what's the purpose of the soft rubbery sole found on a newborn foal's hoof
Horse hoof The third phalanx (coffin bone; pedal bone; P3;) is completely (or almost completely) covered by the hoof capsule. It has a crescent shape and a lower cup-like concavity. Its external surface mirrors the wall's shape. The corium, a dermo-epidermal, highly vascularized layer between the wall and the coffin bone, has a parallel, laminar shape, and is named the laminae. Laminar connection has a key role in the strength and the health of the hoof. Beneath the rear part of the sole, there is the digital cushion, which separates the frog and the bulb from underlying tendons, joints and bones, providing cushioning protection. In foals and yearlings, the digital cushion is composed of fibro-fatty, soft tissue. In the adult horse, it hardens into a fibrocartilaginous tissue when sufficient, consistent concussion stimulates the back of the hoof. Normal transformation of the digital cushion into fibrocartilagineous tissue is now considered a key goal, both for prevention of, and for rehabilitation of recovering cases of navicular syndrome. The flexor tendon lays deeper, just along the posterior surface of the small pastern bone (PII) and navicular bone, and it connects with posterior surface of P3; the navicular functions as a pulley.