I spoke to a gentleman about an Anglo Arab he had
for sale. He told me it could never do rides longer than 15 miles because
he has three white hooves. Now, could someone please elaborate on
this? He said the horse was perfectly sound but that white hooves were
weak. I never heard of this before but as I mentioned earlier I've been
away from the horse world for a long time.
It has been my experience that white
hoofs are softer, and dark hoofs are more brittle. You can have good or
poor quality hoof in either color. Poor quality white hoofs tend to
spread and flatten, poor quality dark hoofs tend to crack and split.
There are several possibilities for the
horse you are looking at. it could be that he has poor quality hoofs,
regardless of color but the seller believes it to be because of the color.
it could be that he has perfectly good feet but the seller has never ridden over
15 miles, and it seems like such a long way to him that he doesn't think the
horse could do it. -another possibility, that the horse is sound *now*, but has
had lameness issues in the past, possibly in one of the white feet -that has
been blamed on the hoof color.
Maybe you could talk to the owner and
find out why he believes the white hoofs to be weaker. Maybe there
is someone in you area that would be willing to help you evaluate the horse, or
someone could recommend a reputable farrier in your area that could discuss the
potentials in this particular horses white hoofs.
"Good and Ill have not changed since yesteryear; nor are they one thing
among Elves and Dwarves and another among Men. "
-Aragorn, son of
Arathorn
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