If you look back through the archives, there have been some discussions
on biotin. There is some pretty good empirical research that 15-20 mg
of biotin a day will significantly improve hoof quality, though not the
rate of growth. However, because horn growth starts at the coronary
band and takes over a year to get down to where the nail holes are, alot
of people think it isn't doing anything if they don't notice a
difference within a month or so. Some of the improvements they measured
in the study (conducted at the Spanish Riding School of Vienna on the
Lipizzaner stallions) took almost three years to show up. My horses all
have good feet, too, but I'm always ready for improvement, and I also
feed biotin to our 19 month old Karahty colt NOW so that his feet will
be at their best condition LATER.
I like Paragon's Biotin Plus, as it's the most concentrated biotin for
the money. If you can't find another supplier, Wiese ships, I'm sure,
to Canada. Their phone number is 1-800-869-4373 and their price for 5
lb of Biotin Plus (#XC12-0271) is $38.99 US, which is pretty good.
There might be cheaper sources around. Don't feed the biotin at their
recommended dose of 50 mg/day---horses don't store biotin and only
utilize about 15-20 mg a day, so anything over 20 mg ends up in a pee
puddle. Feed a half scoop or even a bit less and it's just as effective
and alot more economical.
Hope this helps.
Susan Evans Garlinghouse