Hoof wall

“ The wall is that portion of the hoof which we see when the foot rests on the ground. It is a plate of horn which, applied to the anterior and lateral surfaces of the foot, diminishes in height as it approaches the posterior part of the region. ”

“ The wall of the foot, instead of coming down from the coronet to the shoe in all its integrity and evenness of slope, as soon as it reaches the clenches, is chopped abruptly downwards and rounded over like an ill-shaped roll, giving the foot a stump-like appearance, and greatly diminishing the extent of its bearing surface. The greatest evil, however, is in the loss of the strong tough horn, whose presence is so necessary to protect the lower margin of the hoof, and to afford support and hold to the nails. ”

“ With the hoof plane the groove in the wall is made by a succession of downward scraping movements, while with the chisel the cut in the wall is made either from below upwards, or from above downwards, according as the foot is held forward or backward—whichever, in fact, comes most convenient. ”

“ In the fore limb, which is chiefly concerned in sustaining weight, the crust or wall of the hoof is formed of fibres running continuously from above, where they are secreted, to below, where they are worn, and following the same direction as the wall itself. As we examine them from within to without—from the surface where they are in contact with the living tissues, we find that they are at first loose and soft in texture, and easily penetrated, while they can be readily dispossessed of their moisture, and then shrivel up into thin, brittle fragments. ”

“ A hoof of the base-wide position is always awry. The outer wall is more slanting, longer, and thicker than the inner, the outer quarter more curved than the inner, and the outer half of the sole wider than the inner. The weight falls largely into the inner half of the hoof. In motion the hoof is moved in a circle. From its position on the ground it breaks over the inner toe, is carried forward and inward close to the supporting leg, thence forward and outward to the ground, which the hoof meets first with the outer toe. ”

“ Modern authorities tell us that no part of the hoof should, on any account, be cut or pared, except the seat of the shoe—that is to say, the wall or crust only, without touching the sole, frog, or bars ”

“ In very pronounced “wryness,” however, with thin, bent walls, a number of associated lesions, such as corns and cracks, may be present and render the animal unfit for service upon paved or macadam roads.
5. The Crooked Hoof.
A crooked hoof (Fig. 212) is one whose walls (viewed from in front or behind) do not pass in a straight, natural direction from the coronet to the ground, but are bent in such a manner that the bearing-surface of the wall in relation to the foot-axis lies either too far out or in. ”

“ Hear Bracy Clark on the difference of the rate of growth of horn in the shod and unshod horse:—‘To consider all the beauty and purposes of the singular construction of the foot, we must dismiss from our views the miserable, coerced, shod foot entirely, and consider the animal in a pure state of nature, using his foot without any defence... The wall, or crust, of the hoof, where there is a demand for its wear, grows rapidly, as when in a state of nature and exposed to the ground ”

“ In order to judge of the width of a shoe which has been fitted to the hoof, it is of advantage to seize the hoof in the left hand and, extending it towards the ground, to observe from behind and above the outer border of the shoe and the surfaces of the wall. ”

“ In a young and healthy horse the whole of the external face of the wall is smooth and shining. This appearance is due to a thin layer of horn, secreted independently of the wall proper, termed the periople.
FIG. 20.—INTERNAL FEATURES OF THE WALL, FROG, AND SOLE (MESIAN SECTION OF HOOF) . 1, Horny laminæ covering internal face of wall; 2, superior border of wall; 3, junction of wall with horny sole; 4, the cutigeral groove; 5, the horny sole; 6, the horny frog (that portion of it known as the 'frog-stay') ; 7, inverted V-shaped ridge on wall and sole (known as the 'toe-stay') ”

“ Therefore a disproportionate foot must injuriously affect both the action and position of the whole limb.
The rate at which the wall grows varies greatly in different horses, and is affected by external conditions. The good average wall grows nearly one inch in three months, and the whole hoof is replaced in from ten to fifteen months. The hoof grows more rapidly when a horse is actively exercised than when he is confined in a box. ”

