Proper hoof care for your horse is the basis for a vital and active horse life. If the care of the horse’s hoof is neglected, painful illnesses and a painfully altered gait are possible consequences. Individual Solutions So that you can protect your horse from this, we will now show you instructions on how to properly care for your horse’s hooves in 8 steps.
Why hoof care is so important
A happy and fit horse needs healthy hooves. The hooves carry your horse throughout his entire life, are used constantly and protect his toe bones from injuries in the stable, on the meadow and on stony ground. A lack of care and the resulting illnesses can lead to misalignments that affect his entire skeleton. HORSE HOOF CARE Thrush in particular is often associated with a lack of hoof care, in which putrefactive bacteria decompose the soft frog of the hoof.
Both the hooves of barefoot horses and horses wearing horseshoes must be cleaned and cared for regularly. In addition to the general, daily hoof care that you take on as a horse owner, it is your responsibility to refer your horse to an expert (farrier, technician, orthopedist) in the event of special hoof care, hoof trimming and correction.
Scrape out hooves
Both in the stable and on the meadow as well as when riding, your horse kicks twigs, dirt, straw and manure into the grooves of the hoof. Especially in the paddock, larger stones can get into the area of the white line, into the sole or the frog furrows. If you do not remove the foreign bodies, they will push upwards and can injure the hoof dermis. A clean hoof also protects against pathogens and parasites.
You should scratch your horse’s hooves daily and check for the following foreign bodies:
branches
Glass
Nails
sharp plastic
With a hoof scraper and a brush you can easily clean the hooves and at the same time remove loose sole and frog remnants. You can smooth out small bumps, corners and cracks on the supporting edge of the hoof with a hoof rasp or file. Best Horse Breeds For Beginners This prevents small cracks from opening further and creating horny gaps.
If you discover small holes in the horn, you should clean them, fill them with cotton wool (soaked in tar) or hemp and brush them out with hardwood tar or horn strengthener. Of course, this procedure does not protect against new holes, so if in doubt you should always contact your farrier.
So that you can react quickly in the event of illness, you should check the hoof daily for foreign bodies, swelling and pain. Excessive heat build-up in the hoof can be a sign of the beginning of a hoof ulcer. However, if you feel an increased pulse in the front hooves, you should have your horse checked for laminitis.
Regular washing
Part of hoof care is regular washing of the hooves. Rinsing with water has two advantages for your horse: On the one hand, coarse dirt and stuck-on earth are removed from the hoof crevices.
On the other hand, it keeps the hoof nice and moist. You can also remove dirt with a wet brush.
Treat dry hooves: water boots and foot baths
Moisture and elasticity play a fundamental role in a healthy horse’s hoof. That’s why you should always check during your routine whether the hooves are sufficiently moist. Horn that is too dry cracks, splinters, creates deep furrows and becomes deformed, even resulting in a hoof misalignment. In some places (such as the frog, the glaze layer, the white line or the ball horn) the hoof is softer and can absorb water better. Horse Care In Winter These areas regulate the hoof’s water absorption and also supply the hard sole and the horn wall with moisture.
Regular washing is important to keep the hoof hydrated – but if the hooves are very dry, rinsing is not enough. Water boots for horses are an alternative. They are filled with water and placed around the hoof like a hoof bell. They continuously release moisture to the hoof and protect it from drying out. Otherwise, a moist, well-fixed wrap or even a conventional diaper can also serve as an alternative.
If you don’t have water boots at hand, you can care for and moisten your horse’s hooves with foot baths. The easiest way to do this is to put your horse in a stream, shallow lake or river for 15 minutes. The hooves soak optimally within a quarter of an hour. If there is no open water nearby, your horse’s patience is required. Because then you have to put his hooves in a bucket filled with water and do the foot bath.
Grease and oil hooves appropriately
Fats, oils and balms have a certain protective and care function, but healthy horse hooves do not need to be greased regularly. Hoof fat does not help, especially with dry hooves. Instead, it prevents the hoof from absorbing moisture and promotes further drying out.
Veterinarians usually recommend the following for horses in stables or dry areas: The hooves should be moistened with water (water baths or water boots) twice a week and, after draining, rubbed thinly with acid-free hoof grease or oil. Horseflies And Gadflies Since the fat forms a certain moisture barrier, the absorbed moisture remains between the horny layers of the hoof for longer and promotes elasticity. Especially in winter, the fat layer protects against aggressive road salt and excessive water absorption by the hooves.The frequent use of hoof fat and oil only makes sense if your horse tends to have soggy hooves, e.g. B. stands for a long time in damp hay or on wet ground (mud).If you want to oil the hooves for a test or competition, you should only coat the outer wall.
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