EMS Fitness

atlantis

atlantis

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So has anyone ever had a horse diagnosed with EMS that was super fit? Or taken one with insulin resistance and got them super fit?

My mare has EMS and is a bit more sensitive to the grass this year. So I am managing by taking her completely off it, soaking hay etc. No lami at all no lameness, worked most days but quite a bit of in hand work, which we both enjoy, but quite a bit of walking. Not quite ready to move up to trot but we do trot and canter on the lunge, but only once a week. She is strong but could however be quite a bit fitter.

I am asking if anyone has been able to essentially manage their horse as if they didn't have EMS ( or a bit more like it) if they were super fit. I used to event a gypsy cob x so he needed massive amounts of Fitness work. I'm thinking I should do the same with my mare. Interval training with him did the trick. I'd have to move yards I think as not really anywhere to hack to to gallop where we are now.

Any thoughts?
 
I have an 18 year old Welsh d with EMS. She is ridden 6 days a week, mixture of schooling, long fast hacks and showjumping/xc training. She is fed topspec anti lam & a small bit of thunderbrooks healthy herbal nuts to carry flex supplement. In during day with small hay net (fed from floor) & out at night muzzled during summer. I find if she's going to go footy it's end of September so I keep her muzzled till the clocks go back when she's in at night. Nobody believes she's 18 as she's so fit & looks good
 
I haven't done either to my knowledge, never had one diagnosed but have had plenty of fatties over the years, to me getting a horse with a metabolic issue super fit makes sense, I did take on a cushings pony and turned him around, enabling him to cut back the meds, by having him far more active which the vet said was perfect but had failed to advise the owners to get him working as part of the treatment, interval training would be ideal once they have a fair base fitness, lots of hillwork to get their core strength and ideally some jumping to get every part of them working, anything you can do to get the heart rate up will be good for her.
 
There was a programme on H&C about laminitis a while back which had a slot on 'fat camp' which Cathy McGowan holds at Liverpool equine hospital. If i understood them correctly then getting the weight right down seemed to reverse the effects of insulin resistance. They really, really went in hard on weight though. One of their case studies was a show pony who went from show ready (eg round, cresty) to unrecognisable. Made me realise quite how fat my mare is.

My friends used to muzzle their daughter's pony 24:7 for about 8 months of the year (14h cob, looks a bit like highland blood in there). She's now on working livery and does at least an hour a day with the riding school - lots of trotting, cantering and the odd jump lesson - and the weight has fallen off. She looks amazing and seems to be managing grazing too.
 
Thank you all I knew there would be stories of this type. My mare is a bit on the big side ATM but no fat pads crest etc. I will write up a plan hoping it will mean she can spend a bit more time with her friends. I can't muzzle her as she goes crazy trying to eat and stiffens up her jaw and poll and essentially goes lame, so unable to work her which isn't great.
 
I had one who came down with laminitis caused by EMS, he was semi retired at the time (old, not injured) The vets were very honest with the fact that without exercise he was unlikely the beat the laminitis long term. As soon as the box rest was over we introduced ridden work, we hacked out mostly but made sure he was working hard, walking properly and not plodding. He came on leaps and bounds and got his spark back, we did have to keep him off the grass when it was high risk (he wouldn't wear a muzzle) as he got footy, so on those days he would go on the walker and then I would ride in the afternoon. Late evening I used to put him out for an hour or two whilst I skipped out and did nets. The vets said the most important thing for a EMS horse was to to exercise so the blood was pumping, fat burning exercise. He did really well and exceeded the vets expectations so I can be done!
 
Yes I think it can. However this week I have exhausted the hacking options around my yard. Too many busy roads or not great bridleways and only 2 places to canter, not really long enough. I'm moving closer and closer to moving yards I think. The grazing set up is great at the moment in a fairly bare paddock with ad lib meadow hay. She was gorging but has settled now and no pulses or warm feet so pretty good. It's just I want better hacking really.
 
It can be done, I did must of my fitness work at walk and trot (our hacking wasn't the best and mainly road work but really decent hills) I really got him walking properly up the hills, the weight fell off him. I fed mine cinnamon powder as apparently in boosts the metabolism, I have no idea if it was this or the other things we were doing but the vets were amazed by his progress as they did expect him to not recover
 
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