Horse hoof care in wet weather

High rainfall can benefit crops, but without proper grooming and timely treatments, muddy fields can lead to various ailments in horses, including lameness, mud fever, and foot rot, writes Dr Mac.

- Dr Mac

The high rainfall in the growing season has resulted in excellent maize crops, but the grazing fields are very muddy. Mud can lead to lameness, as it causes softening of hooves and skin infections.

In Europe, where muddy grazing fields are the rule, grooms routinely wash down horses’ legs and clean out hooves every afternoon after horses come back to their stables.

These stables are cleaned weekly and a fresh layer of dry straw or shavings are layered on top daily. This is also the practice in parts of KwaZulu-Natal where annual rainfall levels are high.

HIGH TEA, ANYONE?

In the afternoon, muddy horses will trot into these prepared stables. Traditionally, this would be before owners and riders in the UK would sit down to high tea with scones in the living room.