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Update & Better Pictures - Peeling Hooves

30K views 22 replies 11 participants last post by  BoldComic 
#1 ·
Original thread: http://www.horseforum.com/hoof-care/hoof-peeling-has-anyone-seen-before-118808/

So I had the vet out today for Onyx. Vet is puzzled, so he took some pictures and is going to consult with the senior veterinarian at his practice. He also mentioned doing research.

Some good things: He doesn't think its white line disease, nor a selenium deficiency. He said the number one thing he can think of it a toxic plant in our area that is quite common, and if eaten in large quantities can cause issues. However, he said that it is the wrong time for that, since those plants have not yet bloomed.

He said it could be diet related, but he doubts it as Onyx has not had any major changes, and he estimates if it was diet it would have been a major change in the past few weeks (given where the lines on the hoof are). He did not completely rule that out.

He did say not to worry too much. I was going to go back to my hometown this weekend to celebrate Easter with my family, and he said it would still be alright, as he doesn't think it is going to get any worse over the weekend. Onyx is still his normal horsey self, no lethargy. My friend, who owns the other horse on the property, agreed to keep an eye on him for me.

Vet did ask about founder or abscess history. As far as I know, Onyx has had neither. Since I have had him (almost a year) he is on full pasture almost 24/7. Since it is spring, however, we have slowly reintroduced him to grass in 2,4,6,8 hour increments over a period of 2 weeks. No other signs of founder or discomfort are present.

Anybody got any opinions on this? It sure is weird!
 

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#2 ·
Is there any chance you have a black walnut tree on the property, or maybe used shavings from a local mill that may have had black walnut go through the mill?

Black walnut is highly toxic to horses and can cause laminitis like issues.

That's the only thing you didn't mention that I could think of. That sure is some strange stuff you poor horse is going through, hope you guys get it figured out.
 
#3 ·
Well there are not trees in his pasture, but there are some around. Could that be a possibility? Does it need to be ingested to cause issues?

I haven't had him on any wood shaving or bedding. He has a dirt paddock with a shelter and then full pasture, sectioned off.

Thank you for the response. I am hoping I can get this figured out soon.
 
#4 · (Edited)
Lakota-In my experience, it's not selenium deficiency you need to worry about as much as a selenium overdose.

And no, horses founder from walking on the walnut hulls. Commonly there's a problem when the only shade is a walnut tree, and they stand under it. My own horses went through this once. Walnut isn't the only toxic tree, but the most common where I live.

Your horse doesn't look all that bad though, and to me those rings aren't prominent enough to suggest Laminitis. Looks like what we call "manure burn", which is common in horses that stand in manure and urine in a stall or lot.
 
#5 · (Edited)
Oops typo. I was indeed talking about too much selenium, not a selenium deficiency. Vet said not to worry about it here though. We tend to be selenium deficient, not the other way around.

As far as manure burn, I guess I could see that. We have been fairly dry around here though, and his dry lot is a good size with not much manure in it.

I have dealt with laminitis before, I am pretty positive this is not laminitis. He is not sore, nor does he display any tenderness at all in the hoof or leg. So I think you are right about it not being that. I am a freak about preventing laminitis, and have been very careful monitoring his food and water intake (and output) to prevent it. That and colic scare the crud out of me, so I tend to be really careful during the whole springtime transitioning.
 
#7 ·
They honestly don't look bad to me either...try putting some plain ole vaseline on the outside of the hoof, rub it in good and do that a few times a week for a few months and I bet you will see a difference. Not all horses have perfectly smooth hooves, yours may be one of them.

Please let us know if you do find a reason...but relax, as long as your horse is healthy, sound and alert...go out and ride and enjoy them!
 
#8 ·
If you look at her previous thread, there was a concern that the hoof wall was peeling off and one of the pictures there kind of looked like was. These pictures don't show that. Also she was advised to clean the hooves and when she used peroxide to do that it bubbled. Odd..

Lakotababii -- does it still seem like the hoof wall integrity is compromised just below the periople?
 
