Are fever rings in the hoof due to changing nutritional needs?

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: Are fever rings in the hoof due to changing nutritional needs?

By Julie Davis, DVM and Richard Mansmann VMD, PhD

A: Fever rings in the hoof may be formed because of laminar hyperplasia (thickening and/or excess growth). These rings can be induced by inflammation that displaces the tubules outward or because of the tubules within the hoof buckling under compression. Typically occurring in the moist area near the coronary band, the formation of these fever rings is often a result of a sudden increase in weight or weight bearing possibly due to lameness in another limb.

When a hoof or limb is injured, the inflammation that occurs may lead to laminar hyperplasia. When there is systemic inflammation, such as often seen with episodes of colic, systemic illness, sepsis and hypersensitive reactions, a fever ring may develop in the hoof.

Attempting to blame one aspect of a horse’s diet for all the causes of as the fever rings is inappropriate with the myriad of potential cases.

Julie Davis is a graduate of the North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine and equine veterinarian Richard Mansmann is a professor emeritus in podiatry and rehabilitation in the College of Veterinary Medicine at North Carolina State University. This item is taken from an article they authored on “Nutrition May be the Culprit” in American Farriers Journal.

Click here to read part 2 of the Sept. 23, 2021, installment of Hoof Nutrition Intelligence: Can a change in diet help my 4-year-old gelding overcome some serious joint concerns? Click here to read more installments of Hoof Nutrition Intelligence.