Horse Talk

[Kusanar]

Does anyone have any advice on cracked hooves? I just recently got a 17 yr old palomino gelding and he has (what I think to be) major cracks in his hooves. We haven't gotten the farrier out to our place yet but...should I be putting hoof oil on his hooves? Supplements? Boots? Shoes? (He is barefoot) I'd appreciate any tips....I'll see if I can get pics. of his hooves soon.

A few questions: watch his feet when he sets them down, do the cracks stay the same width or do they expand? If they expand, I would recommend putting shoes on him until those cracks grow out to help stabilize the hoof. Is he working or just chilling in the field? If working, you need to do something soon, if just chilling, he's probably ok for a bit unless he's lame or something.

Get the farrier out as soon as you can, he will be able to tell you how bad the cracking is (may just be surface cracks) and be able to suggest something much better than we can since we can't actually handle the hoof and we aren't professionals in that area.

 

[BridebelieverDD]

A few questions: watch his feet when he sets them down, do the cracks stay the same width or do they expand? If they expand, I would recommend putting shoes on him until those cracks grow out to help stabilize the hoof. Is he working or just chilling in the field? If working, you need to do something soon, if just chilling, he's probably ok for a bit unless he's lame or something.

Get the farrier out as soon as you can, he will be able to tell you how bad the cracking is (may just be surface cracks) and be able to suggest something much better than we can since we can't actually handle the hoof and we aren't professionals in that area.

I haven't noticed the cracks of his hooves expanding at all. I was working him at first but now I'm waiting till he see's the farrier to work him more. The lady I got him from clipped his hooves while we were there looking at him and I think she clipped them a little to short....would that make conditions worse? We'll be having the farrier out really soon though.

 

[Kusanar]

I haven't noticed the cracks of his hooves expanding at all. I was working him at first but now I'm waiting till he see's the farrier to work him more. The lady I got him from clipped his hooves while we were there looking at him and I think she clipped them a little to short....would that make conditions worse? We'll be having the farrier out really soon though.

Too short hooves would make him tender footed, he would move like a person walking barefoot on gravel does, very carefully placing each hoof. Typically, longer hooves crack worse than shorter ones. How is your mud situation? Sometimes standing around in mud will dry their feet out and make them get surface cracks that aren't anything to worry about, just look bad.

I'm going to post a few pictures so you can see different levels of cracking.

This one, you can see the one big crack in the toe, the horizontal line is intentional and is there to make the crack stop going up the hoof, this crack needed attention to keep the crack from traveling into the sensitive parts of the hoof. The smaller cracks around the side aren't an issue.

This one looks NASTY but it's actually not that bad, all that would need to be done to this hoof is to take that flap off the side and clean the edges up some. This is what happens when a hoof gets too long, it will start chipping off on it's own and get these nasty looking flaps hanging off.

This one, I have a horse with a crack almost exactly like this, he is now 27 years old and has had the same crack in his hoof since he was 2 years old. I keep front shoes on him in the summer and when he is working due to stomping flies and running making the crack spread and travel up his hoof, but in winter he's barefoot and fine. We suspect that he damaged his coronet band when he was a foal and has a weak spot in his hoof wall that will never grow strong enough not to split.

 

[BridebelieverDD]

Calypso's hoof is more looking like the second picture except his isn't chipping at all. We have almost no mud at all where the horses are being housed. I think it's pea gravel that we have laid in there paddock but it isn't too much where they're only walking on gravel. We haven't fenced their pasture yet so they aren't to pasture at all...except for when we lead them around to eat grass. After I've seen some pictures his hooves don't look like they are very bad.....When you have no comparison it's hard to see how bad it really is.

 

[abigalerose]

Aww so you finally sold Jasmine!?

And are you going to get a mini or something for company or does she seem okay?

She seems okay. She was by herself before and was fine. She’s less of a brat lol. And she gets along well with the cows and some of the dogs. Which isn’t the same but she doesn’t seem too lonely

 

[ShrekDawg]

She seems okay. She was by herself before and was fine. She’s less of a brat lol. And she gets along well with the cows and some of the dogs. Which isn’t the same but she doesn’t seem too lonely

That makes sense! And i hadn't realized there were cows and dogs, animals can be friends with other species.

 

[abigalerose]

Some new pictures of my baby

 

[ShrekDawg]

Awwww

 

[Peaches Lee]

I think the second to the last pic is a really nice example of fine photography. The way the sun is gently illuminating the horse and the how the building in the background is in the shade, also the pose of the horse has a certain peacefulness and tranquility to it. Very nice and a pleasure to look at.

 

[PeepersMama]

Some new pictures of my baby
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Duuuuuuude e