Laminitis advice please

nicolenlolly

nicolenlolly

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I need some advice please. Just been out on a hack and whilst out noticed my daughters pony looking a little foot sore.

When farrier came last time he said they had grown a little over - I think it was 7 weeks because he had to re-schedule - but he said that they were fine.
At the time I thought they looked a bit splayed out but as I thought he knew best said nothing.

I called my friend who lives at the end of the lane and she came out and is of the opinion he has laminitis :( so what do I do now?

I have googled it and it says box rest but I only have a field...I have sectioned all of them off into a really naff bit of field with hardly any grass, I will call the vet out on Monday to confirm.

I know they need to lose a bit of weight but I don't want to exercise him too hard if he is in pain... Between now and monday I know I can't work a miracle but my poor boy, I feel terrible that I have let this happen although to be honest the grass here isn't great at all. The good paddock is still sectioned off so could it be the haylage they were getting through all over winter?

Thank you so much, homemade brownies all round xx
 
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If the pony still has to have access to grass (it shouldnt really until it is sound) then a grazing muzzle is probably the only option for all those who need to lose weight and especially the suspected laminitis case.

But really it needs to be a in a totally bare area or stable being fed well soaked old hay and in a deep cushioning bed....even if temporarily.

If thats not possible by ringing round local yards then I think you should be getting vet out sooner than Monday as pony if lami may well need pain relief and also vets often have mobile x ray machines now so they can tell you if this is something that has been going on for some time and has caused damage to the hoof, or if it is a (at the moment) one off event where good management can prevent recurrance and damage to the hoof structure.
 
Does he have bounding pulses?

To be safe, treat him as if he does have laminitis. So electric tape off a tiny area with no grass, as bare as possible. Don't worry if it's muddy, squishy footing will mould to his hooves and support them better than hard ground. Get some of last years hay to feed him (maybe your friend has some if you only have haylage?), cut any hard feed (if he's fed any) and get the Vet asap.

I really hope that it's not laminitis.
 
Its best to treat it as if it is laminitis. I can understand about not wanting to get a vet out at a weekend - but not only is laminitis a killer is is also an excruciatingly painful way to get PTS. If you delay getting treatment not only will he suffer but it could also be enough time for a pedal bone to start to rotate.

If you can't keep him in the tape of a small stable sized area with no grass at all. If the ground is hard then get some (non edible!) bedding and make him a good deep bed.

He will need browse but make is as calorie free as possible - soak old hay for 12 hours over several rinses. Remove any hard feed.

If this is Lami you may well have to box rest. It might be worth making enquiries about where you could put him, or if yu could borrow a feild shelter for a while.
 
Laminitis is a cruel disease. Your pony needs pain relief as soon as possible, please treat it as an emergency. Pony needs to be kept as immobile as possible. If you have access to a sand school then stand the pony in that. Emergency frog supports can be made with rolled bandages then vetwrap round. If the laminitis has been caused by diet then yes the pony will need to lose weight and trim down. Once it gets over this then a grazing muzzle is a good idea as it cuts down the grass intake by around 70%.
I would advise you not to starve the pony as this is could cause hyperlipaemia (SP), it needs to be trickle fed so the gut keeps working. Your vet will give you bute of some form and should also give you ACP which is a vasodilator. You are in for the long haul I am afraid, there is no quick way to recover from laminitis.Please check out The Laminitis Clinics site for help and advice. You can telephone the helpline and speak to Robert Eustace or Sue his head girl.
I had the misfortune to have a pony who developed laminitis after injury and my pony spent six weeks with Robert.
Hope this helps but please get your vet sooner than Monday, your pony will be in agony. It was described to me as having the same pain as pulling our fingernails off.
 
I had similar predicament no stable!! I had to section pony into a tiny bare bald area but you should give some hay...soak it if necessary. Dont give any feeds but you should not starve. just a small ad lib hay 5/6 times a day to keep gut moving. If you have put in with others perhaps move them to other side. Do not ride the pony until you are happy ie a week or two(I dont know what the problem is but am just guessing its not completely bad)??. But important to get off grass so at least you have done that. Do not be tempted to give in and put pony back out. Unless the horse is in a bad way as long as you know what you are doing I personally would not ring a vet out as an emergency unless horse was leaning etc and utterly miserable ie ears back etc. The other thing is to stick pony in menage with hay net?

You may have caught it before it gets bad. But OFF the grass is the most important thing and you will have to keep off grass and on poor grazing always for a laminitic pony. It never goes away. The risk is always with that pony.
 
Thank you or your advice, I have a call out, just awaiting the phone call back...problem is I think both the little boys have it. Big chap seems ok for now. I really hope it is just bad trimming on the part of the farrier as the frog seems to protrude more than the hoof, surely this isn't right, so all his weight is going down on this first with no hoof to support and they are a really bad shape!!

Is there any hard and fast way of telling. I am so worried :(

I will go and get muzzles etc tomorrow anyway just to get the weight off them so if it isn't then I can avoid like the plague!!
 
