Hoof Quality

Oct 10

10/10/21

“No hoof, no horse. ”

Is the saying still true?… To an extent, yes! Sound, strong, growing hooves are crucial to the functional capability of a horse.

What factors go into strong, healthy hooves? Genetics, nutrition, environment, farrier work, and health status. Interestingly, the greatest influencers of hoof quality are genetics and nutrition. This means you can have an exceptionally bred, beautiful horse eating a premium diet, yet that horse can still have bad feet. Unfortunately this does happen!

So if you have a horse lacking in hoof quality and growth, can you improve hoof quality through nutrition? First, a few basics... a horse hoof is composed predominantly of keratin. Keratin is a structural protein that makes up hair, nails, and hooves (among other structures). The building blocks of protein are amino acids, and amino acids are highly important for hoof quality. Not just any amino acids, however, the ones that are essential and offered at the correct amounts are crucial. For hooves, methionine and lysine are of greatest importance.

Specific minerals can also influence hoof quality. While all minerals are important, copper, zinc, and selenium are of great importance here. In addition to adequate quantity, copper & zinc must be in the proper ratio to promote hoof growth. This ratio is 3:1 to 4:1 (Zinc:Copper or Zn:Cu). This means you must have 3 times the amount of zinc than copper not only in your hoof supplement, but in your horse's total diet. This ratio is likely to already be achieved by feeding a balanced ration, but worth investigating in your horse's supplements and feed.

Selenium toxicity (often the chronic form vs. acute) can cause lameness and soreness of the feet. While uncommon, this condition can progress to cracks in the hooves and in severe cases, sloughing of damaged hoof. The maintenance requirement for selenium is 1.26-3 mg/day for an 1,100 lb. horse and should ideally stay below 5 mg/day. The maximum tolerable level of selenium in the total diet (hay + grain + supplements) is 20 mg/day. On the flipside, selenium deficiency can also result in poor hoof quality. Thus, don't let selenium scare you but keep an eye on the levels of it in your horse's total diet.

Now for the most popular vitamin involved in hoof growth... B7! Also known as biotin. This vitamin has a number of functions in the body including cell proliferation and growth. Very interestingly, the microbes in the hindgut of the horse synthesize all biotin needed to meet a horse's requirements. (Surprising right?!) However, there is some evidence to suggest that biotin supplementation can help *some* horses with poor hoof quality.

Here are the key things to know if you want to try a hoof supplement...

**First - make sure the entire diet is high quality and balanced. An imbalanced diet can be the culprit of poor hoof quality. Work with a Legacy Equine Certified Nutrition Advisor if you have questions on this key element. **

1. The horse hoof takes about 9-12 months to grow from the coronary band to the weight bearing surface. Thus, it will take you a long time to see the benefit of a hoof supplement.

2. Some horses are 'non-responders' to even high quality supplements for hoof health and growth. If you try a hoof supplement for over a year without any results, your horse may not be a responder.

3. The amount of biotin recommended for horses with poor hoof quality is 20-30 mg/day for a 1,000 lb horse.

4. In addition to biotin, hoof supplements will often contain key amino acids (methionine, lysine), minerals (zinc & copper), and fatty acids to boost hoof health. This matrix of nutrients may provide greater benefit to hoof growth than biotin on its own. If you are going to go through the time and expense to try a hoof supplement, I suggest finding a supplement with the addition of these nutrients. And as always, purchase from a reputable brand that is trusted and tests their ingredients.