This message is from: Mary Thurman <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
--- Teressa Kandianis <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > This message is from: "Teressa Kandianis" > <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > > Nina has a tiny crack running in a straight line > from top to bottom of her > r. front hoof. ..right in the middle, right in the > front. My books say its a > sand crack. The book talks about dry conditions - I'm > in NW washington so > that isn't it; Hi Teressa, We also live in NW Washington - where it is very wet. We also have had horses with sand cracks(don't have a clue where the name comes from), though not any of our Fjords. Our Fjords all have very heavy horn on their hoofs, probably due to their parentage. Our old mare has never worn a shoe in her life - has hoofs like ironbark! BUT - and here's the irony - wet conditions like ours can also lead to dry hooves!! Their feet are in the muck all the time in the winter, unless they are kept in a dry stall - with a good floor - all winter. In which case their hooves will also dry out, especially if you use dry sawdust/wood chips for bedding. Think about how dry your own hands get from the dirt they get on them while gardening - and how a "mudpack" dries out your face. Same thing can happen to your horse's feet from the mud. Ask your vet what to use to keep the horse's feet more flexible - maybe even a change in feed or supplements might help. Then have your farrier correct that crack before it splits and leads to serious problems! There are several ways to accomplish this, but the idea is to remove any pressure from the toe of the foot so the crack won't spread open and then somehow hold the top of the crack together - some farriers simply burn a line across it with a hot tool - to hold it together until new, uncracked hoof can grow out. This takes a while, as the new horn must grow all the way down and completely replace the cracked horn before it's safe to assume the crack is gone. We worked a full year to get rid of a sand crack in the toe of our Appy, but it did grow out and never reappeared so long as we kept his hoofs supple. I used "bag balm" on his coronary band, but I'm sure there are better things available nowadays. Good luck. Mary > ===== Mary Thurman Raintree Farms [EMAIL PROTECTED] __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com
