Increase in laminitis?

[Pen]

Agree. Though I think actually a big part of that is not only getting much more exercise, but also restricting the time horses could eat. When pulling a cart/plow, the horse didn't get to eat for that period of time. So you had more exercise, but also less time spent eating.
I appreciate that it is better for the digestive track to keep feed moving through, but I think that's a difficult balancing act when the forage comes in supercharged ryegrass form, and IMO some owners tolerate too much weight on their horses in favour of providing 24 hour access to forage. Not sure that is always the optimal choice.

I agree. My poor cob has paid the price for me choosing for her to have too much access to forage over the winter. In trying to keep her guts healthy I inadvertently let her get laminitis. Thankfully she is now over the worst but I am now dithering about when if ever I will start putting her out for an hour with a muzzle on.

 

[Patchworkpony]

When I was a girl I remember the keen local hunting folk, after a hard season, simply chucked all their horses out to grass for the summer before bring them in again just before cub hunting. Those horses never got laminitis as far as I was aware (I used to visit them regularly)and yet many of them were simply chucked out and more or less forgotten onto landed gentry estates, with rich grass. So what's changed? Is the climate or is it that far too much fertilizer is added to the ground nowadays and many people are keeping horses on what not that long ago was rich, overfed cattle fattening grass - before many struggling farmers sold to those wishing to 'escape the country'.

 

[_HP_]

The difference is that those hunters will have been the correct weight before being chucked on the grass....many of our horses come out of winter too heavy. Those hunters also often weren't rugged or fed during their time off.
Horses are just generally more pampered these days.

 

[Follysmum]

It has always been a problem but I think more people these days are not as well educated about Laminitis as years ago. Horses are far more affordable than 40/50 years ago, lots are pets, companions and not worked as well, too many over fed.

I have come across a few horseowners, I would of said were experienced and quite knowledgeable and not know a thing about it at all.

1st lady asked me why I thought her horse had a hard cresty neck ( horse was on a massive field of grass hardly ridden)

2nd lady asked me what could be wrong about her horse shifting its weight from foot to foot

 

[OWLIE185]

With todays advances in veterinary care Laminitis is a far wider known condition.
The issue being what actually caused the Laminitis which can be down to many different things or combinations of things.
I would also suggest that with fertilizers being spread of grassland that this does not help at all as it spreads through the water courses effecting adjoining grassland being grazed by horses.
Also people just do not gently exercise their horses enough anymore they really do need to be taken for nice long hacks (several hours) each day.
Also in many cases horses are feed far too much.
Unfortunately we have lost a lot of our natural grazing (traditional meadows) and these have been replaced with other grasses such as Rye grass which has too much nutrition within it. Grassland used by dairy cattle which has been heavily fertilised is the most dangerous.

 

[hollyandivy123]

best field i every had access to was about 20 acres........................for 2 horses. shock horror i hear. it was on a somerset hill, ~90% was rocks and trees etc, the flat bit of grass was up the top the water at the bottom. they had to move up and down all day

if i could i would go back there or reseed a flatter with old grass mixes, not just cattle grasses but that is fantasy land

 

[BBP]

I think the increased traffic in the last 10 years plays a big part. I can no longer hack a horse for hours in my area as we are intersected by manically busy roads. If you have a rehabbing horse and poor hacking (or a horse that is not a good hacker) it's really hard to get the work into them.

 

[Yardbird]

Maybe we just hear more about it going on forums,facebook etc, in real life there has been litttle laminitis at the yard where I have kept horses for over 20 years.

 

[LittleGinger]

My retired boy, who has come out of winter looking suitably ribby, had emergency callout this week as he was looking very sorry for himself. He has arthritic hocks so I assumed it was that.

Vet came out, felt hooves, pulses etc. and declared laminitis in his hind legs only. Apparently very rare but entirely possible. Cannot believe I was caught out; I feel like an absolutely terrible owner. I am aware of laminitis and with my mare especially I keep a careful eye out, but he is not at all overweight, was not rocking back onto heels, etc. I never for a minute thought it would be him who came down with it - and I've never heard of it being in hind legs only before!

PS: he's in the same paddock they've been on all winter (although with the storms and sunshine combination over the last fortnight, it's looking pretty lush).

 

[budatiger]

My 6 yr old tb/Connie likely has it. Been on field rest 24/7 all winter after PSD. Looked v lean for months. Now looks ok weight (ribs still visible), but raging pulses all 4 limbs and very pottery in front. Gutted. Field mates (some cob types) are ok. Will test for EMS, I think. Been fed Cushings friendly diet as my old boy has it & laminitis prone. Can't believe it.