Cresty necks - salt supplementation?

[[153312]]

I have two very good doers, an 11yo 15hh Appaloosa and a 21yo 12hh new forest.
After both coming down with laminitis earlier - thankfully caught early before there was any rotation and brought under control with box rest, lots of soaked hay and Bute - this year they've gone from a dry lot to a partial track gradually being made slightly bigger every day (the idea being to move them onto the full track eventually). They are both on magnesium oxide split (and boswellia for arthritis) into two feeds a day of topchop zero.
Despite all this both are still cresty and I'm not sure what to do about it.
Both were tested for EMS last year and don't have it, and don't have it (Or, didn't at the time). There are no symptoms of Cushing's either.... Their crests are not solid but definitely there; as I understand it crestiness is fluid retention in response to high levels of potassium in the grass (please correct me if I'm wrong).
So would it be worth adding sodium chloride to their feeds? Or is there anything else that can be done to combat the crestiness? I can't up the magnesium dose as it completely blows their brains and turns them into snorting dragons?
Thank you. I feel like i must be missing something really obvious.
Answers in words of one syllable for a moron please ?

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

Are they exercised at all?

 

[[153312]]

Are they exercised at all?

Both are retired.

 

[GinaGeo]

Both are retired.

Definitely worth feeding salt, but it probably needs more than that.

Mine needs to be slim and worked or he struggles.

Your priority needs to be stripping the weight off them. And if you can’t do that with exercise you will need to get mean with the food.

Soaked hay only being one option. Another being to muzzle them to reduce grass intake further.

Can they do any exercise? Even walking in hand would be a good. ?

 

[[153312]]

They both take grazing muzzles off in ten minutes??
Also, neither are overweight.
If they were I'd assume the crestiness was fat first and foremost instead of fluid.

 

[HappyHollyDays]

My Connie is as slim as anything, has ribs but he has a crest due to being gelded late and has had laminitis. He has always had it and I’ve decided that sometimes they just don’t conform to what we expect. Salt, mag ox, low starch and sugar, soaked hay and very little grass is all you can do feed wise but walking them out in hand will really help if it’s possible to do.

 

[ester]

The magnesium is the only thing that has made a marked difference to mine (as in I noticed when I stopped it for another reason that was going on at the time). Cinnamon used to get discussed a fair bit but am not sure it is recommended anymore.
Mines now 28, never had lami but we treat him as metabolic so he has always been on a track (preferably) or muzzled when we couldn't be/had a field mate that needed the grass. He has the advantage now of having poor teeth so I think he quids out a fair amount of grass along the way albeit they still don't have free rein just in case.

 

[[153312]]

I've seen cinnamon recommended for Cushing's ponies and ir - it's supposed to increase insulin sensitivity. I'm starting to think I need to get the nf tested for ppid despite lack of symptoms TBF just due to her age.

 

[Labaire]

Maybe try Pegasus lamintec 5ht-worked well with a cresty Exmoor I had.

 

[ester]

I've seen cinnamon recommended for Cushing's ponies and ir - it's supposed to increase insulin sensitivity. I'm starting to think I need to get the nf tested for ppid despite lack of symptoms TBF just due to her age.

having had laminitis would be enough of a reason for me to test her.

 

[scats]

I honestly don’t find anything makes a difference to cresty necks other than significant weight loss.

 

[JackFrost]

I saw a very good article on the web about salt/mineral balance, crestiness and laminitis. Sorry, can't remember where.
Basically it said to always make salt available to anything potentially laminitic, and that this alone can prevent problems in many cases, as sometimes it is just the mineral imbalance you mention that is at fault. Absolutely I would give them a salt lick or similar, probably one of the more balanced natural ones not refined salt. I would make it available to them for their choice, rather than put it in food.
Are they still a little plump? Once they have a crest it will tend to stay put and only getting weight right down IME reduces it.
Please get them both tested for Cushings. Now is the right time of year for the test and will give you an accurate answer on whether they have it or are developing it. 'Symptoms of cushings' can be so varied and missable - only the test will give you a clear answer.

 

[Tiddlypom]

I'd be testing both for PPID.

You posted some recent pics of a grey with a spotty nose and a cresty neck, is that the appy? I'm afraid that looking at those pics to say that she still is a fair bit overweight.

Can you get her moving more? Walks in hand? It is harder when they are retired.

The equiobiome FB group is well worth following, and there's a spin off one for EMS horses which again has very useful info on it.

 

[[153312]]

Yes, the horse with the spotty nose is the appaloosa.
Fwiw both are still actively losing weight right now - will the crests disappear if they slim down slowly? And re. Salt availability is loose added to feeds, or a lick better? I was under the impression that licking alone wasn't enough?
Will contact vet about Cushing's tests too

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

Mine have salt added to feed and they have a lick each as well, mine come in off the field everyday for at least 5 hours and they are ridden, in summer is there anyway you can get them off the grass for a bit, like fencing a bit off that is very bare and feed some soaked hay or a bucket of straw chaff.

 

[JackFrost]

The crest tissue causes problems in itself, but is also a signal that there is an underlying metablic issue. So even if you do slim them right down, you should still establish why they are getting cresty.
Getting the right mineral balance for a horse can be very tricky and depends on so many things. I would not put salt in feed as most horses would just eat it, whether or not it is right for them. If you offer it as a lick, the horse can choose how much or little it takes, and on the whole they are quite good at responding to their own individual needs.
The type or grass and composition of pasture can also be factors in this balance, and the fact that both of yours went down with laminitis at the same time might indicate this is relevant.
My advice - do test for PPID Cushings. Do get their weight down. Do talk to the vet.
Don't tinker about adding minerals etc until you have done all of this.

The crests will get much less once you have slimmed them down, but won't go altogether.

 

[DirectorFury]

Cinnamon worked like magic for mine, but as ester says it's not really recommended any more. I think Trinity Consultants do a supplement that's also amazing but I've not tried it and can't remember the name of it -- hopefully Red-1 will see this and know what I'm on about.