Answer

By Your Horse

Nutritionist Clare Lockyer replies:

Hoof formation requires proteins, vitamins, minerals and fats, so a balanced diet is crucial. Adding lots of one particular nutrient won’t help, and can even be a bad thing; for example vitamin A and selenium can cause hoof problems if fed at high levels.
Here are some points to help guide you:
● Feed a balanced diet based on a full ration of good-quality compound feed. If your horse is a very good doer, he may not need a full ration of compound feed,
but will still need vitamins and minerals – feed a supplement like Feedmark Benevit or Equivite Original.
● Biotin is the best-known of the hoof supplements. It’s a member of the B vitamin family, is a component in hoof growth and development, and there is scientific evidence to suggest it can help overcome some hoof problems. Feed 15mg to 20mg per day for a typical 500kg horse, or 3mg to 4mg per 100kg of bodyweight.
Remember, even biotin can’t work alone, so pay attention to his all-round nutrition. Good hoof supplements include calcium, zinc and amino acids like lysine and methionine.
● Be patient! It can take several months to see results.