Puffy legs in morning

[Morgan123]

my 8 yr old welsh cob has been in at nights cos field is wet, but has puffy legs in morning and seems a bit tender on his feet. i know this is quite normal and nothing to worry about, and of course it disappears when he walks out to field, but what actually causes it (I know fluid, but why?!) and as he gets this at just 8, is it detrimental long-term to keep him in and have a fluid build up every morning? Seems not great to me but i might be wrong...!
I'd prefer to always have him out but fields are v wet atm and he gets abscesses :-(

Thank you!!

 

[Nailed]

To be fair most horses get puffy legs at some point.

There is alot of protein in the grass at the moment and you will find that when horses come in at night off grass there legs are usually more puffy. Protien effets the levels of lymphatic fluid in the lymph nodes and with lack of movement this can cause the build up of fluid on the legs.

My horse sufferes very badley from Lymphangitis and his legs at the moment are huge each morning as i have had to bring him in as his little TB body cant cope with the rain.

Lou x

 

[deicinmerlyn]

Some horses are more prone to it than others, particularly if they are over weight!

If you stood in one spot for 14 hours your ankles would quite likely be a bit swollen. This is because of circulation, by not moving around fluid drains down and collects in one place.

Some types of hard feed and grain also cause puffy ankles, new hay, oats, etc.

Also, if your horse has done a lot of hard work, or galloping around that will cause his legs to fill.

Probably nothing to worry about, it is quite common.

 

[Morgan123]

thanks - yes, he doesn't work v hard at all (though is quite chunky!). I know it's nothign to worry about and common - but long term can it damage/be detrimental? I can't imagine it will do him much good, but maybe wrong. If it's going to be bad for him I'll have to just get lots of pairs of hoof boots instead or something!!

 

[deicinmerlyn]

Are you sure he is not suffering from low grade laminitis?

Which legs are puffy?

If he is putting more weight on his legs because one or two are hurting they will get puffy and that is very different from just 'filled legs' from standing in.

Is he shod or barefoot?

Is he over weight?

Is he sound?

 

[Morgan123]

thanks - yes sound, not very overweight (though he is a cob...), barefoot, all four legs filled equally, and it walks off in about five minutes so definitely not laminitis and definitely jsut filled legs - i just want to know if it's going to damage him long-term if he comes in every night, as i have the option to leave him out, it jsut involves buying several pairs of hoof boots so i can swap them round!! Anyone have any experience of anything bad happening with horses who are left in often getting e.g. arthritis, later on?? (I know cause/effect won't be totally clear!).

thank you!! Thanks for note about protein, lou, that's really interesting!

 

[deicinmerlyn]

I wouldn't worry then. As far as I am aware there are no long term effects just from having filled legs unless of course there is an underlying reason behind it.

Too much protein can indeed cause this, so you might want to reduce it in his diet and feed a supplement to support the liver.

 

[Jellymoon]

I'm not sure about the long term effect TBH, so I won't attempt to comment on that, but if you've got the option of leaving him out, then that might be better for him.

 

[Morgan123]

Thanks everyone!! have found a friend whose dad is an expert in large animal lameness so will collar him next itme he's at yard and pick his brains - apparently wiht people who get fluid filled ankles they give them duiretics to help! I'm not too worried as he's fine in the field, but does seem a bit young for all that! thansk for help, anyway!!