Laminitis limbo

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alivetnurse

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Hi there, I have a mare who developed laminitis after me over loading her with bucket feed when confined to stable after dental treatmant. ( it was only fast fibre and alfalfa pellts but stupidly overloaded her as tried desp to prevent her loosing condition as lean polo pony type, and also to keep her occupied being in 24/7). She was having turnout in the school every day but when symptoms suddenly went from looking like ? abscess on RF which I thought she had recovered from a few weeks earlier to lami the vet and farrier were called. She had xrays which showed mild roation front feet ( LF 1.8 RF 2.2) and feed reduced and stable confined straight away and she looked more comfortable within 48 hours. After 4 weeks of this and all fine started very short turnout on limited grass and gradually increased it then when remedial farrier came to see her flippin pulses were back up on RF so he put a pad on her. This stayed on for about 10 days then had to come off as she developed really nasty thrush and pulses had gone down within 48 hours. She was re xrayed and they showed she was worse on RF ( LF 1.2 so better but RF 4.3 so worse). So back to box rest had bloods done to cover all things metabolic and nothing was found. All fine and no pulses for 3 weeks and then last night... bam...mild pulses on all 4 legs!!! Fine happy and comfortable in herself is now on soaked hay and has been for last 6 weeks which is weighed and rinsed and only 2 small feeds of fast fibre/alfalf mixed to hide her multitude of supplements ( biotin, form 4 feet, magnesium, pink powder, lamintec 5HT). The only thing I saw her do yest was have 3 really good rolls on her new shavings and each time she jumped to her feet happily!! Its so depressing everytime I think we are winning the goal is moved away again. She had a trim last week and remedial farrier coming out again in 3 weeks. Is there light at the end of the tunnel! Any ideas or positive outcomes from people that have survived this horrible roller coaster ride appreciated. Thanks for reading the essay x
 
Mine has come through, has rotation in both fronts left slightly more & is most sensitive to any changes. Pads on both front feet.

Feeding 2 scoops dengie sugar free, speedibeet, and Baileys lo-cal. Will be changing lo- cal for pink powder soon & adding Laminaze as the grass starts to grow.

Check his pulse every day, any sign of trouble then NO TURNOUT otherwise out for about 3-4 hrs in Dinky Rugs muzzle. Just beginning to bring him back into work after 4 weeks off. Last time (oct 2011) took 10 wks.

They can get better but you have to monitor really closely and there is always the risk of re-occurance. Good Luck
 
Hi, there is a lot of conflicting advice on laminitis, I know as I spent most of last year dealing with it, mine had terrible rotation and tested positive for EMS. It is a positive outcome, my vet and farrier both say they've never had one as bad as Jake come back so quickly and so well, I am back to riding him now after a year but he was very bad! I would continue with the hay soaking, I would think about cutting out biotin, and the lamintec, I would replace the pink powder with brewers yeast or yea sacc, no need to feed biotin when you are feeding f4f. I would also try cutting out the alfalfa. Although horrible lots of box rest while they are sore and on any pain killers. Also mine was ex rayed before every farrier visit which was every 5 weeks on the dot, a good farrier who knows what they are doing is also a must. Good luck you can have a happy ending its just hard work, lots of patience and getting to the bottom of the cause of it, it's also very emotionally draining but very worth it.
 
Yes, like the others have said there is definitely light at the end of the tunnel. One of mine had a couple of bad attacks of laminitis, but after lots of TLC from me, the vet & farrier, hasn't had a reoccurence for a couple of years.....Just takes time, and being aware of signs, to help take as much preventative action as possible in future.
 
I know the feeling. My mare is constantly teetering on the edge. She has had laminitis four times in the last year despite my best efforts and management. I am now trying to get her thinner even though she is a condition score of 3. She goes out sound and comes in footy with pulse in right four only. Very frustrating. I have put her back on box rest for a few days to see if it will settle down. She does come right inbetween bouts but it keeps recurring. The strangest thing is, the foot that it affects the most looks the best and has no rotation. She is sound on the other three but has slight rotation in the left front, but it's her right front with the pulses and lameness. It's a horrible disease!
 
I keep on top of my mares concussion laminitis with boa boots. They seem to stop her getting a pulse after being out. Also a vet (not mine) told my friend regarding her pony which had previously had a very bad attack and his pedal bone had sunk that they can get a pulse on and off when they have had laminitis before? I have not heard of this before and also associate a pulse in my mare with inflammation.
 
I'm afraid it's a long term commitment to change in feeding hoof management and exercize. Some horses and ponies cannot tolerate any grass unfortunately it seems. I wouldn't try introducing grazing again until you get a good way down the road to recovery myself, it's too easy to tip the balance in the wrong direction.

The keys for my pony have been no grazing, soaked hay (in the absence of tested below 10% NSC hay) good mineral balancer with vitamin E and extra salt and magnesium in the earlier days.

A good farrier/trimmer who is experienced and successful dealing with trimming rotated hooves is very important. Providing support and protection for the hooves if rotated or thin soled at all times is also important or an environment where the footing is deep and supportive. Rotated hooves cannot be mended or reattached they have to be grown out by encouraging good connection to grow down.
Getting diet right (and sticking to it) and treating any underlying conditions are the most important aspects imho.

Have a read here. http://ecirhorse.org/index.php/laminitis
 
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Noodlebug said:
I keep on top of my mares concussion laminitis with boa boots. They seem to stop her getting a pulse after being out. Also a vet (not mine) told my friend regarding her pony which had previously had a very bad attack and his pedal bone had sunk that they can get a pulse on and off when they have had laminitis before? I have not heard of this before and also associate a pulse in my mare with inflammation.
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Yes, my vet said to me that a pulse = pain and inflammation so should never be ignored even f the horse appears sound. Quite often horses will appear sound in shoes if they have LGL. My mare is barefoot now again. I feel it's much safer for picking up any footiness.
 
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