Favorite Hoof Supplement???

[faluut42]

I am looking for a hoof supplement that actually works and makes feet grow faster. First of all are there any? And if there are what are your favs?

The mare I have has good food, plenty of work, and is properly shod. Her feet just arnt growing very fast, but normal for a tb. Any way to make her feet grow out faster?

[LoveMyPonies]

I haven't found a supplement per say that actually works, although I had a friend who swore by Farrier's Formula. What works great for my guys is Miracle Hoof Oil, which I just get from my farrier. It promotes a healthy hoof and I've seen good growth in my TBs over the last year I've used it.
Good luck!

[jaimebaker]

For really fast growth when needed I put my horses on a product called Bio-plus. Here's a link

http://www.jeffersequine.com/ssc/product.asp?CID=1&mscssid=XG276CH1A5B68LLV6Q95H7C5Q0A50XN1&pf_id=11812

I had an issue with a filly of mine and she grew her entire hoof out in 5 months on this product (my farrier was astonished...I have the photos documenting it as well). She is actually a fast grower with her hooves but this gave her the extra needed to get them on out. Its 50 mg of Biotin and has worked well for several in my group. Some horses naturally grow faster than others. With that being said, I have one horse the I can put on it that it does nothing for.

With everything, it depends. Some worked great on some horses, some didn't do squat on others. So it really depends on the individual. I have never been a fan of Farriers Formula. I tried it for over a year and saw nothing exciting. I have had good results with Grand Hoof with MSM pellets as well. Just plain ol MSM is supposed to be great for hooves as well (And is certainly cheap enough). I have used Remission on several horses and not only did it not do anything, it turned their feet to crap. For other folks it works great for them.


I have pulled my horses off Biotin for now. The two that normally get Biotin are now on Omega Horseshine and so far their feet look great. I had read it was great for hooves so I thought I'd give it a go. They've only been on it a couple of months though, so not enough time to tell anything with.

If I had to try another Hoof Supplement I would probably go for Glanzen 3. It's got 30mg of Biotin and a lot of other goodies in it. Lots of folks on here have raved about it. If any of my group needs a Biotin supplement in the next few months that will probably be the product I try out.

But if I'm dealing with some sort of injury or issue where I need growth and need it quickly, I won't use anything but that Bio Plus powder. It does a great job for me.

[stryder]

I am very happy with Grand Meadows + MSM. The quantity of hoof is good, and quality of hoof is very good.

We used to use Grand Hoof original formula, but the pelleted formula with MSM is much better. Faster hoof growth.

[Hampton Bay]

A hoof supplement is really only going to help with any deficiencies in nutrition, so you aren't going to see results unless the supplement has something that your horse isn't getting or absorbing enough of. Thus, different supplements will work for some horses but not for others.

I just started my mare on SmartPak's basic hoof supplement because it has a good amount of copper and zinc, and based on some issues with thrush I thought the extra copper might help her. Her hooves grow very quickly on their own though.

[jaimebaker]

A hoof supplement is really only going to help with any deficiencies in nutrition, so you aren't going to see results unless the supplement has something that your horse isn't getting or absorbing enough of. Thus, different supplements will work for some horses but not for others.



That's true but not in all cases. Some horses just respond differently. My horses are all on the exact same food, same supps/vitamins, same pasture, same hay (you get the point) and they will still respond VERY differently to certain hoof supps.

[FLeckenAwesome]

I *think* that Fleck grew more hoof (and so does my farrier) on the seminole biotin supplement. I don't think there's much more to it than biotin, and... I wasn't expecting much since it was only like $16 for the container, but... It *seems* like he did grow a bit more hoof....

For that price, I'll keep him on it :)

[LarkspurCO]

That's true but not in all cases. Some horses just respond differently. My horses are all on the exact same food, same supps/vitamins, same pasture, same hay (you get the point) and they will still respond VERY differently to certain hoof supps.

Yes, but I think the more important thing to note is that individual nutritional needs vary. Therefore the same ration can leave one horse deficient and another horse fine. I was surprised the Bio-Plus has no copper. I guess we can assume your horse wasn't deficient in copper.

I have one horse that grows a little more than half a hoof a year. There's a fever ring from exactly one year ago I have been watching grow out. It is two-thirds down the wall. I recently bought the products recommended by EqTrainer - Uckele Tri-Amino, copper and zinc. Farrier's Formula hasn't helped so we'll see if these make a difference.

