Brittle hoof walls

These photos show a front hoof that has brittle hoof walls. Hoof dressing, Rainmaker and Hoof flex, had been applied for many months, hoping to improve hoof wall quality.  This horse also has some thrush issues and Thrushbuster was applied liberally and often to get rid of the thrush.

Hoof wall quality will only improve with a better diet, not the application of products. Think of your own nails, do they improve when you apply nail products? The natural barefoot trim helps the horse that is on a balanced diet, grow in a healthier hoof wall.

About half way down this hoof wall you can see a ring, this is when his diet was changed, Omega Horse Shine, and then a bit later, California Trace minerals, were added to his diet. From this ring up to the coronet, this horse is growing in a tighter, better connected hoof wall. In the mean time he needs to be trimmed so the wall will not continue to flare, crack, chip and basically fall apart.

This is a mustang roll. The hoof wall can no longer pull away from the laminae and weaken the attachment because of the roll. The thrush and fungus that were also causing hoof wall separation are being treated with Thrush off, once or twice, and then daily apple cider vinegar as a sprayed on wash. Products like Thrush buster do kill the thrush bacteria, but they also kill the good bacteria and set the horse up for more thrush. Chemicals are not a bad thing, but the right chemicals are needed to kill the fungus and bacteria in horses feet.

If your horse has poor hoof wall quality, take a look at his diet, environment, and the type of trim. All of these factors, addressed in the correct way, improve a horses hoof.