Monday, October 24, 2011

Horse Hoof Care Basics

By Marina U. Altonen


One of the important responsibilities of horse owners would be to learn about the basics of horse hoof care. As the owner, you should not just merely wait around for your horse to ask to clean up and take care of his feet. You must spend some time to know the ideal way to maintain your horse's hooves in excellent shape.

Yet, regrettably, there are plenty of instances that horses are actually placed back in the stable even though their hooves are certainly not checked at all. Numerous inexperienced horse owners incorrectly believed that it is usually the farrier's responsibility to clean up the hooves. On the other hand, it is simply not enough to call the farrier to shoe your own horse. The very first step to appropriate horse hoof care will be having the time to clean up your horse's hooves. Eliminate any dirt, muck, pebbles or any other objects that may have become lodged in the hoof.

Having a hoof pick, it will probably just take a couple of minutes daily to clean your own horse's hooves. This can guarantee your own horse's hoof health and convenience. And also, another way of inspecting for any possible injuries is actually by cleaning the hooves regularly.

Your horse will be able to walk comfortably if you'll remove dirt along with other caked on matter from the horse's hoof. In case you prefer your horse to be less prone to stone bruises, unchecked cuts and thrush infections, never fail to clean your horse's hooves. The smallest of the stones may even become stuck in the grooves of the frog which could cause great displeasure for the horse. Causing for your horse to develop a limp, this may lead to painful bruising if kept uncontrolled.

You will need to clean the hooves of the horse at least once or two times a day if you can. You must check and clear the hooves of your horse just before you take him out for a ride. Once you are all through with the ride, you have to inspect and clean the horse's hooves again before having him back in the paddock or stable. If for some reason you won't manage to practice proper horse hoof care each day, make sure that you can thoroughly clean and inspect the horse's hooves twice each week to ensure good health.

It is in fact really essential to keep the stable floor dry and clean and also, to ensure that the paddock area is cleared properly. Standing in damp soil or on wet flooring for an long amount of time could hurt your horse's feet. Allowing your horse be in a constant damp surrounding can lead to chips and cracks in the horse's hooves.




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