A bad summer for hooves

Although our summer hasn't been as dry as some parts of the country, it has indeed been dry. I really noticed the effect of the lack of moisture on the horses' feet during this last farrier cycle, which ran from mid July to a appointment earlier this week for a trim and shoeing (for Dude) and trim (for Bestie).

Dude and Bestie have very different hooves and are on the same combination supplement with biotin in it for hooves. It was interesting to see how the dry summer weather affected them.

Dude, who has soft feet, fared better. His hoof edges got a bit ragged with some chipping. Bestie, who has harder hooves, had significant chipping and vertical cracks.

I was relieved when farrier Scott came out this week and cleaned them up. Here's what Bestie's feet look like now (with a coat of Absorbine Hooflex All Natural Dressing):

Pretty nice.