[jaimebaker]

Yes, but I think the more important thing to note is that individual nutritional needs vary. Therefore the same ration can leave one horse deficient and another horse fine. I was surprised the Bio-Plus has no copper. I guess we can assume your horse wasn't deficient in copper.




Why is that?? Do individual horses have the capability to absorb certain things differently??? I ask because I'm talking about a herd of horses that are pasture ornaments. So their 'needs' aren't very different from one another as far as if they were actually working. So, if all horses are getting the same nutrition, etc. etc, why would one horse not respond to one supplement that all others do? I'm talking different supps, and different horses (not just one). Say I have two horses that don't respond to supp x, and 4 that do. But I try another supp and 5 respond, and 1 doesn't (without there being a pattern of who is not responding.. as in, the same horse). That doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me, outside of just 'It depends'. If one is deficient it would make sense the others would be in my scenario. Not trying to argue, just asking.

[RidesAHaflinger]

Mine have been on Horseshoer's Secret since November and I am beginning to see some good results both in rate of growth and in the hoof quality. I chose HS because it seems to have all the good stuff needed for healthy hoof growth and it's pretty economical if you use the concentrated formula (costs less to ship).

[stryder]

Why is that?? Do individual horses have the capability to absorb certain things differently??? I ask because I'm talking about a herd of horses that are pasture ornaments. So their 'needs' aren't very different from one another as far as if they were actually working. So, if all horses are getting the same nutrition, etc. etc, why would one horse not respond to one supplement that all others do? I'm talking different supps, and different horses (not just one). Say I have two horses that don't respond to supp x, and 4 that do. But I try another supp and 5 respond, and 1 doesn't (without there being a pattern of who is not responding.. as in, the same horse). That doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me, outside of just 'It depends'. If one is deficient it would make sense the others would be in my scenario. Not trying to argue, just asking.

I am not a nutritionist, but I would guess it depend on an individual horse's genetic predisposition. Some would have inherited tendencies toward stronger hooves (or bones, or lung capacity, or immune systems, etc.) and so while nutrition is a factor, there are other factors at play. JMHO

[jaimebaker]

I am not a nutritionist, but I would guess it depend on an individual horse's genetic predisposition. Some would have inherited tendencies toward stronger hooves (or bones, or lung capacity, or immune systems, etc.) and so while nutrition is a factor, there are other factors at play. JMHO

Genetics play quite a large role in hooves actually. Actually, most of my herd is related to one another since I have every foal I've bred for for the last 10 years (and owned or have owned both parents). I can tell exactly which parent they got their hooves from:yes:

[LarkspurCO]

I'm talking different supps, and different horses (not just one). Say I have two horses that don't respond to supp x, and 4 that do. But I try another supp and 5 respond, and 1 doesn't (without there being a pattern of who is not responding.. as in, the same horse). That doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me, outside of just 'It depends'. If one is deficient it would make sense the others would be in my scenario. Not trying to argue, just asking.

Well of course it "depends" but aside from that, and overall genetics, I can think of a few hypothetical examples off the top of my head.

One horse may feel more insecurity and stress than another, and thus be deficient in certain vitamins and minerals (B vitamins, magnesium, etc.).

One horse may suffer from chronic lameness that requires some medication that may deplete certain vitamins and minerals.

One horse may be very old and the other young.

One horse may be a mare having heat cycles and the other a gelding with very quiet hormones.

One horse may have a higher parasite load than the other.

One horse may be eating something in the pasture that the other horse doesn't.

One horse may be gobbling up the loose minerals because... I don't know why but somebody is.

I dunno ... not very scientific but you get the idea.;)

[LarkspurCO]

To continue my brain dump, I think it also depends on how you define deficiency. While an animal may not be deficient per se in a given nutrient, it still may have less than optimal levels. With your hoof supplement, your horse probably wasn't clinically deficient in any of those nutrients, but somehow she was able to utilize additional nutrients to grow a lot of hoof real fast.

[hollyhorse2000]

I've used Glazen 3 Lite for more than a year. Farrier is very impressed with the increased hoof growth. I'm now afraid to take her off of it!

[tabula rashah]

I use Biotin 800 because it contains a good amount of biotin and does not have anything else added to it (they already get Accel which covers most of the other stuff thats in a lot of biotin supplements). I've been really happy with it. I have 7 barefoot horses and no issues