Laminitis is a pain in the butt! or the feet I should say but you have done the right thing putting the pony on as sparse an area as possible. They used to say to walk a liminitic but to my mind this is cruel as it is so painfull for them. Hope the ground is not to hard either as ideally a deep bed would be better. Haylage in my experience can never be fed to a laminitic horse regardless of the time of year. My mare started having laminitis over ten years ago and it started in October and was stress related and she will get a bout still if she is stabled as this stresses her out more than anything so if your pony is used to being out keeping her in may not do her any good either. The saving grace is is that I manage my mare and her bouts are few and far between as long as I keep her happy so get the pony over this and then start working on how to prevent it coming back again. First tip NO HAYLAGE. My friend had a pony who had a bout when it was about 10 she is now 26 and has never showed any signs since so there is hope.
 
Forget to say feed mine as others have said with soaked hay and also I give her Dodson & Horrell Safe & Sound as it has added minerals to substitute for the lack of grass. Don't despair there is life after laminitis just have to be vigilent in the future but as you say could just be poor trimming and not a laminitic problem anyway. I really hope that is the case for you as you can change a farrier, not so easy to change a laminitic!
 
Good luck if your farrier is good that would have been my first point of call. We are lucky to have a brill farrier and he came out ASAP when we caught one of ours in nick of time. In about 3 days back to being ridden but so easy to get caught out with our mild weather and the vast amounts of rain. Its just spring spring grass.

Best to be safe than sorry. If you are not happy with your farrier find another on a good trusted recommendation etc. Am sure they will be ok. Agree with previous post no haylage just boring hay.
 
So we sectioned the ponies off with the big boy (won't hurt him to lose a little weight either) last night in an attempt to reduce his feeding and between the three of them they had broken through the fence by pulling fence post down and got into field with grass that was due to be cut today-it's 2ft long!!! :( stupid boys!!

Suffice to say I was down there at half six and have re-fenced with hubby. In addition they are in an electric sub paddock within small paddock. We have bute
 
Bloomin phone! I also have farrier coming today but I did cry when I saw him hobbling this morning, my poor darling. I can't bear to lose him. I hope he will forgive me :(
 
Phoned my vet yesterday, he asked me symptoms, told me to section off field to small paddock and asked if I had bute left, told me half sachet am and pm and rest them. If they get worse call him. They were worse this morning so called him and also called farrier so vet said get farrier to come first trim feet and go from there x
 
Even a little bit of grass will do them damage and if he is obviously hobbling I would guess he has it quite badly. Do give sufficient bute and if the vet says he needs box rest then you will need to find a stable. Alternatively you could do as someone said and borrow a field shelter. We locked our old girl into one with thick shavings and electric tape across the front - plugged into a battery that gave a good zap! She would not tolerate being in a stable away from her field mates and it worked just as well. She had company and felt less enclosed. The shelter was 16 x 12 so gave her enough room to move but with about 9 inches of shavings to stand on.
I would guess without a soft footing and absolutely no grass you will find it very hard to turn your horses condition around. Please get a vet urgently if you haven't already as it is such a painful thing for them.
 
Ok, hopefully farrier & vet will be able to help get him right. Although movement helps, sometimes they do need a deep bed, might be worth making local enquiries now incase vet/farrier recommend it later. Lots of horses are out 24/7 so someone local might be willing to help for a few days.
 
Someone who has their ponies on a field with no shelter just booked onto my friend's DIY yard for three weeks while their horse recovered from a foot abcess - I think this is your way forward. The pony would be so much better on a deep bed with properly managed food.

If the pony really can't be moved could you put some deep shavings down on the patch to cushion his feet and cover up some of the grass perhaps?

I would rather the vet actually see the pony at this point too, rather than diagnose over the phone. Lami is something you just don't mess about with..
 
Just to update you all as you were kind enough to give me advice.

I phoned 3 vets in total yesterday to try and get someone to come out. All 3 said, if you give bute, get their feet trimmed and reduce paddock size that is all you can do now it is just a waiting game. Of the 3, 2 said I should not stable them as they have never been stabled before or separated and so the stress could compound the problem or make them stiff. So they are now on a tiny paddock, about 40 foot by 50 foot for all three of them, we cut the grass right down so there is hardly anything there and they are on bute. I will phone the vet today to check progress but I don't understand why they were all so reluctant to come out?!

They are looking very sad and sorry for themselves, pawing the ground, lifting their feet up to rest them and biting at them...I just hope this gets better ASAP for them!
 
From the sound of your last post you need a vet to see them.
You do know not to starve them dont you they still need food but restricted food hay well soaked ( at least twelve hours) or oat straw or HiFI lite or my choice a mixture of them all.
Call the vet book a call out a hobbling horse needs a vet to see it.
And brace yourself treating laminitis can be expensive and it's always time consuming .
You are going to have to plan to have several small paddocks for summer their days of being out in big field in summer are probally over.
You will need sturdy electric fences if it's running off batterys you must check charge twice daily and replace battery's regularly as they get very good at working out when it's safe to make a break for it.
 
I would be changing vets. Any vet that won't come out is a waste of time.

Laminitis is an acute condition that needs to be treated as an emergency. The way you treat it now can shape how the condition develops.

