What are they made of? Is there a rough equivalent body part for humans? Are there differences between hooves on different animals such as cows and horses? Why can wild animals get by without hoof maintenance while farm animals do?
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Hooves are like fingernails. They’re made of the same stuff. Some animals are split hoofed and others have a single hoof. Single hoofed animals like horses have the large nail around the outside and then the soft frog in the center.
In a natural setting, an animals hoof nails will wear down through use, and the frog area will get cleaned out through washing and walking on grasses. Many animals of course will also suffer from cracked hoofs and frog infections in the wild and die.
Farm animals don’t have a varied enough landscape nor enough exercise to maintain hoof health naturally so the owner or a farrier will assist.
Any horse that is shod also needs extra care, as the nails won’t wear down at all and will need a regular trim and re-shoeing.
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