Hoof care?

Question

What can I put on my horse's hooves when they are dry?

Answer 1

For your horses dry hooves, put vegetable oil on it a few times a week. let it soak in before putting turning them out again so it doesnt rub off.

Answer 2

I have used just about every hoof oil, cream, gel, goop, they make. The best ones that I have found are Hoof Alive and Hoof Heal by Cut Heal. The hoof alive is the messiest thing you will ever use, but it is the best. I highly recomend using rubber gloves to apply it because pretty much the only thing that will get it off your hands is lava soap. Just apply it liberaly to the top and bottom of the hoof. You want to massage it well around the coronary band and on the heel. This is very messy and time consuming, so I only do it once every week or so. For daily hoof care I use the Hoof Heal by Cut Heal. It should be applied to the top and bottom of the hoof as well. It is easy to apply and gives the hoof adequate moisture, helps keep the hoof from drying out when going from a wet pasture to a dry stall, and also helps prevent thrush (a big problem for my horses). This has been the best combination for me, I am able to keep all my horses barefoot and happy. I'll include the links to both products:

http://www.hoofalive.com/

http://www.statelinetack.com/global/product_detail.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524441770532&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=282574488339038&bmUID=1152692543669&itemNo=5&N=104&Ne=6

Answer 3

It is well known that hoof horn is at its most resilient when the bulk of the hoof wall is maintained throughout the year at an average water content of around 25%.

It is equally well known that hoof horn is damaged by rapid changes in the moisture content – as will happen when hooves, that have been saturated throughout Winter, start to dry at the approach of Summer. It is this drying that causes the hooves to crack and lose shoes - just at the time when competitions are underway, or riders simply want to take advantage of the long warm days to enjoy leisurely rides. But, all too often it is a case of ‘No Foot, No Horse’.

For a long time it was thought that dry hooves should be tubbed, or horses allowed to stand in a stream for an hour or so, just to get moisture back into the horn. But we now know that this rapid uptake of moisture, which causes the horn to swell, followed by sudden drying in high temperatures, causing the horn to shrink again, only exacerbates damage to the molecular structure of the hoof wall.

Because most domesticated horses live in environments that are quite different to the conditions for which they have naturally evolved the moisture content of horn needs far more careful control and management.

Keeping the hooves clean, specifically removing the build up of dirt accumulated from standing in stables, is very important. Just picking them out is not enough, as the ammonia builds up, causing damage to the structure of the hoof. I regularly scrub my horses feet with fresh, cold, water and let them air dry. Then I use either Keratex hoof moisturiser, Carr & Day & Martin Cornucrescine hoof moisturiser, or NAF hoof moist. I only use products designed to put a shine on the hooves, when they are in good condition, for competitions. If your horses feet are crumbly, Keratex Hoof Hardener can work miracles...

Answer 4

maximum farriers will allow you to understand that hoof dressings (the type painted on the exterior of the hoof) do not fairly do all that a lot. besides the undeniable fact that, I nonetheless use a dressing suggested as Hoof Heal each and every few days if the elements is fairly dry. I even do not have any medical data to again it up, yet i imagine it does help keep the hoof healthy in dry climate. I actually have heard from diverse farriers that feed through supplementations, like Farrier's pal, can easily help. search for a supplement that includes biotin. do not forget that it will take a number of months in the previous you'll be in a position to make certain the outcome of any feed through supplement, and in the intervening time proceed to exist softer footing once you are able to.

Answer 5

Water will moisturize the best. Lanolin will moisturize. Oil will seal the hoof and keep it from drying or absorbing more moisture. Ideally you should give them a short soak to let them aborb some of the moisture they need then coat them with an oil or tar based product to seal that moisture in. In very soggy wet pastures frequent applications of an oil product will keep the foot from getting to soft by sealing the extra water out.
The recommended and easiest method suggested at farrier school is to overflow your water trough daily so the horses get a mini soak when ever they get a drink. They don't aborb too much water then but they don't dry out. It does make a mess around the trough though.

Answer 6

There is still speculation about whether hoof oil or treatment works. I think to some extent it does and you can use this on your horses hooves. Another not so well known method to improve wall quality, reduce cracking and white-line seperation etc is hoof soaking. The paving may have a hoof-soaking pool set into it. It should take 2 horses and should be about 3m wide x 2m long and about 100mm deep. The edges must be sloped so that the pool can be easily swept empty. Horses can be fed while standing in the pool to enetertain them.

Answer 7

I like a product by Cut Heal called Hoof Heal. You can find it at statelinetack.com and valleyvet.com. It doesn't dry to a hard finish and it soaks in pretty quick. Plus you only have to use it 3 times a week....a lot of the owners at my barn use it, so I decided to try it and I haven't been disappointed.

Answer 8

There are a ton of hoof moisturizers out on the market. You can also use vegetable oil or petroleum jelly, make sure you rub them in really good.

Answer 9

You can use a product called Hooflex. It works great for moisturizing without all the stickiness of pine tar.

you can get it here: http://www.lambriarvetsupply.com/i_060ABS-00650A_Hooflex-Original-Conditioner-28-oz.php

Answer 10

hoof oil