Hoof crack

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nikki.mepham

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May 18, 2015
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iv been helping a friend with her horses for a few months now and one of them has cracked hoofs , I asked about them and she says they look better then they were when she got him , well tonight when I went to lock up I found him with one of the cracks uploadfromtaptalk1432845767829.pngopened up and at a odd angle :/ what do u guys think ? Iv sent her the pic and she said ok she will get the farrier in , im not sure when she will tho :(
How bad is this ? I'm fairly new to keeping horses
Cheers
 
I'd say that's a bad crack could easily snap off and leave the horse lame. Mine has crappie feet. I sometimes get the farrier to put a kind of putty into the cracks to hold her feet together . But to be honest they've never been as bad as your picture.
 
Hi, IMO a farrier asap job. Has he seen a farrier in the last few months as tbh his hoof doesn't look at all even at all, although maybes its the camera angle. I definitely wouldn't ride a horse with a crack like that. x
 
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Iv not seen one this bad befor tonight , it was just a crack this morning but now its opened up, iv been telling my friend for weeks she should get the farrier in but as I'm "new" there my view kind of goes unheard :( my friend is going though alot atm so guess her mind is on other things right now , this horse has always had bad hoofs bless him but never like this
 
Iv been there 4 months and not seen a farrier since iv been there :( he isn't being ridden and I will be making sure she gets a farrier out ASAP this was my fear about his crack that it would open up but as iv said I'm new there and anything I say or question dosnt really get heard :( (hopefully that will change now she has seen what can happen ) the crack has opened up both outwards and apart if the makes sense :(
Any surrgestions or tips I could try and give her about his hoofs ? Ie is there anything she should be adding extra in his food ect to improve his hoofs ? As I'm not sure what she has tried
And thank u for ur replies
 
Tbh you can get biotin supplement or increase fibre in diet which is supposed to promote stronger hoof growth but it would take months to see the effects. My first port of call would be a farrier, is he sound ATM? Mine are barefoot don't have supplement but have excellent hooves, although I think the key is they see farrier regularly. Good luck and I hope you can talk your friend round. x
 
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Not sure if the farrier is about will know more in a couple of hours when I get back to the yard , all the horses are barefoot and his hoofs and one maybe 2 others are bad his is by far the worse , she did only buy him last year with hoofs problems already but I believe this has happened thought lack of farrier visits :( I'm just hoping the farrier will tell my friend strait that they need to see the farrier more then she believes they do , il keep u all informed , tbh I'm not sure my friends knows what she is doing sadly and has to many horses this is why iv offered my help she knows she can't cope :( do I stick around and keep helping and try and teach her more or should I stop going :( it is hard to watch when she thinks she know best but ur own heart is telling u things are not right x
 
Sorry to meet you under these circumstances Nikki. Those hoofs don't look good and I'd be amazed if they have been trimmed recently. It sounds to me as though your friend needs a bit of a talking to from the farrier. And since you clearly care for the horses and worry about them, even though they are hers, it wouldn't be wrong of you to say, "Look, I am doing my best to help here, and I want to keep helping, but you have to get the farrier in regularly (generally people recommend a minimum of 8 weeks). If you don't look after the horses properly I just won't be able to keep coming to help you." I think that would be quite fair.
 
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No food will stop an over grown hoof from cracking, they need to be seeing a farrier every 6-12 weeks, most manage 8 weeks before they start having problems.
If you friend has a lot on her plate it may seem expensive getting the farrier for multiple horses but a vets bill if the overgrowth damages a tendon or something will be worse.
Luckily these cracks often look far worse than they are, a good farrier will trim the foot back and stop it spreading and it will then grow out over the next 6 months or so. The biggest risk from a crack like that is it gives a place for nasties to get in and fester, keeping it clean will help loads.
 
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I feel bad for having to come on here and ask how bad it is :( I knew it wasn't going to be good tho but being new she makes out I don't know what I'm talking about :( thank u for all replies I will keep u updated ,if she doesn't start sorting things out then I will have to leave :( I will try my best to make her see things need to change tho wish me luck x
 
To give you a idea of farrier costs, Im in the n-east and mine charges me £20 for a trim , he's a reg farrier. Don't know how much the rest of the countries costs are though.x
 
Aw dont feel bad, its so much to learn and its isnt awful but could end up bad if it isnt addressed but now you can talk to her with confidence :D
My farrier charges £20 for a trim too..
 
It looks awful to me. Is there a YO? Can you mention to them? Looks dreadful tbh. I feel your pain at being stuck and not able to say anything if nobody takes you on because you are new. I've not seen feet that bad even on some of less than good yards I've been on.
 
Is he lame? You can see how overgrown his feet are.I'm guessing she's maybes not on livery with you saying she has a number of horses. I am lucky I have 4 (ones a little rescue pony)but they are kept at my parents farm and as couldnt afford 4 in livery. Tbh when your not paying livery it can we quite tempting to almost collect them but realistically there are only a certain amount of hours in the day and unless you have limitless funds the costs for worming,farrier,feed etc still add up.x
 
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No she is not on livery she rents the land , yeah I know there is only a certain amount of horses one can afford and she is over that number as she can't afford them
 
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I need someone on this forum to confirm what I'm about to say as I live in France and the climate is not the same - but they look to me as though some regular hoof oil would help keep the hoof supple and assist the farrier in trimming too. ??
 
Well I certainly don't think it would do any harm and may make you feel a little better, they also their need their hooves picking regularly to prevent thrush etc. Although if he's lame he may struggle when lifting feet to be picked. I started a earlier thread about making hoof oil which was a recipe our farrier uses however many said they used Kevin bacon. Another member said she used Aquarous cream( unsure about spelling) which you may have already at home. Although sadly for this horse until his feet are trimmed his situation isn't going to improve although it may as said help farrier trim his feet. x
 
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