Thin vertical hoof cracks

[OceansAway]

I bought a mare a couple of years ago from a different state, and she came to me with very, very thin vertical cracks on all of her hooves, that were very superficial. She’s had a total change of diet, trimming, and management, yet the cracks remain. It’s interesting to me because she had the cracks with her breeder as a baby, and with the person I bought her from, and now with me. If it is husbandry related, I would assume this issue would have fluctuated with her different living environments, but it hasn’t. Right now she is on Triple Crown Balancer Gold, Timothy hay pellets, free choice salt, and low sugar hay. Her water is also filtered for excess iron. In the past, I had tried her on vitamins/minerals and flax along with the hay pellets, and no change. She has a barefoot trimmer, but the farriers she had prior to me were Amish and traditional farriers. No thrush. Not one little crack or crevice. 24/7 turnout unless there is inclement weather.

Can anybody explain why these cracks would still be present throughout so many dietary/environmental changes (I think for the better)? She does have white hooves, but I hear it’s a myth that white hooves are different quality. Thanks, all!

[RemarkableOwl21]

Could it be grass cracks, if they start at the bottom and go up? These are caused by hooves being exposed to alternating cycles of wet and dry, like dew or wet mud in the morning and dry stall at night?

[OceansAway]

I’m not sure. They go for the entire length, so I can’t tell if they originate at the bottom. When I googled it, those cracks look more severe than the ones my horse has. They are more thin and superficial. These cracks have been present since the time she was going outside during the day and coming in at night, and when she was living outside 24/7, which she is now doing again. It seems like nothing really changes them popping up- change of diet, living situation, turnout situation, farrier situation.

[RemarkableOwl21]

The picture of grass cracks in The Essential Hoof Book shows such cracks as very thin and superficial. They are generally nothing to worry about, according to the book.

[OceansAway]

Thank you for the picture! So they look like the other cracks, with the red arrow, not the yellow, which corresponds to the overgrown, flared walls. While she did have a flare problem in the front when I first bought her, that has been resolved from some time now, and the cracks are also present on the hind feet too, where there were never any flares.

[MapleFarm]

I don’t know the answer for sure, but I do know I have a mare from the Amish who has this issue. I’ve had her three years, barefoot, and she’s had them the whole time. She’s trimmed every 4 weeks and doesn’t flare.

Both my farriers (I had two check) said it’s nothing to worry about because they are very shallow. One said he could flatten them out a bit to prevent them from catching and chipping if it appears to be necessary, but they haven’t worsened over that time period. They also indicated they were from the wet/dry cycle, though it is a bit odd that they go all the way up.

They make me nervous!

Edited to add: she has them in all four hooves, and they are not white.

[Inimitable]

I have a mare who came to me with superficial vertical cracks in all four hooves. She was a rescue, so it was a combination of diet and hoof care neglect. But they persisted even months after improving her diet and getting her on a regular trim cycle. My farrier suggested treating with White Lightning once or twice; as long as bacteria is allowed to get in those cracks they will remain, even if she’s not obviously thrushy. For the record, I did NOT treat with White Lightning, but I did start squirting Durasole into the cracks several times a week. Sure enough, the cracks are now gone - just this week I rasped off the final little bit that had grown down.

[JB]

We really need a couple of pics to see what’s what with your girl. A good front, and side view of a foot would be very useful
Good Hoof Photos - How to take Good Hoof Photos

[OceansAway]

Yes, I know you’re right, but I don’t have any currently and the weather has been SO bad that it’s too dark inside of the barn. I have a really old Android phone that takes terrible pictures, so conditions must be ideal . I will probably have to wait until the sun emerges sometime next week.

[OceansAway]

So interesting! I was also told to ignore them and not worry, but they worry me anyway. That’s something I could try!

[Inimitable]

Definitely easy and cheap to try! My farrier at first said they were nothing to worry about, just ‘pressure’ cracks from flares and irregular hoof care. But then one day he changed his tune and mentioned the bacteria. Sure enough, problem solved!

[MapleFarm]

I’m going to try this with mine! She gets very balanced nutrition and is shiny with strong hooves, but definitely did not have all of that when I got her.

How long did it take?

[OceansAway]

They make me nervous too! This horse was Amish bred, and was with them for maybe the first year and a half of her life. They showed her, so she even had shoes as a tiny baby! At first everyone told me diet, but since these cracks persist despite all dietary changes, there must be another cause. One trimmer asked if she was on grass or if I was feeding her sugary treats. I guess it could be wet/dry cycles, and in that case I wonder why it happens with her but not the others?

[Inimitable]

I knew someone would ask me this. Hmm, let’s see - I got her with the cracks in September '22. They improved somewhat over the next several months with good and regular trims, but still persisted up into the new growth. I want to say that at the end of the summer (Aug/Sept '23) my farrier mentioned the bacteria. I started treating with Durasole and within one or two cycles the cracks started to get a bit tighter and her hooves were generally ‘hanging together’ better. So that was 6 months ago? That timeline seems to track with general hoof growth. She is barefoot and has AMAZING feet now.

[walktrot]

My late gelding had similar problems. He was on grain and free choice Timothy hay. We added BioFlax 20 from Horsetech. You have to be patient. It can take as much as a year for tte hooof to grow out. His feet were pretty good although he needed a 2-degree pad for pastern angles on the front. The farrier said his soles and hoof walls were much stronger.