Hoof Wall Crack....What Causes This?

[chipper2128]

The farrier was out this morning and trimmed our two 8 year old geldings (trim every 8 weeks). They are currently barefoot and have been for several years now. The farrier pointed out a crack on one of the front hooves of our Rocky Mountain. In the picture, the crack shows up as an inch and a half long at the very bottom of the picture between the dark and light layers of the hoof wall.
http://s655.photobucket.com/user/chipper2128/media/P1030708.jpg.html?filters[user]=90012700&filters[recent]=1&sort=1&o=1
Similar cracks on both fronts. The farrier said that he has seen this kind of crack on multiple horses over the last few years and does not know the cause. He said it occurs on horses that have shoes and those that are barefoot.

He knows I read this forum and asked me to see what you all think. Generally our guys have good strong feet and they spend most of their time in a dry lot that is mostly shale (lots of small rocks). They wear front hoof boots when we go out on the trail.

This is the first time I have used “Photobucket” so I hope the picture comes through OK.

Thank you for your help.

[Appsolute]

I wouldn’t call it a “crack” looks like a white line separation.

The reasons can be many - usually hoof imbalance / flares causes undue pressure and then separation.

It can be diet related.

It can be enviromentally related.

It CAN lead to “white line disease” when bacteria and or fungus enters the speration - and starts to erode the healthy tissue.

I find it odd that your farrier would point it out, and then say he doesn’t know what causes it.

Mine is prone to this on her “flared” flat foot (she is high / low - with one heel that likes to grow, and an opposite foot that is usually loaded - and prone to flares). My farrier pointed to the separation, then described how he was going to balance the foot to avoid further flaring / separation.

[Marla_100]

Do a google search on “quarter cracks” and you’ll learn a lot about the causes.
Most often they’re caused by an improperly balanced trim. Your photos are somewhat difficult to see due to the angles but it looks like the heels are running too far forward and should be trimmed back to their proper position. Also the squareing of the toe instead or rounding to follow the sole can cause excess pressure along the wall. You might want to shorten up your trim cycle especially in the summer when the hooves tend to grow faster. Once cracks start it’s beneficial to trim more frequently to try and stop them from growing worse.

[jennycash]

Thats pretty scary your farrier doesn’t know what that is. Search white line disease.

No offense to your farrier, but thats a pretty beginner knowledge that he should know.

[jawa]

If your farrier needs you to post on a horsey general internet forum to ask what causes and how to treat a hoof ailment…I think you need a new farrier.

[JB]

It’s not really WLD yet, but the fact that he doesn’t know what this is from is very telling, and to me, the final straw in a decision to find a new one. He’s been doing the trimming, he’s the one who allowed the flaring to develop which is the cause of this separation, so no, he’s not going to be able to fix it since he never saw it coming.

That really is very beginner stuff.

[mlb722]

IMO most barefoot horses need work done on their feet more often than every 8 weeks, which could be contributing to the problem. IME white line separation can be trim related for sure.

[trailpal]

This is a good article, but might be more in depth than you are comfortable reading. http://www.hoofrehab.com/WallCracks.html
Basically, hoof wall cracks come from poor trimming and an imbalance of the trimmed hoof.

My horse is barefoot, and my trimmer showed me how to maintain the “roll” around the edge of the hoof - you can use a rasp (wear gloves!) to remove that “corner” that forms around the outside edge of the hoof. Usually it needs to be done about once every week or two. In your photos, it appears that your farrier doesn’t know how to roll the edge either. Two of the obvious ways that rolling the edge will help is that 1, the hoof edge won’t chip (much if at all), and 2, you are removing the outer edge that acts like a lever, prying the hoof wall away from the lamina and leaving a gap in the white line (which as others have pointed out, opens the door for bacteria and fungal infections.

My trimmer came every 6 weeks, but after I had learned to maintain that roll, he rarely had to do much. Occasionally he needed to adjust the angle a little or help the frog be self-cleaning (we have soft moist ground). Eventually I learned from him how to do that - and he fired me LOL! I went to his place for a riding clinic a year later and had him take a look - my horse’s feet are looking good.

