Laminitis and gastric ulcers

[Claireyb86]

Looking for any advice or success stories from people who have been in same boat as me with this.
My 13yo Irish cross mare for laminitis this may, it was caught early and after two weeks box rest with bute and metaformin and soaked hay she was put on a restricted grazing area with limited grass. She is still fed two soaked haynets a day and two small feeds on dengie Hi Fi with her min and vit supplement too. She is sometimes let out into bigger paddock for an hour in evening to graze with her friends. The weight came off quickly and she lost 12 cm from girth circum alone and she has lost about 30 kilos too.
After the laminitis bout I noticed she was lifting her leg when I was brushing her middle. I spoke to vet and he said to hold off if that was only symptom as she was fine to ride. Fast forward to two weeks ago and the leg lifting started again so bad her scoped and she now has ulcers in glandular pyloric region of her stomach. Grade 3. She is on 6 weeks meds and then we rescope. The vet told me these ones are harder to treat so really worried.
He also took blood from her to check her fat levels within her blood and they are still high! Even with the weight loss and exercise so feeling a little disappointed.
I also wanted to allow her into bigger paddock for winter with her companions possibly with ad lib hay but not I am petrified she puts on an inch of fat!
Also at time of laminitis she was tested for cushions and EMS. The test showed her in range for EMS.
Any advice or info would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

 

[be positive]

I have not really had to deal with ulcers but have had laminitics and been able to feed ad lib soaked hay while still getting the weight down, it needs a really full on exercise regime and the right turnout, plenty of space to move, play with others but not too much grass, so they hardly keep still while they are out, easier in winter than spring/ summer when out of necessity the paddock may have to be reduced in size while the grass is actively growing.
The problem with just an hour out is she will probably just gorge for that hour and undo the good being restricted has done, it is not easy when you are not fully in control and you have 2 serious conditions that require very different conditions but the stress of one can set off the other so both need tackling together if you are going to win, if she is in a restricted paddock then I think you need to give ad lib soaked hay, get the ulcers sorted and her in full work before gradually introducing her back to the bigger field.
I would cut out the HiFi and replace with something completely unmolassed, a tiny amount of speedibeet may be a better option as a carrier for the supplements, if you are using Hifi original that is 9% sugar, light is 7% the molasses free would be the best option if you are not already using it.

 

[Claireyb86]

Yes it's molasses free she gets.
Did you use some sort of feeder to feed ad lib soaked hay?
I have been looking at hay savers so may invest in one.
I have not been allowing her out in the evenings since latest blood test showed high fats

 

[be positive]

I just double net if required to slow them down but generally found that they stop being so greedy if they are not too restricted but think the real key is to get the work increased so they burn off more calories, like us the more they move the fitter they get, I may spread some of the hay very thinly out in the paddock to keep them moving rather than netting it so they stand still eating and have also used some straw to fill up the really greedy ones.