Winter Hoof Problem?

Question

As much as I hate thinking about it Winter really isn't that far away.Every winter my poor horse gets huge chunks of ice stuck in his hoofs and he wobbles around because of it.I go out and pick the ice out but is there a way to keep it out for longer than 10 minutes.What do you do to keep the ice and snow from building up in their hooves? I was thinking about trying those Davis Barrier Boots but I'm sure the snow and ice will build up on the bottom of those to.

Answer 1

If you can afford it there are special shoes that prevent ice from building up in a horses hoof.  Talk to your farrier to see if they are available.

Answer 2

Pam, WD-40, Crisco, auto grease all work good. Just remember that the hoof has to be dry for it to work the best.

Answer 3

Snow shoes with the bubble, or pull the shoes all together if he has strong feet.  That you would have to check with the farrier if he thinks the horses feet can handle it.  Also you can load up the hoof with Vaseline.

Answer 4

I've heard of people putting a bit of crisco on their horse's hooves to prevent snow from building up, but I've never tried it myself. We had a mare who was always walking on balls of ice by turn in time, especially when the snow was wet and thick. One of the horses at the barn had pads on his shoes, I think they were called pop pads, that had a little bubble type thing in the middle, and his shoes never seemed to get packed with snow. I'd ask your farrier about putting pads on his shoes, or pulling them off for the winter if he'll stay sound.

Answer 5

Tell your farrier you want the soles left alone..research has shown that the sole should not be pared.  Pam cooking spray is good for preventing snow from sticking and forming ice, but if the soles a left alone on a barefoot horse, the hoof is designed to handle the ice and snow naturally.  My two are barefoot and out 24/7 in all kinds of conditions...never a problem.

Answer 6

Odd for that to happen with an unshod horse - I'd talk to the farrier about it as has already been suggested.

Other than that we use vaseline or you can use that coat shine stuff ( the sillicone one) to stop the snow from sticking.

Answer 7

well, if your horse has shoes you can have those rubber "plates" put in, or the rubber that follows the line of the shoe.. i don't honestly know what they're called but i'm sure your farrier could explain!

But, i've also heard of mushing vaseline in the shoes, and spraying their feet with WD-40.  I've also heard using cooking spray..  The easiest of course, would be to just keep him off ice and snow, but i doubt that going to happens..

something like these:

http://www.beetreetrail.com/art/shoe%200...

good reading, just skip the teeth stuff.

http://www.livestocktrail.uiuc.edu/horse...

EDIT: well, if theres no shoes then it shouldn't be a problem, since theres no where for the snow to get packed in, but i would try crisco/pam/vasoline just on the hoof, around the frog.. it should help.

Answer 8

Since you've mentioned that your horse doesn't wear shoes: It is quiet unusual that snow and ice can built up in a horses hoof without shoes, the sole of the hoof is actually that elastic that it works like the snow pads someone else mentioned earlier for a shooed horse. The only reason I can see for the built up is that your farrier might trim your horses sole too deep so it hollows too much. I've seen that very often. Maybe you ask your farrier not to take off anything from your horses sole, leave it basically untouched, that way the hoofs underside becomes more flat and the natural built-up prevention works again?

Answer 9

Hmm... That is actually pretty tough. You could talk to your farrier about maybe putting some pads on the bottom of his feet, that might help a little. Unfortunately, I live in a place where it never snows, so I can't offer much help. Your farrier SHOULD be able to answer this.. maybe some special ice-walking shoes or something :) Good luck!

Answer 10

You could try shoeing you horse and adding pads, they will prevent the buildup of snow and ice.  Cooking spray will help, but it doesn't last very long.

Answer 11

Take of shoes in winter

Answer 12

If the Pam or Crisco thing doesn't work, get hoof boots, the kind people use on barefoot horses when they go on gravel, etc. It's easier to scrape the snow/ice off of those than digging it out of their hooves. If your horse doesn't run around too much in the field, you could even try just using vet-wrap covered with duct tape.

Answer 13

you should take off your horses shoes in the winter so ice doesnt build up and so his feet have a chance to regain health from the nails that were in his hoof.

Answer 14

Get yourself a gallon sized jar of Vaseline, and smear or paint it on your horse's hooves. It's water repellent, and it also has the added advantage of being a moisturizer for the feet, and will help keep them soft. That should stop the snow from building up in them. I agree the horse should go shoeless, unless there is a valid reason for him to have shoes in the winter ( such as his being shown, for example) but please, be smart and DON'T USE something like WD-40 on your horse. WD-40 is made from petroleum distillates,which can make your horse ill when absorbed through the skin in large quanities. The same thing is true of motor oil, which contains compounds which can cause cancer in both horses and people because of long term exposure.

I have never tried the PAM cooking spray on a horse, but that also might work.

I hope this helps.  

Answer 15

If you take a nonstick cooking spray such as Pam and spray it on their feet it will help keep the ice from forming. Its also cheap! Not sure how, but it works! good luck!

Answer 16

We use non-stick cooking spray such as "Pam" and believe it or not used motor oil.  But it has to be used motor oil not new oil just brush it on the bottoms of their feet and it even works well on the tops of their feet  good luck 2 ya