Cross Breeds

horses in the wild?just a random thought that i thought might be a nice ?

horses feet are so important to them so horses in the wild dont get farrier care so how do their feet not over grow? how do wild horses care for themselves? just a random thought i had and thought id ask.... thanks.

Public Comments

1. when the take steps their feet are naturally taken care of, I think
2. the rough area they live in wear them down. sometimes they break off wrong and they have problems.
3. They are constanly traveling looking for food, water, and running from predators. The move over rough terain with wears down there feet.
4. their feet get worn down from the rocks and stuff. horses in the wild run a lot more over much rougher terrain than our horses do. wild horses' feet do overgrow some. they have very long toes and no heels at all. they do have problems and go lame and when they do, there isn't anyone to help fix it so they pretty much always stay lame for the rest of their lives. their lives are often shorter because of this. if they're lame, they can't run like they need to and can't outrun predators.
5. Because in the wild horses are constantly on the move - their hooves keep down through natural wear and tear. The only reason why horses cannot do this in our environment is because a simple field like a horse will normally live in does not have everything a horse needs to keep themselves properly healthy. In the wild you will rarely see a horse go down with lammi, or colic or anything - because they will naturally know what to eat and what not to eat so that they remain healthy, they will eat all sorts of different plants and food in the wild, the life style in which they live in to adapt to us humans won't do that so we need to step in.
6. How their feet aren't overgrown? They're always on different kinds of terrain. They're always running/moving over rocks, hard surfaces, mud, grass, and other things. It keeps their feet down. It's like if a dog was on concrete rather then in the house. Their nails would get wore down so they didn't need trimmed. How do they take care of themselves? They find and eat food and water. Instict I guess. Hope this helps! =) -Fresh Paint-
7. Horse's feet are natually built to harden and wear down on thier own. Shoes prevent this. Read a good barefoot book like: http://www.amazon.com/Horse-Owners-Guide-Natural-Hoof/dp/0965800768/ref=sr_1_fkmr1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1274294899&sr=1-1-fkmr1 This guy did a study on over 2000 wild horse's feet and what makes them so sound and sturdy in the wild. I keep my horse's feet this way and never have any problems. Good question.