Farrier's Formula

[chev]

I've been giving one of our ponies Farrier's Formula (she has awful feet) which I bought from our farrier. He said it was the best suplement I could give her to encourage healthy hooves. Now my vet has said that just giving a biotin supplement in her feed would work just as well, but be cheaper. Which is right? I'm confused!

[skye]

Depends on the pony.Biotin works excellently on some horse but not on others.I think farriers formula must be good as a lot of people seem to use it with success and its the only product the laminitis trust use on all thier patients even if there feet are good.If you are using farriers formual you shouldn't need to use so much hard feed or use a vitamin &mineral supplement as it provides most of the nutrients the horse needs.Might be worth trying the biotin ,but if the farriers formula is working keep withit!

[heland]

Hi

I do agree with skye.

My Tb had terrible very soft hooves and 2 small dorsal cracks. I was advised by the farrier to use Farriers Formular, he did say that sometimes it doesn't work as every horse is different.

I noticed results after 10 weeks, and now his hooves are lovely and shiney and the cracks are no longer visible. His coat is also really shiney.

[chev]

I'll stick with it then. Her feet are much better, she hadn't seen a farrier for years before we bought her and she'd had abscesses which burst through the top of her coronet so the new hoof growth was really weak. Her feet are still a bit dodgy but much better than they were so it's obviously doing some good. She's never had laminitis but she is a prime candidate for it so I'd be better off with Farrier's Formula I think. Thanks for that!

[Lucy J]

I used it on my old horse and it worked a treat. I am using it on my new horse as her feet are in a terrible state, all cracked from not seeing a farrier. I can see the new growth coming through and it looks better, however she's only been on it for 6 weeks. What I hope to do is once her feet have regrown all the way down, to change onto a biotin supplement that won't be as costly, or reduce the farriers formula to a maintenance level. She is on blue chip too.

I'll keep you posted on her progress.

[Speedy]

Hooves require more nutrients than just biotin - the trouble with a pure biotin supplement is that the hooves only receive biotin, so improvement is much slower. Farriers formula contains all the nutrients that are required for healthy hoof growth.

[chev]

Speedy - once the feet are strong and healthy would it be possible to switch to biotin if a balancer like Blue Chip is fed without losing out on the nutrients?
Lucy - do let me know how your mare gets on. Is she shod at all? Cerys's feet have never been good enough to take shoes but I'm hoping they'll improve some more. It's not an issue right now as she's about to foal but when she comes back to work in the Autumn I feel she'll need shoes then. Her feet tend to get a bit sore on hard ground.
Thanks again!

[Danae]

I use Farrier's Formula on both of my horses. Gator has very bad sand cracks and has never had the best of hooves.

Hopi's hooves are too short therefore she has bruised her toe from stopping/pawing. Luckily, she has gotten over this habit so it's giving the hooves time to grow.

Farrier's Formula is basicly a stimulant for growth. Why are you giving your horse FF specificly? Are her hooves tender? Or do they need growth? If they are tender/bruised try this mixture my farrier gave me (it did wonders for Hopi)..

Use Venice Turpentine 2x's a day

Reducine with Asorbine's Hooflex mixed 50/50 2x's a day..

The Turpentine will toughen the hooves, while the Reduce draws the soreness out. The Hooflex conditions the hoof and keeps it supple.

[doris]

My farrier recommended Farriers Formula for my welsh x appaloosa Millie, who doesn't have the best of feet. The shoe nails could pull straight through. She has been on FF for about 2 & a half years now & her shoes never fall off, except once or twice in heavy mud when she's clipped the back of the front shoe with a back hoof and literally pulled it off. I have her shod every 6 weeks. I wouldn't stop using it on her as it seems to work. Something else I use is keratex hoof hardener. I use it on both Millie & Harriet. Harriet is now 7 years & has never worn shoes at all - she's got good hard feet and never comes up footsore after excercise. I am always guided by my farrier regarding feet/shoes etc.

[chev]

Danae - her feet were horrific when we bought her because of the neglect she'd suffered. Because she's a native her hooves grow pretty slowly and this combined with the (very) poor quality horn meant that big chunks of her hoof were breaking off and the edges of her feet were constantly uneven and cracked. Originally she was started on it to basically encourage her feet to "grow out", as our farrier put it, which he told us could take about a year and a half at the rate her feet grow. Since then they have improved but they still crack and chip (only this morning she lost a huge piece off the front of her off hind) but the quality and speed of new growth is still not great. Her hoof is still not strong enough to hold a shoe.

Maybe it would be worth trying a hoof hardener as well? Her feet are an odd shape as well - they have a tendency to splay at the bottom which the farrier said is because they weren't shaped for so long. He also said that isn't helping but again, it's just a matter of time and perseverence. Her back feet are a much better shape now - it's her front ones that look dodgy. She's trimmed every 6 - 8 weeks but there isn't always anything to trim off!

[Danae]

What it sounds like is you are dealing with the exact same thing we were but at a great extent...

I definately recommend using the terpentine (but naturally check with your farrier to see if he/she agrees) because it is a hoof sealent/hardner

Best of luck and it sounds as if the recommendation for Farrier's Formula was a very wise one.