So my mare developed a nasty crack in her front hoof last month after that muddy trail ride. Looked like a split right down the middle – freaked me out good. Vet said it wasn’t deep enough for special shoes yet, but told me to fix it ASAP before it got worse. Figured I’d share what worked for me.
First step: Cleaning the junk out
Grabbed my hoof pick and wire brush. Dug out every single bit of dirt, mud, and gravel packed in that crack. Really had to scrape hard – felt like excavating a fossil. Then sprayed the whole hoof down with white vinegar using an old shampoo bottle. Smelled like salad dressing but kills germs cheap.
Getting the crack ready
Roughed up the sides of the crack with a coarse rasp. Not gonna lie, felt sketchy rasping a damaged hoof – but it’s gotta be rough for the glue to stick. Wiped it bone dry with paper towels. Moisture is the enemy here.
My DIY mix:
- Two tubes of that super glue from the dollar store
- Handful of cotton balls torn into shreds
- Plastic spoon for mixing
Sealing it up
Squeezed both glue tubes into a tin can, stirred like crazy with the spoon. Jammed cotton shreds into the crack using the hoof pick – packed it stupid tight. Then smeared that glue sludge over the cotton and surrounding area. Glued my thumb to the hoof twice – peeled it off burning like hell. Made it rain with glue until the whole mess looked like a frosted cake.
The waiting game
Made her stand in dry shavings for an hour while it set rock hard. Checked daily – kicked dirt like usual but that white glue armor held. After two weeks, the crack started growing out clean from the top. Just filed down the gnarly glue blob yesterday. Hoof’s solid now, saved me a $300 vet bill!
Biggest lesson? Vinegar cleans better than fancy sprays, and dollar store glue beats $40 hoof resin. Wouldn’t try this on a major crack though – vet time for serious splits.
