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 1 of the latest question and answer installment that you can share with your footcare clients.
Q: What role does energy play in determining hoof quality?
By Peter Huntington and Chris Pollitt
When faced with bad feet on a horse, the first thing to consider when evaluating a feed program is the daily total energy intake. Meeting your horse’s energy requirements should be the first and most important step in ensuring necessary hoof growth and integrity.
A horse with a negative energy balance will utilize protein in the diet or body to make up the energy needs required for hoof maintenance or growth. However, this may create a secondary protein or amino acid deficiency.
Peter Huntington is the director of nutrition with Kentucky Equine Research Australasia. Chris Pollitt is a retired member of the Australian Equine Laminitis Research Unit at the University of Queensland in Queensland, Australia, and a member of the International Equine Veterinarian Hall Of Fame.
Hoof Nutrition Intelligence is brought to you by W.F. Young Co. (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 2 of the May 1, 2017 installment: Do I need to be concerned with calcium levels when it comes to hoof quality?
Click here to read more installments of Hoof Nutrition Intelligence.