Advice on hay amount and vets recommendations

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pottamus

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My horse came back from the vets yestersay after being diagnosed with laminitis in one foot with 12 degrees rotation (not sinker). I have obviously been given strict instructions from the vet on his care and am following it to the letter.
My concern is that the vet obviously wants some weight off my boy and has told me what to feed him hay wise whilst in 24/7. She has said that he is to have no more than 6 pads of small bale hay per day (inc night), so 3 in day and 3 by night. This is a lot less than he is used to, however want to do what is right. I am putting this into small holed haynets and double netting to slow him down a bit but he is getting through it quickly and I am really worried about him being left for hours with nothing to eat.
I have read all sorts of stories of not starving horses with lami or leaving them for hours with no food and I am concerned that may be what I am doing! I am sure the amount recommended is fine and I am sure he will realise with time and stop eating it allat once but can anyone advise that has been through this please?
 
How big is he? Are you soaking the hay too? I would also want a weight from the vet rather than 'pads' as the vary so much from bale to bale. Is the hay this years or 'old' hay??
 
He is a 15hh welsh cob weighing 470 on the weigh tape. I am not soaking as I dont have that facility (rent a field with no water or mains). I am feeding this years hay cut end of June that was very mature grass at the time of cut. Yes I thought about getting a weigh scale to check that way against the recommendations on body weight.
 
that sounds about rightish, our lami pony who is now going out, weighed 396kg when we dragged her from the field, her owner had left her for 2 years to get this size. she is 11.3hh and was on two small hay nets one in the day one at night, this is what the vet said to do. in twelve weeks she has dropped to 290kg.

like you say they do get used to it
good luck
 
Unfortunately when you are slimming them down they have to go a certain amount of time without eating. Is there any way you can visit 4 times a day? That way you can split the hay up.
I would not feed a laminitic unsoaked hay. Could you soak the hay at home, drain it and take it up to the field. That way you may be able to feed a little more of it. Also, could you leave him a tub trub full of HiFi Lite/unmollassed chaff aswell as the hay at night to give him something to nibble on...

Good luck...I seem to spend my life slimming ponies down
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I would see if you can locate some old (last years hay), especially if there is really no way of soaking, though think I would consider taking hay home in a dustbin/soaking/draining and bringing back (especially if using this years hay).
 
I have a friend who is having to get the weight off a horse fast - and has been very successful.

They get three nets a day - and very, very little in it. They substitute part of the ration with straw. The weight loss has been very dramatic and very successful.
 
That seems a decent volume of hay to get weight off Pottamus.

It's a shame for the pony but like anyone going on to a diet he will adapt very quickly.

Can you get there to put a net in every few hours? That way you can space it out even if he won't?
 
Another that thinks that sounds about right, 14.2 pony on our yard had laminitus a couple of years ago he had his hay mixed in with straw and double netted and then soaked for 12 hours and had 5 sections a day but spread out, we all helped a bit as i was there 1st in the morning i used to hang a net for her 1st thing and one of the other girls is always last to leave so she always hung him a net last thing and then she managed to spread the others as best she could. The weight came off slowly and steadily and although a super greedy piggy pony he managed and touch wood has never had it again.
 
My 12.2 skinny minny with laminitis is having 3 wodges a day and I'm wondering if thats enough, as you could see her ribs before she got it. I soak each wodge ofr 8 hours and she has a haynet every 8 hours.
I would soak it if you can, my vet said it was the most important thing to do, at home seems a good suggestion?
Those of you who mix in straw, what sort of straw? Do you add it after soaking the hay?
My vet also said no to lots of hi fi lite when I asked him, he said stick to soaked hay. She does have hi fi lite twice a day for her bute and sedatives.
 
cant u soak them at home? thats what few people i knew used to do. when i had a lamy ponie i bought the hay bags one with little little grids so he has to take his time eating it he hated it.

i also kept him in during day out at night as grass aint so sweet and he was on a very short grass section

also try hiding bits of carrots and apples (small pieces) around stable so if he does run out of food his minds off it as hes searching for them
 
I would just go back to the vet and ask for a specific weight of hay to be feeding him per day. He will be fine being on rations with intervals of no hay to eat. My 2 NF ponies are permanently kept this way to keep the weight off them and prevent laminitis. They are stabled every night on non edible bedding, with a 3kg net of hay and a tiny feed consisting of two handfuls of alfa a lite, 1 cup lo-cal balancer and cider vinegar, which is the highlight of their day. Then out during the day on restricted grazing. On this regime they don't put on too much weight and are happy and well in themselves. It has taken me 3 years to find the optimum way of keeping them and I <<think>> I've just about got it right now.
 
Guessing from horses weight and guesstimating bale weight think your vet is about right at feeding 2% of body weight a day, just dont go below 1.5%.
You will not risk Hyperlipaemia if you stay above 1.5%
 
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