Hoof Nutrition Intelligence Hoof Nutrition Intelligence is a twice-a-month web segment that is designed to add to the education of footcare professionals when it comes to effectively feeding the hoof. The goal of this web-exclusive feature is to zero in on specific areas of hoof nutrition and avoid broad-based articles that simply look at the overall equine feeding situation.

Below you will find Part 2 of the latest question and answer installment that you can share with your footcare clients.

Q: An American Farriers Journal article dealt with why prevention is the best way for handling laminitis concerns. I’d like to add a few nutrition ideas that have worked for me in trying to prevent laminitis.

By Mike Hendershot

A: I recommend taking corn out of the diet and replacing it with full fat rice bran. If you aren’t in rice country and have trouble finding fresh bran that hasn’t become rancid, feed extruded rice bran.

However, you’ll need to start some horses onto the bran slowly as they may not touch it if you just put it out in front of them cold turkey. With full fat rice bran, you can have twice the energy digested by horses than from feeding corn and no carbohydrates. This ration change should help you avoid founder concerns, but it can also make horses fat if you don’t properly manage their diet.

Mike Hendershot is the general manager of a farm products store and lives in Mountain, Grove, Mo. The original American Farriers Journal article Hendershot referenced is titled "Best Way To Treat Laminitis? Prevent It!"

Hoof Nutrition Intelligence is brought to you by W.F. Young Co. (Absorbine). Absorbine

Like many significant achievements, Absorbine® grew out of humble beginnings—and through the tenacity of someone willing to question the status quo. In this case, it was a young woman in late 19th-century Massachusetts: Mary Ida Young. Her husband, Wilbur Fenelon Young, was an enterprising piano deliveryman who relied on the couple’s team of horses to make deliveries throughout the Northeast. Inspired by Mary Ida and Wilbur’s vision, Absorbine® has continued to add innovative products throughout the years — products used every day by horse owners around the world. Which is why, since 1892, we’ve been The Horse World’s Most Trusted Name®.

Click here to read Part 1 of the April 1, 2016 installment: What do hoof rings and hoof ridges reveal about a horse’s nutrition?

Click here to read more installments of Hoof Nutrition Intelligence.