ridecamp@endurance.net: black hooves v. white hooves

black hooves v. white hooves

Lysane Cree (cree_l@LSA.Lan.McGill.CA)
Wed, 29 Oct 1997 15:54:43 EST

I am curious to know what everyone's thinking is on this topic of
horses which have white (or striped) hooves in comparison to those
which have black hooves. I have heard many people say that black
hooves are inherently tougher and more "durable" than white hooves
and that white hooves will generally be more prone to chipping,
cracking, etc. Is this an old wives tale or does it have some truth
to it. Some people seem to firmly believe this.
I own a Paint who has mostly white hooves and he does have
feet which tend to be dry, brittle and chip easily. When I asked someone
about it they gave me that same story which I had heard a number of
times over the years that white hoovest are just like that-weaker than
black ones . If this were true then all endurance riders should have
horses with black hooves right!?
But then again I have also heard (and tended to believe) that dry, brittle hooves
were due to diet and environment (i.e. lots of alternating wet/dry conditions).
Although it helps my horse's hooves to put something like Hooflex
on them, they go back to be quite dry when I don't use it.
Does anyone have the answer to this white hoof/black hoof controversy
for me?

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