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How does sand in paddock affect the hooves?

14K views 16 replies 12 participants last post by  Acadianartist 
#1 ·
Question above. Does sand footing, mixed with wood chips affect the horse's hooves in any way? I've heard the hoof may become softer and the horse will be extremely-ouchy on normal groud after he gets used to the sand footing. Is it true or no?

P.S. Please no other comments except in the topic, I know perfectly about the risk of sand colic and SandClear supplement is included in the horse's diet. Also there is no grass in the paddock, they are hand grazed or turned out in a pasture for a couple of hours.
 
#2 ·
Can't see how it would make the hoof softer, I ride in a sand & woodchip mix arena, but my paddocks are just natural ground. Let's see what others have to say, sorry I can't be of more help to you.
 
#3 ·
Softer is a relative term. In simple terms: the harder the surface that the horse is on for extended periods, the harder it's feet will be. Over 2500 years ago a Greek, Xenophon, who had a great deal of first hand experience with horses, wrote that you should layout a surface area made up of fist sized rocks (basically cobblestone area) for the horse to spend much of it's time on (groom them on it, feed them on it, let them stand around stomping on it when the flies are bothering them) in order to help harden the hoof, keep it hard and give it the best "shape" (the edges will wear and become nicely rounded since it's the bottom that gets "stone crusher" hard).

Sand (without the soft materials added) will toughen up the frog and serve as an abrasive to help wear off loose sole and frog. Pea size gravel will to more for toughening it. Mine spend at least and hour each day on a concrete or bricked surface. When I ride they'll spend miles on paved road.

So, the point I'm making is that what you describe will not necessarily make the hoof soft. It depends on the situation. It would make my horse's feet soft, but that's because their feet are used to harder surfaces. A horse that spent it's time on wood chips or rubber mats might have it's feet get a bit tougher from the sane (but not much since it's mixed with wood chips which are soft).

I realize that's not the sort of answer you want to hear, but the only way to determine if it will make the foot softer, harder, or no change is to compare against what the horse had been on. Going from harder to softer will make them softer. Going from softer to harder will make them harder.
 
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#4 ·
I had to look this up as I only vaguely remember doing this as a child....sand can be used to dry flowers.

"Fine white sand, such as that found on the seashore, is the best. Use a cardboard box with holes in the bottom. Cover the bottom with newspaper and place one-half inch of sand in the box. Place the flowers face-down, stems and foliage in the box and cover with additional sand. 7 to 10 days will be required. Then punch holes in the bottom of the box and let the sand drain. Do not pull the flowers from the sand as the petals and foliage may be destroyed.
Sand from the river and beach should be washed and baked in the oven until dry. This should be done twice. Fine builders sand is cheap and may be used without additional preparation."

Because of it's drying properties sand will harden the hooves, not soften them. Don't know what additional effect the wood chips will have.
 
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#6 ·
Hi, lbs described well. No, sand won't soften feet, in fact will likely help to dry & therefore may harden them more. But it depends. People may be rightfully meaning that soft, deep sand will comfortably support thin, weak feet, but not provide a need to build further 'callous', to thicken & strengthen feet enough to cope with hard/rough ground. Just like if you only go barefoot on the beach or a nice lawn, that's not going to help you become 'conditioned' to going bare on a gravel road.

Sand mixed with wood chips may be a softer affair again, and might cause the footing to be damp, which will soften/weaken the sole & frog. But if the horse only gets turned out for a couple of hours a day, It wouldn't generally matter that much what the surface is - whether good or bad for the feet, it's not enough to make much difference. If the horse is stabled for the rest of the time, that will effect his feet though, as, basically, the 'if you don't use it, you lose it' clause applies. Or in many instances, it's never developed in the first place.
 
#7 ·
My trimmer discouraged me from putting sand in my paddock. My horses go barefoot, and according to her, sand is more likely to cause cracks as the tiny particles get wedged into hair line fissures that can then expand. She recommended pea gravel instead. She studied extensively as a barefoot trimmer and has decades of experience. She has seen this happen over and over so I tend to trust her advice.

Either way, you will want proper drainage of course.
 
#8 ·
I will take exception to your farrier's thoughts to a point and that is because farrier's always have to assume new clients aren't going to be anywhere near as proactive about hoof management as they ought to be. They generally want the farrier's to perform magic that will "hold the horse" until their next visit ----- in 8 weeks, lol

I had three of my horses on nothing but sand in Southern California's Low Desert area for five years and never had issues with weak hooves, or fissures, or anything.

I had them on a good diet that included plenty of quality Bermuda hay (there is no grass hay in SoCal), plenty of salt and plenty of fresh water at all times.

Also in spite of the dire warnings to not oil their hooves, I'm sorry, when the temps hit 100F, up to 106F and the humidity is only 4%, I'm oiling hooves and heel bulbs. I used Mollimentum hoof grease and it was the best stuff ever.

My farrier said my horses had the best hooves of any of his clients. I kept after them all the time because of the sand and that arid climate.

I would not intentionally use sand in a paddock but, if one lives in area where sand prevails, then feed the horse correctly, keep the hooves properly maintenanced and there shouldn't be any issues:smile:
 
#9 ·
Where I keep my horses they have dirt and areas of grass. The ground would get pretty mushy by the gate area after heavy rainfalls. I put geotextile fabric down and then two loads of cocina sand (a mixture of sand and ground shells) where they congregate by the gate. It's held up pretty well and their hooves have been fine. No cracks, fissures, or any other problems. I also found an excellent barefoot trimmer recently (yay) that sees them every six weeks. There are really no places that are too rocky to ride around here but I do ride them on asphalt streets without problems or ouchy feet.
 
#11 ·
My dry lott which is large, has all the top soil removed, and then 3/4 of that dry lot is filled with crushed gravel, while the back third is dirt, so an area to lie down
It thus drains very well, with Smilie and Charlie never standing in mud, as previously, during wet weather
Charlie spends part of the day on pasture, with a grazing muzzle. Her feet never chip, and she walks across that gravel very confidently, which carries over to riding her barefoot down our gravel road
I would not chose cement, as even barefoot, a horse is peripherally loaded
Sand would not work well where we live, but in areas where there is less rain, might be okay. Thing about sand, if you don't remove the manure immediately, like most areas require you to do, after riding, it gets mixed into the sand,,while I find it very easy to daily pick manure out of my dry lot
(anyone want some free well rotted manure?I have a mountain of it! )
 
#17 ·
I stand corrected! It sounds like there are different kinds of sand and that it is not always a bad thing for hooves. I still tend to think pea gravel is a better alternative, but sand may not always be bad. Was just passing on information from my trimmer - I personally have not experienced issues, but I've never had my horses on sand full time either, just in riding rings. Both are barefoot and have excellent hooves.

Again, the nice thing about this forum is the wide variety of experiences and knowledge!
 
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