“ Hind hoofs grow faster than front hoofs, and unshod faster than shod. The hoofs of stallions grow more slowly than those of mares and geldings. [Pg 83]
Abundant exercise, proper grooming (flexibility and moistness of the horn) , regular dressing of the wall, and running barefoot from time to time favor growth; while little or no exercise, dryness, and excessive length of the hoof hinder growth.
The time required for the horn to grow from the coronet to the ground is, therefore, equally variable, and is, moreover, dependent upon the height (length of toe) of the hoof. ”

“ In a hoof that is becoming awry, restoring to the wall its proper level with relation to the position of the limb will not only be invaluable in ultimately producing a good hoof, but will improve the faulty position of the limb. In exceptional cases, where the plantar border of some section of the wall gives evidence of too rapid wear, the application of a tip or of a half-shoe may be of benefit. ”

“ The horny hoof is divided into a wall or crust consisting of the front and sides, the flattened or concave sole, and the frog, a triangular median prominence, notched posteriorly, with the apex turned forwards, situated in the hinder part of the sole. It is formed of pavement epithelial cells, mainly grouped in a concentric manner around the vascular papillae of the subcorneous integument, so that a section near the base of the hoof, cut transversely to the long axis of these papillae, shows a number of small circular or oval orifices, with cells arranged concentrically round them. ”

“ If colts are reared in the stable, the horn continuing to grow down does not undergo sufficient wear, and changes in form of the hoof, and even permanent distortions of the bones of the foot gradually occur. The wall becomes too long and bends or sometimes separates from the sole and keraphyllous layer. ”

“ He must not rob the hoof nor leave too much horn; either mistake may lead to injury. If he has made a careful preliminary examination he knows what part of the wall requires removal and what part must be left, for he already knows the direction of the foot axis and the wear of the old shoe and has made up his mind just where and how much horn must be removed to leave the hoof of proper length and the foot axis straight. ”

“ If, for example, the outer wall has been left too long during a considerable period of time, a crooked hoof results (Fig. 85) in which the rings are placed closer together upon the low (concave) side than upon the high (convex) side. If for a long time the toe is excessively long, it will become bent; or if this fault affects excessively high quarters they will contract either just under the coronary band or will curl forward and inward at their lower borders. ”

“ When looked at from the side the height of the heels and the toe should be proportionate. When looked at from behind the frog should be seen touching the ground. On lifting the foot a level bearing surface wider than the wall should be presented, extending from heel to toe all round the circumference of the hoof; within this level border, the sole should be concave, strong, and rough. ”

“ The most discouraging to the tenderfoot, but in reality the safest of all bad trails, is the one that skirts a precipice. Your horse possesses a laudable desire to spare your inside leg unnecessary abrasion, so he walks on the extreme outer edge. If you watch the performance of the animal ahead, you will observe that every few moments his outer hind hoof slips off that edge, knocking little stones down into the abyss. ”

“ Walls curved from above to below always indicate an unnatural height of some section of the wall and a displacement of the base of support of the foot. In order to gain accurate and complete knowledge of the position of the limbs, the flight of the hoofs, and the manner of setting the foot to the ground, the horse must frequently be moved back and forth many times, especially when the standing position is somewhat irregular and the hoofs are of different shapes. ”

“ You will say that these animals have hoofs divided in the centre, while the hoof of a horse is not divided at all. The pig, which does not ruminate, has a hoof centrally divided, like that of a sheep; and the hare, which chews the cud, has several separate toes, and belongs to the rodents. Amid all this diversity there is this constant characteristic, that the cud-chewers of the ungulates have the toes of each foot collected under what is called a cloven hoof, as if a solid hoof had been cleft into two. ”

