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Abstract:Introduction: Thoroughbred foals are born with fully developed hooves and stand within minutes of birth. A ring in the hoof horn occurs at birth and grows down the hoof wall, separating the fetal hoof (distal) and foal hoof (proximal). Birth rings in hoof horn have been noted in other species and used to estimate age. Hoof wall renewal in all ages of horse has been poorly reported. Furthermore horn growth and complete hoof capsule renewal has not been measured in Thoroughbred foals. Partial hoof wall avulsions are relatively common. The objective was to measure the time taken for the fetal hoof of newborn foals to grow to the bearing border and be replaced by hoof grown since birth.Method: Thoroughbred foals (N=150) on four Newmarket stud farms were studied during June to September. The age of the foal and the day that routine hoof trimming removed the remnants of the fetal hoof of the front hooves was recorded. Foals that were on restricted exercise, ill or where the remnants of the fetal hoof still remained after trimming were excluded from the data. 45 foals fulfilled the criteria. The data were tabulated in Excel, analysed in Minitab and assessed for normality (AndersonDarling). Results:The mean age at which the fetal hoof was removed with routine trimming was 145±15 days (95% confidence interval, 141.77-147.16), range 120-165 days.Conclusions: Thoroughbred foals replaced the fetal hoof half the time given for mature horses (270-365 days). Knowing the time of hoof renewal will allow accurate predictions of healing to be made in cases of partial hoof wall avulsion and other hoof lesions and may assist in determining the age of foals.Declarations: Approval was given by the University of Central Lancashire Animal Projects Committee. There were no sources of funding and no competing Interests.