In hoofed animals, the deciduous hoof capsule () is the

eponychium In human anatomy, the eponychium is the thickened layer of skin at the base of the fingernails and toenails. It can also be called the medial or proximal nail fold. The eponychium differs from the cuticle; the eponychium comprises live skin cells ...

fetus A fetus or foetus (; plural fetuses, feti, foetuses, or foeti) is the unborn offspring that develops from an animal embryo. Following embryonic development the fetal stage of development takes place. In human prenatal development, fetal deve ...

es and newborn

foal A foal is an equine up to one year old; this term is used mainly for horses, but can be used for donkeys. More specific terms are colt for a male foal and filly for a female foal, and are used until the horse is three or four. When the foal i ...

s. It is a

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

structure, which disappears as the animal grows. In

equines ''Equus'' , is a genus of mammal Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neo ...

, they are shed soon after a foal begins to stand. The shedding process can vary from dropping-off whole to the gradual wearing down of the capsule. Common names used in lay literature include "golden slippers", "fairy fingers", and "horse feathers".

References

Works cited

* * Mammal anatomy Ungulates Equine hoof {{Anatomy-stub