Q: I have heard horses should get their feet washed every day, and that this is called the natural moisturizing cycle for hooves. In the horses you have observed in the wild, do they wet their feet every day? If so, please explain how they do it? —via e-mail

A: Horses and ponies that I have observed living in natural environments do have wet feet a good deal of the time.

Depending upon the climate, the weather, the time of the year, and the bodies of water around, their feet get wet in a wide variety of ways.

Whenever the grass is wet from rain, dew, or snow, the feet and lower legs are wet. Whenever horses encounter a natural body of water such as a pond, stream, or water hole, they paw at the edge or step in and paw, whether or not they drink or swim. They do get their feet and legs wet in those circumstances. So that’s just about every day