Horse anatomy: The coronet or coronary ban

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by Lucy Collins

The coronet or coronary band is a very important part of the horses hoof. It is where the hoof wall grows from. With regards to identifying the coronary band, it is a thin band around the top of the hoof. It is soft to the touch in contrast to the hard surface of the hoof and is hairless.
The old saying `no foot no horse` highilights the importance of caring for the horses hooves. The coronary band, a relatively small area in relation to the hoof, needs care also. It can easily be forgotten when treating the hooves with oils and potions. The coronary band is responsible for hoof growth, so don`t forget about it.

The coronary band is soft and therefore easily injured. It is not impossible for the horse to strike itself on the coronary band resulting in a painful area. Occasionally, if a horse has an abcess in the hoof, pus will find its way out through the coronary band. An injury could cause infection in the coronary band. A coronary band injury can be very painful for the horse for which veterinary attention may be necessary.

An injury to the coronet band could interfere with new hoof growth. A complete new hoof takes approximately 6 months to grow. There are variations and weather conditions affect growth, but it takes at least this long. Hooves grow more quickly in summer than in winter. You can imagine though, the coronary band is working all of the time to produce new hoof growth. If the coronary band were to sustain an injury, it would be working to heal itself. Could it also work at providing new hoof?
Defects and imperfections can result from coronary band damage. My horse had a crack in her hoof. The vets kept telling me that it would grow out. The farrier kept telling me that it would not grow out as it had originated in the coronary band. Guess who was right. My mare is now 18 and the crack is still there. It is not a problem as it is a hairline crack. It has knitted together really well. It has been a problem in the past though and I need to keep an eye on it. The crack became wider a few years ago, allowing mud to enter the hoof causing infection. The horse was hopping lame and I needed to poultice until the infection had been removed. The farrier then had to nail the crack together by putting a nail accros the hoof to close the crack. This worked but the nail needed to stay in for at least 6 months (a new one at each shoeing) until the crack had grown right down. As I explained, the crack is still visible but no longer `open`. Getting back to the coronary band, this rather permanent crack was caused by a cut to the coronet band.

I have seen other `imperfect` hooves due to a coronary band injury. If the band is badly injured, the growth will be affected. If the hoof is damaged following a coronary band injury, it will eventually grow down. The damaged hoof may not be a problem for 5 and a half months. When the damaged hoof reaches the bottom, it may present the farrier with a problem when shoeing the horse. It could mean that there is nowhere to nail the shoe to. It will eventually grow out but could cause problems in the mean time. This of course is assuming that the damage is not permanent which it could be with a nasty injury.

The coronary band may be a small area on a horse, but don`t underestimate its importance. When checking and picking out the hooves, also get into the habit of checking the coronary band. Keep any injuries to a minimum. Use overreach boots on a horse who regularly over reaches. It is possible to injure the coronary band due to over reaching. If an injury should occur, seek veterinary attention if required to prevent further injury and damage to hoof growth.