As someone who has their nails done a lot, I can definitely feel at least minor discomfort with the filing and when I’ve had a hole drilled in the nail for dangly nail art. I find it incredible how the horses don’t seem to feel a thing when they’re having straight up iron nails hammered into their feet/toenail. And the scraping away of the fleshier part of the foot has got to be at the least uncomfortable. And when they are practically searing the hoof with the hot horseshoe. Do horses just have no nerves in their feet?
In: Biology
Farriers are trained to very carefully avoid any of the nerves/vessels in the hoof. The nails go through the equivalent of a very thick finger nail. In humans, the nails are very thin and filing too aggressively can irritate the underlying tissue/nerves. For horses, the hoof is thick enough that it’s not painful at all. Keep in mind the hoof evolved to help the horses run over very rough/rocky terrain. Hooves are tough and the nerves are well protected.
My horse is in a bromance with his farrier, he loves to whisper sweet nothings and be generally annoying while getting his feet trimmed.
Also lifting up his back legs makes him fart, which thrills the farrier/s
This doesn’t answer your question but I feel it was vital info 😂
The part of the hoof they are attaching the horseshoe to is the equivalent of your nail that grows past the skin on your finger. You dont scream in pain when clipping your nails, horses dont really feel the horseshoe being attaching because its not part of their foot
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