“ It is a bad pavement too for horses to travel upon, the jar upon the legs of the unfortunate animals soon telling upon them.
Great improvements, however, have in recent years been introduced to correct these faults. The setts are now made very narrow, about 3 inches in width, or 4 setts to 14 inches including the joints: this gives a better foothold for the horse, the hoof having but a little way to slip before being arrested by a joint; it also lessens the noise, and helps besides to prevent the edges of the stones becoming worn or the pavement wearing unevenly. ”

“ In its present elaborate form, the hoof of a horse is the most perfect instrument of support which has been devised in the animal kingdom to uphold a large and swiftly moving animal in its passage over the ground. The original toe-nail, and the neighboring soft parts connected with it, have been modified into a structure which in an extraordinary manner combines solidity with elasticity, so that it may strike violent blows upon the hard surface of the earth without harm. ”

“ The inside of the foot is straight with the inside of the leg, while the outer part is curved. The two, taken together with the lower portion of the legs, resemble a divided hoof. The divided hoof is a common design among Plains tribes. ”

“ On soft ground it may, for a time, become overgrown, but this is rectified by the soft horn becoming fractured and broken off. In enclosed cultivated grounds the movements of the horse, even on grass land, are too limited to ensure a proportionate form of hoof. When horses are turned out without shoes the feet should not be left to take care of themselves, unless the pasture is of large area and the time at grass extends for several months. ”

“ In a short time the hoof, unbraced by the sole and bars, begins to contract, the action of the frog upon the ground, which in the natural foot is threefold—acting as a cushion to receive the force of the blow and thus relieve the nerves and joints of the leg from concussion, opening and expanding the hoof by its upward pressure, quickening the circulation and thereby stimulating the natural secretions,—this all important part of the organization, without which there is no foot and no horse, becomes hard, dry, and useless. ”

“ The feet of different horses vary exceedingly in what may be termed the texture or property of the hoof, and this is in general regulated by the colour of the legs and feet. There are few horses with white heels but what have white hoofs also; and these are always more liable to, and susceptible of, defects and weakness, than those of an opposite description. The sound, firm, dark-coloured hoof of the bay, brown, or black horse, is seldom found defective ”

“ A great number of these horse-shoes have preserved their nails, which are flat, have a head in the form of a T, and still have their rivet—that is, the point which is folded back over the hoof—which proves that they are not shoes that have been lost, but shoes of dead horses, the foot of which has rotted away in the soil or in the gravel. ”

“ Permitted to remain too long upon the feet, the growth of the hoof brings the shoe forward, rendering it too short at the heel, when it begins to indent, and sinking upon the foot, soon presses upon the outer sole, constituting pain or disquietude in some horses, laying the foundation of corns in others. ”

“ A stable with a damp and smooth floor will spoil the best hoof which nature can give. (7) To prevent the floor being damp, it should be sloped with channels; and to avoid smoothness, paved with cobble stones sunk side by side in the ground and similar in size to the horse's hoofs. (8) A stable floor of this sort is calculated to strengthen the horse's feet by the mere pressure on the part in standing. In the next place it will be the groom's business to lead out the horse somewhere to comb and curry him ”

“ It is agreed by most observers that at the upper border of the hoof, more particularly at the heels, expansion does occur. It is when we come to the lower border of the foot that the statements are most conflicting. ”

“ Farmhouses, with roofs like great slouched hats pulled over their eyes, stand on wooden legs with a tucked-up sort of air, as if to say, “We intend to keep dry if we can.” Even the horses wear a wide stool on each hoof as if to lift them out of the mire. ”

“ Here is another extract from Mayhew: ‘When the contents of the foot are compressed by the superimposed weight of the animal, or when the hoof is resting upon the ground, the quarters yield to the downward pressure, and they accordingly expand. When the burden is removed by the hoof being raised, the quarters again fly back to their original situations; the sides, therefore, being in constant motion, are entirely unsuited for the purposes to which the smith compels them. No wonder the clenches are loosened, or the shoes come off, when the nails are driven into parts hardly ever at rest. ”