fore hooves round ; hind hooves oval

Question
hello ma'am, really sorry. my internet was not working, so i couldnt post you questions. here is a doubt:

in general, why a horse's especially a thoroughbred's fore hooves round and the hind hooves oval? why this is said to be an ideal confirmation of a thoroughbred?

its known that if a horse has over reaching confirmation and its hind hoof is oval, i.e the toe in pointing shape, it may clip the fore heel of the horse hence leading to cut injuries, shoe getting loose. then, how this can be an ideal confirmation. i believe that all the horse hooves should be round

Answer
Hello and welcome back.


The front hooves and hind hooves of all breeds (as far as I know) are shaped differently.
The front hooves are generally more round, and the hind feet more oval.Because of this they need to be trimmed and shod differently, and all good farriers are aware of this.

All sorts of things can lead to a horse over reaching and clipping the bulbs of the front feet. It can be a matter of conformation, sgility, way of going, etc. Most horses with correct training which loads the haunches more and gets the horse off his forehand, and with correct hoof trimming and shoeing, (if necessary),stop over reaching.

Until this happens,when schooling the horse should have well-fitted bell boots on his front feet to protect him.