How long does a horse with laminitis take to get better

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yvonne36

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Hi,

My horse was diagnosed with laminitis about five weeks ago and has been on box rest and medication ever since. She now has heart bar shoes on with gel pads and I am reducing the medication. My farrier says she should stay out of the mud for at least this set of shoes as it would ruin the gel pads.

She is turned out in the arena for a wee while every day and I just wonder if it would be ok for her to go out with her next set of shoes, should I monitor her grass intake at this time of year and should I always soak her hay from now on? I feel a bit daft asking the vet all these silly questions when I should probably know the answers.
 
These arent silly questions, if you dont know something then you do need to ask!

I think I would chat to your vet as he will know the horse better than any of us and will be happy to advise you how to go about reintroducing turnout. Be prepared to have the time at grass very very limited even at this time of year and to be vigilant over checking for heat, pulses and lameness all of which your vet will be able to tell you about. certainly DO NOT turnout or change any of the care you are giving at the moment (including soaking the hay) until you have spoken to your vets.
 
Yes agree with above, ask your vet in detail, they should be pleased you are checking with them so thoroughly. Often they don't want to appear patronising so don't always tell you the stuff you want to know, and sometimes they are just in a hurry to get on to the next case, so don't be embarrassed, pin them down. I take a notebook and pen and write it down now!

As for how long, depends hugely on why she got laminitis at this time of year, and how bad. Is she old? Was it grass induced in the first place, or possibly hormones?
 
All I would say is even at this time of year you really need to be careful when turning back out - Due to the fab british weather the grass is still really growing alot (as my boys green droppings will testify to
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Then you get the frost which again is a real no no for lamis
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So the long and short is when your vet gives you the go ahead I would think about either a muzzle or restricted grazing

With regard to the Gel pads - its probably not so much the mud with the gel pad (as I don;t have any problems with mud itself) but more the fact the mud might cause the shoe to come off - so again this time of year not ideal for heart bars and pads - always turn out with overreach boots on to try and help them stay put

Good luck and hope your girl gets the ok soon
 
Thank you for your replies.

She is eight years old and i think the laminitis was caused by being barefoot. The farrier couldn't keep shoes on her and suggested she want barefoot for a wee while to let the hoof grow a bit. She was in agony as the horn was so short and I think this is what has brought it on.

She has always been heavy - a haflinger - and is getting even fatter now that she is living on soaked hay and fresh air!!!

During the summer she came in through the day when the grass is higher in sugar so this summer i think it will have to be a grazing muzzle as well. She's worth all this worry and is taking this all in her stride, thank goodness!
 
Now shes had it you need to take precautions for the future now. I would recommend a grazing muzzle and keep her on a good stable diet.
I would follow the advice your vet and farrier give you.

Good luck and i hope she makes a sppedy recovery!
 
Ah so this is Haffy. Right, what I would suggest is, once you have got her right is to always use a muzzle on her when she is turned out, right throughout the year, The thing with haffys is they are designed to live on mountain scrub and not british grass no matter how poor it looks so treating her as though she were a shetland is probably the best thing you can do. Soak her hay too and make up any shortfall in her diet with a good everyday vitamin and mineral supplement. You can add this to a handfull of straw based chaff as a bucket feed once or twice a day.
 
I have had no problems at all with pulling off heart bars & pads, my pony has had them on for years. She shouldn't be walking about until she has been sound off pain killers for 30 days. Agree with the others about a grazing muzzle. The absolute best place for advice is The Laminitis Clinic, write all your questions down first as its a premium rate number though.
 
Sorry to hear about your horse, definitely speak to the vet about your concerns; you are the client and that is what they are there for! FYI my mare got grass/overweight laminitis with 'slight' rotation this May and I started riding her again in October. Touch wood she seems OK. I probably could have started riding sooner, but was being cautious. I am just walking her down the road for 20 mins at present. I have bought her a muzzle but am still too nervous to turn her out for more than 1/2 hr as the grass seems rich still, so she is yarded for now. I stopped soaking her hay only recently but it is old, late baled hay; I will soak the new hay when I run out of the old. Good luck, hope she is better very soon.
 
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