#9 ·
Many vets are advising to NOT use hydrogen peroxide to clean anything, it compromises the wound. If she is using it to clean the hooves, of course it is going to bubble, hooves are dirty! :) Many people use hydrogen peroxide as a wound cleaner. However, peroxide kills very few bacteria and is actually toxic to cells, which results in delayed healing of that wound.
 
#12 ·
Okay so sorry for the double post, but I was going to mention something else. If you look at that last picture I posted, you will notice a serious difference in the hoof. If you look at the bottom inch, it had ridges, but is mostly smooth. Up above that part, under the part that peeled, the hoof looks like it is bubbly. That was not there before. Up until this happened, the entire hoof looked like that bottom inch, ridged but smooth. That bubbly part, I can peel it off with my fingers. It chips and falls off fairly easily. The vet took a small farriers knife and touched it to the side, it peeled off. I know that is not normal. Under no circumstances have I ever been able to peel off a significant amount of hoof with my fingernails. So what I am trying to say is that I believe it is moving down, and may continue to peel all the way down the hoof wall, since the outside part that is peeling is soft.
 
#16 ·
My vet still has not called me back, I'll be calling him today again. Onyx is still his normal self, no major changes.
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#18 ·
Nope. Vet called me and said he thinks it is just superficial. The only thing he could think of is when the hoof gets over-saturated and starts to peel? But he admitted we have not had nearly enough rain, nor has it been wet at all. So we agreed maybe my horse is just weird. His feet have "stabilized" sort of. They are not peeling any further down, now they just look funny.

I blame the weird changing weather. We had 50-60s in January, then it snowed again, and it has been mildly warm (50 ish) since late February. In march we had 80s and now last night we had a low of 33. So maybe it is just the weather messing with him. Lord knows he is shedding out weird too because of all of it. For now I am just keeping a close eye on his feet and general health. I worked with him today a little bit and he was his normal self, his feet look very good minus the peeling.
 
#19 · (Edited)
IMO you are being overly concerned. Hooves look hard and dry like the weather has been dry of late and this is a normal hoof. What does your farrier say? I see nothing.. just new growth of hoof wall at the coronary band and then normal hoof horn below it.

Take a stiff brush and a bucket was soapy water. Scrub the feet off and I expect most of what you are seeing is dirt, older, tough, dry horn, and a normal hoof. They look a bit dry and if you have not had rain, then you are seeing the results of that.

If you want to you can buy something like "rain maker" and put that on the feet or just use some vaseline. Clean and dry the hooves first (as noted above) and then coat them with vaseline to seal moisture IN the hoof.

You can also supplement his diet with something like Mirra Coat or a little bit of fortified wheat germ oil. This helps skin and hooves and can make the shedding a bit more uniform and the coat shine.

How long have you owned a horse?
 
#20 ·
Did you read the entire thread? I now know that he is "normal" in his own way. The growth, however, is NOT normal, and it is not simply just a dried hoof growing in. I have always used a hoof strengthener on my horses and they have never had any issues until now. My vet confirmed that he agrees this is not normal, but so far is it not detrimental to my horse. So we are keeping an eye on it and letting it grow out. Normal hoof does not have visible layers peeling (which I admit are hard to see in the pictures, but there is an obvious distinction between the 2 layers), it does not bubble when covered in peroxide, and it does not grow in a different color than normal.

In the picture his hoof is not dirty, it is fairly clean. What you are seeing is not dirt, but hoof wall that has deteriorated. In person, it is obvious, but like I said it is very hard to get pictures that accurately portray what is wrong.

Why does it matter how long I have owned a horse? Its been 10 years though, and I've worked with or owned horses from ages 6 months to old age.
 
#23 ·
I hate hoof issues more than anything! Hopefully it is something his body is going through that may right itself and he won't have any detrimental effects.

I do agree with the opinion that peroxide isn't the best. If you want to bleach something, sure it's good. But I'd lean away from it for anything animal related. But it looks like you've already decided to do that.

I'll be watching to see if anything changes for you.
 
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