We were lucky to have an extremely good vet when one of ours came down with it. We only had her a few weeks and the little madam jumped out of her paddock and stuffed her face. That coupled with the fact she has recently had it and the previous owners failed to tell us caused another lapse.

The laminitis trust is a really good source of information but I am surprised your vet hasn't been.
 
misst said:
Even a little bit of grass will do them damage and if he is obviously hobbling I would guess he has it quite badly. Do give sufficient bute and if the vet says he needs box rest then you will need to find a stable. Alternatively you could do as someone said and borrow a field shelter. We locked our old girl into one with thick shavings and electric tape across the front - plugged into a battery that gave a good zap! She would not tolerate being in a stable away from her field mates and it worked just as well. She had company and felt less enclosed. The shelter was 16 x 12 so gave her enough room to move but with about 9 inches of shavings to stand on.
I would guess without a soft footing and absolutely no grass you will find it very hard to turn your horses condition around. Please get a vet urgently if you haven't already as it is such a painful thing for them.
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This is good advice, you really need to get him off grass in the initial stages, the grass will still be growing despite being grazed right down and is likely to be stressed and full of sugars which is detrimental to his recovery. Can you not section of a smaller area for him next to his fieldmates and even put something else down like matting? I can't think of anything else apart from as has already been said borrow a mobile shelter from somewhere?
 
kal40 said:
I would be changing vets. Any vet that won't come out is a waste of time.

Laminitis is an acute condition that needs to be treated as an emergency. The way you treat it now can shape how the condition develops.

We were lucky to have an extremely good vet when one of ours came down with it. We only had her a few weeks and the little madam jumped out of her paddock and stuffed her face. That coupled with the fact she has recently had it and the previous owners failed to tell us caused another lapse.

The laminitis trust is a really good source of information but I am surprised your vet hasn't been.
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Me too three with lamintis my vets could easily get that to £1000 they would have been there in an instant.
 
Are you sure you are emphasizing how bad they are to the vets? One vet I would say was useless but for 3 to refuse to come out it sounds more like you haven't told them the symptoms correctly. You could always tell them you don't have bute left, unless they have seen the horse (iirc within the last 6mnths) for the condition you want it for they aren't allowed to hand it out without seeing it first. And what did farrier say if he's been out yet?
 
Laminitis is such a difficult one as I said previously, my mare gets it from stress such as being stabled or she has even gone down with it when new horses have arrived in a neighbouring field. There are no hard and fast rules other than reduce grass intake drastically but make sure they are having hay. You have done all you can for now don't really understand why your vet won't come out if horses have never been diagnosed before. My vet doesn't come out anymore as I have now had 10 years experience and can spot laminitis a mile off so just have to ring him to pick up some bute but they should be seen by a vet to confirm it for you or has your farrier confirmed it? Have you put them on new pasture as some pastures are more inclined to induce laminitis than others? If you have access to a sand school that is wonderful for a laminitic as it supports the foot without any pressure. Good luck but please don't worry too much I know it is an awful thing to witness as they are so uncomfortable but it can be controlled and now you are aware of it in your ponies it will be easier to control. My vet advised that I keep my mare on sparse grazing during the day but turn her out on normal field over night to reduce the stress for her, it works for her obviously you will have to wait until this bout is over with before returning them to normal paddock.:)
 
forgot to say don't be fooled by the bute that they are now sound and can return to their field, once they seem better you will have to stop the bute but keep them restricted for a few days to ensure they are over the bout. My mare has been known to jump the five bar gates to get back out the field while on the bute but she is still lame if stopped giving it to her.
 
If they are resting their feet and looking uncomfortable they will be in a LOT OF PAIN. Please either insist your vet comes out or change vets. Please please get them off the grass. As I said before even a little bit can make them worse. I do know how hard this is - lost our beloved old girl of 28 who we owned for 16 years to this horrid disease last month. She had cushings which made things even harder to deal with. If yours are elderly then you will need to get them tested as well.
If they look sore then they will already have established disease. Early lami is often missed or only shows on a turning and it sounds as if yours are quite bad already.
 
kal40 said:
I would be changing vets. Any vet that won't come out is a waste of time.
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^This^

I wanted a vet when my pony had his first bout of lami and it was only mild. It was 9pm and my vets were organising an emergency vet to come but my own vet rang me and talked through everything and we established what to do. My boy wasn't half as bad as what 3 of yours sound like and though I ended up not having an initial check, they were fully prepared to send someone. They sent me out an emergency vet 3 days later even though it wasn't an emergency...I just needed the all clear to get him out the stable and into a paddock!

I would want someone to assess them for peace of mind and painkillers more than anything. Secondly I wouldn't want any feet being trimmed until you know what's going on inside especially as you say they are resting a lot. If rotation has occurred you could be making the situation a whole lot worse.
 
I would be telling them you have no bute left and the ponies are in pain, and insisting that they come out, preferably with a mobile x ray machine if your funds can stand it. Theres no excuse for them not coming out to a first onset of lami, unless it is correctly treated this time, they are much more likely to have ongoing problems.
 
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