Nicky - where exactly are the rings you refer to - on the sole or on the front of the hoof wall?
Laminitis (founder) can cause a widened white ring around the sole, if the farrier says that his feet are otherwise in good condition it could be due to a previous bout of laminitis from which he has now recovered. You will need to take care to ensure he does not get it again. I found the following web page for you which explains very clearly all about laminitis, what causes it and how to avoid it in the future.
http://www.ihwt.ie/site2/welfare-campaigns/welfare-information-tips/laminitis-2/

Hi emlaw sorry should have said the rings are on the hoof wall. Thank you for your info I'll look it up

I posted the link because it explains things very clearly, probably better than I could, plus the diagrams are really helpful.

Yes rings on the hoof wall are signs that your horse or pony has had laminitis in the past so be warned and be very carefull not to allow Monti to have too much green grass particularly in spring. Also stress will bring it on so be mindful of that too. Chester has similar definite rings on all his little hooves and I was stupid not to have picked it up when I was buying him. Even had a vet check and the new vet who did it for me didn't pick it up either. I guess I love him so much and he is so good with the grandchildren that I am still pleased that I bought him. He is on his second burst of founder/laminitis since I purchased him 18 months ago and this time he is taking much longer to recover. It is really hard seeing him in pain and nursing him through it - harder this time as he doesn't seem to be improving and it has been over a month now. I am certainly forwarned now and hopefully will never get to casual with him again and also I will do everything I can not to allow him to stress out.

Maggie - even if you did everything right he might still have got laminitis, it's just one of those things that happens. It has so many different causes. I hope Chester gets better soon.

Rings on the hoof wall can also be a sign of vitamin and mineral deficiency. Like ridges on a human's toe nails and finger nails. Our rescue horse had them and it was quite amazing to see the new smooth hoof wall grow down over time. If its laminitis, a diet that is low in protein will ensure it doesn't come back :-)

Maggie I am not sure where u are but one thing u may try is cytek horse shoes but only with some one that is trained to use them - i have had a lot of great results - they are actually a soul shoe and most of the rings that u are talking about would be caused from pressure on the wall - as the wall groes when the toe gets too long it kinks in an out ward direction - if u are interested in having a look go to www.cytekhorse Australia.com - every thing is worth a try for a good horse - best of luck

Hi kenjsmith58 just found your comment here. Thanks so much - I live in Australia and I haven't heard of cytek horse shoes but I will make some enquiries. Apologies to every one else for re-listing this one! Thanks also Gen - I endeavour to keep him on a low protein diet but it is hard. Stress seems to be more important than diet in his case as each time he has foundered it has been after a stress attack. I will also endeavour to keep him calm in future! Nic and Monti check out the web address Emlaw gave us it is great and it has a photo of a hoof with laminitis rings so you could compare this with your horses hooves. Chester has similar rings and the vet says he is very prone to laminitis. He is still not improving so I will get X-rays done this week.

Maggie - so do i - live in Australia that is, i am just out of Tamworth N.S.W - but I know cytek farriers around N.S.W and Qld - look me up on face book under ken smith cytek farrier and we will c what we can do. hope to hear from u.

Thanks again Ken - I will look you up on face book.

The rings "on the hoofs can be:
1) Change in diets
2) Sickness in the horse
3) change of soil
the hoof always tells the story of the horse so to speak!
Warmest Ann Lindberg/Sweden

Hi Ann - thanks again for your input to forum. Does this suggest that the rings are not a result of laminitis/founder??

Maggie u will probably get sick of me but I can not read this stuff and not say anything - if u get the weight of the horse off the walls of his feet most of your problems will go - the wall is not made to carry the weight of the horse his pedal bone is but us humans have decided that the wall should - if u look at the horses leg - foot - the weight runs down the leg to the pedal bone - or thats where it should go but we put a rim shoe on or let the wall grow to the ground which takes the weight - which means instead of the weight going down through the pedal bone we divert it from the coronet down the wall, which is only held on by soft tissue and this is where all there feet problems start. Once again thanks to humans.

sorry Maggie

Oh yeah I was also going to say they sound more like fatigue rings where the hoof wall's taking the load.Check the bars also to see if they also are buckling under the weight, as bars are not to weight bear either. The heels, frogs and soles are! Some folks call these growth rings but they are nothing to do with growth. It's the tubules straining and bending, just like rebars in the overloaded foundations of a building.. The hoof wall is the "shoe" that fits the inner hoof mechanism and when the toe grows long and the heels under run ... the rebars are no longer supporting the inner structures as they are meant to. The toe then fills with laminar serum produced by the stretched white (golden) line in an attempt to hang it all togehter. Forward run foot syndrome is extremely common.

Thankyou both so much. Chester now has his hooves trimmed short - both my farrier and my excellent vet spent time on him. I will always ensure they stay short now as they had grown a little long.