest Article in this Topic

The Equine Hoof

by DVM Madalyn Ward of Bear Creek Veterinary Clinic

Our thanks to: Bear Creek Veterinary Clinic

We have all heard the expression "no hoof, no horse," but how seriously do we believe this. It is tempting to take the hoof for granted until problems develop. It takes a horse 8 months to 1 year to regrow a healthy hoof so you want to catch problems before lameness develops or you may have a long wait for soundness to return. The best way to avoid problems all together is to understand how the hoof is constructed and do everything possible to keep it healthy.

The Hoof Capsule

Structure:

The outside of the hoof (hoof wall, sole and frog) is like modified fingernail. Both fingernail and hoof consist of flattened cells, filled with a protein called keratin. What is different about hoof is that some of the cells are arranged in tubules, while others remain stacked flat. The tubules run from from the coronary band to the free border of the hoof and the intertubular cells are more or less parallel to the coronary band. This arrangement produces an internal structure similar to fiberglass.

Function

The main function is to protect the inner soft tissues as well as helping to absorb concussion when the hoof strikes the ground. It also suspends the full weight of the horse by it's attachments to the bony column. The hoof must be of good quality to fulfill these functions. If it is to soft it will not protect the inner structures from bruising and if it is too brittle it will crack and split rather than absorbing shock.

Care

Have you ever wondered why some horses have healthy feet no matter what the weather conditions? This is because a healthy hoof capsule will resist moisture and remain resilient even in hot dry conditions. Good quality hooves is an inherited trait but a bad diet and poor management can ruin even the best foot.

Top of the list in hoof care is diet. Horses need adequate protein and trace minerals to build a healthy foot. The quality of the protein is critical because certain amino acids such as methionine are especially important. Simply feeding a high protein feed does not guarantee the correct balance of amino acids and in fact excessive protein in the diet can damage the feet. If the diet is higher in protein that what is needed the extra protein is excreted in the urine. A horse on too high a protein diet will urinate more causing a wet stall and the ammonia in the urine is caustic to the hooves.

Most adult horses do not need more than a 10% protein diet. Trace minerals such as sulfur are also important for hoof quality. These trace minerals must come in a form that is digestible for the horse. Most free choice mineral blocks or powders are designed for cattle not horses.

Also some minerals are more expensive than others so most formulated supplements have more of the cheap minerals and less of the expensive ones. This can throw the horses mineral balance off creating deficiencies even with adequate intake. There are numerous supplements on the market which claim to improve hoof quality. The only ones I have had consistent results with have been Farrier's FormulaT and Cell Tech Blue GreenT algae. In some very bad cases I have even combined these supplements and gotten results.

If your horse is on a good whole grain diet and a good supplement but still has bad feet you may want to add a probiotic such as FastrackT. Biotin is a vitamin which is essential for healthy hooves. The beneficial bacteria in the horses large intestine produce this vitamin for the horse. If your horse is stressed or for whatever reason does not have good bacteria he will be deficient in biotin. It is much better to maintain healthy bacteria than to try and supplement single nutrients.

If your horse still has bad feet despite good feed it is necessary to look at his assimilation of nutrients. The best way to address this is through homeopathy. Homeopathy will improve your horses digestion by bringing his whole system back into balance. Excessive vaccination is one of the most common causes I find for poor assimilation of nutrients.

Management

Hooves are easiest to maintain under dry conditions as it is easier to add moisture to the foot that take it away. Repeated wet and dry cycles are the hardest on the hoof. Try to keep your horses feet as dry as possible and if that is not possible keep the foot as clean as possible. A soft foot is more prone to infection from bacteria and fungus in contaminated bedding. Feed a good quality whole food diet and supplement as needed. Consider a homeopathic consultation if your horse continues to have hoof problems despite good management.

RATINGS AND COMMENTS

About the Author

My name is Madalyn Ward, and I graduated from Texas A&M University in 1980. I worked in an equine practice until 1985, then started my own practice at Bear Creek Veterinary Clinic in Austin, Texas. After four more years of practice, I remained frustrated about many aspects of western medicine. Despite regularly attending conferences, consulting with experts and reading all the latest literature, I was still not curing many chronic conditions. I also found many standard conventional practices very invasive and unappreciated by my patients. I wanted my patients to live happier as well as healthier lives. In 1989 I started seeking out information and training in alternative healing methods. I was and continue to be amazed at the wealth of knowledge about true healing — knowledge largely ignored by conventional teaching institutions. I find the horse-owning public and practicing veterinarians who have faced similar frustrations are open to alternative methods.

Madalyn‘s Contact Info
Web site     Phone: (512) 288-0428