Laminitic pony's droppings

[Smogul]

Has anyone else noticed that their laminitic's droppings are much smaller than normal? The quantity producted is normal but the individual balls are much smaller. I had assumed that this was normal for this pony but it has been suggested that this can be an indication of predisposition to laminitis, in the sense that the gut is generally not functioning correctly.
I would be interested on anyone's comments.

 

[amandap]

I haven't to be honest. Is her/his hay rationed? My pony prone to acute laminitis is a mini Shetland and her poos vary very little the same as the other two minis I have. I've actually often wondered about the Shetlands and their digestion, they never get really soft or cow patty poos. Only my very sick little fella with PLE did when he had bouts of diarrhoea.
The bigger horses are a different matter though, theirs tend to get bigger, softer and even sloppy or cow patty with grass at times and even on some hays.
I actually use their droppings as an indicator to their individual gut status and the hay/grass sugar status. Totally non scientific and not to be relied on alone but it is one of my red flags I have learned to use over time.

 

[amandap]

Just another thought. Watch out for possible constipation. Perhaps give some plain salt in her feed a desert spoon approx a day for 15hh scaled up or down accordingly . That will encourage her to drink and also ensure she has enough soaked hay or other fibre. May well be nothing to do with it, just something to be aware of if her poo balls (lol) are smaller and especially if they are harder as well.

 

[lachlanandmarcus]

Agree with Amanda P esp if the pony isnt a great drinker. Also make sure their gut has what it needs to function, I use pink powder in a tiny bit of healthy hooves to make sure of that, as it is cheap and palatable and you need very little. Also make sure all the hay is soaked for 12 hours as it will not only make the pony take in quite a bit of moisture throughout the day & night, but will also reduce the sugars by at least a quarter.
I have a (hopefully one off) lami pony who also is on a strict diet so the main challenge is ekeing out less than 9kg total feed (incl all forage and grazing) over 24 hours! My big chap is prone to colic so I watch his poops carefully and he does get a spoon of salt if everything is starting to slow up as he isnt a good drinker.