Barefoot peeps - crack in hoof question

[fathoms-groom]

ouch my head is buzzing with this,
yesterday my farrier took the front shoes off my TB (he only has fronts)he will now spend the winter being very lightly ridden on a surface or with old mac boots on ( 5 times a month at most) at his suggestion we will try to not shoe my horse again in the spring - i don't jump don't need studs, don't need shoes ?!?
so question of feeding has come up

he lives on 8 acres of old grazing with 2 donkeys and 50 sheep coming and going
in the winter he comes in at night on to shavings bed with ad lib hay made from the field next door (whole farm is organic)
is fed once a day on mollichaff calm with mag,50g NAF biotin,35g brewers yeast 30g valerian - should i get copper for him too? now i'm worried about calcium too

 

[ThePony]

ouch my head is buzzing with this,
yesterday my farrier took the front shoes off my TB (he only has fronts)he will now spend the winter being very lightly ridden on a surface or with old mac boots on ( 5 times a month at most) at his suggestion we will try to not shoe my horse again in the spring - i don't jump don't need studs, don't need shoes ?!?
so question of feeding has come up

he lives on 8 acres of old grazing with 2 donkeys and 50 sheep coming and going
in the winter he comes in at night on to shavings bed with ad lib hay made from the field next door (whole farm is organic)
is fed once a day on mollichaff calm with mag,50g NAF biotin,35g brewers yeast 30g valerian - should i get copper for him too? now i'm worried about calcium too

It can def get a bit head melting at first! I certainly wouldn't supplement copper without a grazing analysis as it is easy to add an excess - which would be toxic. If you don't mind the initial cost then the best (and easiest) way is to pay for a grazing analysis and feed plan (I used Forage Plus who were just brilliant).

Is there a reason for boots and very light work? Work in line with what he is comfortable with over a range of surfaces, along with a decent diet, will work wonders on his feet. You will see a greater improvement with exercise.

Best of luck! Feet first is an ace book to help get your head around things, the Rockley blog is pretty much the best thing since sliced bread, and the uknhcp forum is full of hoof nuts who are v friendly and helpful too.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Feet-First-Barefoot-Performance-Rehabilitation/dp/0851319602

http://rockleyfarm.blogspot.com/sea...dated-max=2012-01-01T00:00:00Z&max-results=50

http://uknhcp.myfastforum.org/forum2.php

 

[Oberon]

ouch my head is buzzing with this,
yesterday my farrier took the front shoes off my TB (he only has fronts)he will now spend the winter being very lightly ridden on a surface or with old mac boots on ( 5 times a month at most) at his suggestion we will try to not shoe my horse again in the spring - i don't jump don't need studs, don't need shoes ?!?
so question of feeding has come up

he lives on 8 acres of old grazing with 2 donkeys and 50 sheep coming and going
in the winter he comes in at night on to shavings bed with ad lib hay made from the field next door (whole farm is organic)
is fed once a day on mollichaff calm with mag,50g NAF biotin,35g brewers yeast 30g valerian - should i get copper for him too? now i'm worried about calcium too

If he is sound and happy and growing a decent hoof - then stick with what you are feeding.

But if you do hit a problem.....I would consider that the mollichaff and lack of minerals in his diet would be the problem, rather than "my TB just CAN'T go barefoot" (which is the common conclusion

I wouldn't advise feeding copper blindly. Copper and zinc compete with each other - and we're finding that copper and zinc are low in UK forage anyway. So by adding copper, you'll be making zinc lower and that would also impact his health.

It's not as simple as just adding one thing or another. Everything has to be balanced in order to make a difference.

Most horses do just fine on what they get already. I'm interested in nutrition and 'fine tuning' the diet because I've seen it make my beloved old man go from 'doing fine' to 'doing excellent'

 

[muff747]

My gelding got a crack in a front foot in the spring when his foot was rapidly growing and the last 1" of the hoof was flared and so was wider than the rest. The weight pressing down on the walls was forcing the crack apart. I had read somewhere like Pete Rameys web site and my trimmer recommended keeping the edges of the crack off the ground to prevent any more pressure pulling it apart and so I rasped slightly more around the edges of the crack, (not touching the sole). Also I rolled the rest of the wall, (leaving a credit card thickness depth of wall), so there was no more pressure pulling the crack apart and the weight was bourn by the inside of the hoof wall and the frog/sole. It didn't take long to grow out.