When I bought my horse, he had front shoes on. After taking them off, we discovered actual white line disease and seedy toe, plus he had very flat feet. We had to do a lot of work initially (in terms of soaking, cleaning, packing). He’s sound now and has nice concavity with no chips or white line issues.

As everyone has said, your farrier needs to learn some things about trimming for barefeet, or you should find a better trimmer.

[merrygoround]

I would not call that a crack. I associate the term crack with vertical lines in a hoof wall.

This is more of a separation. It calls for cleaning out the space, and the use of something such as “white lightning”. More frequent, less drastic trims would also help.

I suspect your hoof trimmer is far from being a farrier. Were I you I would search out a more knowledgeable individual.

[ChocoMare]

That is not the work of a Barefoot Trimmer. It’s a traditional farrier who’s doing nothing more than not putting on a shoe.

He’s rasped the hoof flat, as if for a shoe. He’s rasped off the toe callous, as if for a shoe. Would need to see more pictures to see the root cause of the separation.

Wall should be beveled/rolled to prevent pull on the white line & continuing the separation.

[Appsolute]

^^^ I agree, I had assumed these photos were taken mid trim.

OP - is this the final product?

[Frizzle]

Totally agree with everything that has been said–that is separation, not cracking, and is most likely caused by the trim. As others have suggested, I would hire someone more knowledgable on how to properly trim a barefoot horse, have the horses trimmed more often, learn how to beval the edges a bit in between trims (it’s ridiculously easy), and do some White Lightning soaks.

Just wanted to point out, though, that nutrition can also come into play. It sounds/looks like your case is more a trimming issue, but also take a good look @ the horses’ nutrition. In my case, my horse has always had a nice tight connection with zero separation, but after a diet change, he started getting those “ridges” around his soles, like your horse has. Nothing else changed, and he is on a short trim schedule (5 weeks, sometimes 4 weeks in the summer) by a very knowledgable barefoot trimmer, plus I rasp him a bit in between trims. I just recently changed his diet again, so fingers crossed that my guy’s hooves get their nice tight connection back!

[chipper2128]

Thanks for all your comments and recommendations. I am discussing all this with my vet and the farrier.

[Tom_Bloomer]

8 WEEKS??? Going that long between trims it doesn’t matter who your farrier is.

[S1969]

[QUOTE=ChocoMare;8139570]
That is not the work of a Barefoot Trimmer. It’s a traditional farrier who’s doing nothing more than not putting on a shoe.

He’s rasped the hoof flat, as if for a shoe. He’s rasped off the toe callous, as if for a shoe. Would need to see more pictures to see the root cause of the separation.

Wall should be beveled/rolled to prevent pull on the white line & continuing the separation.[/QUOTE]

Don’t paint all “farriers” with the same brush. My traditional farrier doesn’t trim like this (assuming that’s the final product).

[cowboymom]

In my area, a lot of people have the farrier out twice a year. Don’t be so quick to judge that it’s all the farrier’s fault.

[JB]

True, some farriers are constantly fighting an uphill battle because the owner refuses to have him out often enough

One should not judge a farrier’s competence when looking at a foot that hasn’t been trimmed in 6 months, no matter how good or bad it looks.

But, one can still tell the quality of a farrier by the trim he does. This trim is very amateurish and not even good enough for a shoe - rasp marks, rough edges, not even flat.

[ChocoMare]

Thank you JB. Alas, I failed to go into finite detail sufficient to satisfy the masses.

But perhaps when the majority of said masses pick up their own tools and go out into the world to trim, they’ll understand a wee bit.

[S1969]

[QUOTE=ChocoMare;8143671]
Thank you JB. Alas, I failed to go into finite detail sufficient to satisfy the masses.

But perhaps when the majority of said masses pick up their own tools and go out into the world to trim, they’ll understand a wee bit.[/QUOTE]

I hope you’re not referring to my post. I have no need to learn to trim to appreciate the skill required. My farrier is awesome. I only have one shod horse, and 4 barefoot. A good trim is necessary whether a shoe is put on or not.

[cowboymom]

My husband is a farrier. He is constantly trying to keep horses sound with twice a year trims and once a year shoes.

He has been doing the spring shoeing the last couple weeks and on more than a few horses he is taking off shoes that he put on last fall for hunting season!

But I agree, this trim job in the OP doesn’t look good.