brighteyes
Pooh-Bah
Looking very trim! Did the vet diagnose EMS? That crest is where the trouble is - good that it is reducing. PPID with EMS is just the pits.
The lami episode I was dreading ...
- Thread starter TwyfordM
- Start date
Shilasdair
Patting her thylacine
Looking good - well done! 
TwyfordM
Well-Known Member
Borderline, not horrendously high levels but possibly enough to cause issues.
ACTH is never horrendously high either.
Pergolide has brought down ACTH and judging on weight loss, diet alone has bought down the insulin levels ??
Pearlsacarolsinger
Up in the clouds
You have both done extremely well to pull your laminitics round and get the weight off, Scats and TwyfordM.
ester
Not slacking multitasking
Just catching up, you can really see the difference and the welsh snorting well lol
TwyfordM
Well-Known Member
Can’t have a Welsh that doesn’t pretend to be a dragon regularly ?
scats
Well-Known Member
Looking fantastic!
I’m a bit obsessed with Polly’s crest, it’s definitely going down and is very soft and wobbly, but I just wish the thing would go!
I imagine that any further reduction to it now will have to come from some ridden work which I’m hoping to commence maybe in another month.
She’s still muzzled from 7pm-7am in a bare paddock and in with soaked hay by day. I was giving her just 3kg on vet advice but I have increased it a little as she was hungry and tucked up by the time I returned in the evening. It’s such a fine balance!
I don’t think that fear will ever leave me now, I will forever treat her like we are one step away from an attack. I genuinely thought I had the balance right previously, but I clearly didn’t. Always a learning curve with horses, even after 30 years!
HollyWoozle
Well-Known Member
Well done to you OP and to @scats as well. It can be so difficult to manage but you are doing awesomely!
TwyfordM
Well-Known Member
It’s almost impossible to prevent sometimes unfortunately. Even when you are paranoid! With the insulin/acth even with regular testing can catch you off guard ??
She’s been fine, for about 4 years on the same field, no restrictions, ad-lib hay. 24hrs out, 24hrs in.
Only change we’ve had this year was less horses on the field (field is huge but mostly woodland on a pretty large scale track system) so grass did manage to shoot up a little more than last year. But no more than previous years bizarrely. Plus a new hay supplier, as hay got scarce, it got brought in from up north?
Now she’s on 2% of body weight in soaked hay, pergolide again, under 5% sugar/starch feed and when she does go back out it’ll be in a small pen in the woods so minimal grass. ??
It’s times like these I really wish I had my own field and could do a properly secure permanent track system. She has no respect whatsoever for electric fencing (even run off the mains) or the single strand wire rather than stock fencing. Or even a large no grass turnout as all she’s currently getting is 10/20 mins zoom around the school and once nights draw in and after school lessons resume it’ll be hard to even get that.
splashgirl45
Lurcher lover
so nice to see updated photos from both of you, fingers crossed both of your girls continue to do well and you both deserve a pat on the back for working so hard...
Not_so_brave_anymore
Well-Known Member
The grass this year has been insane. My top paddock was royally trashed by April so I used electric tape to keep a grass free track for lami pony, and to rest the remainder. Look at the grass now! Completely untouched from the first picture, just rested.
TwyfordM
Well-Known Member
Don’t think she’s looking too bad ?
scats
Well-Known Member
Tonight I caught a child poking handfuls of the long grass from the paths up Polly’s muzzle while she was in her paddock. Polly looked ecstatic by the arrangement! Child was very apologetic (about 9 or 10, her family were dropping caravan off)and I suppose people just don’t understand, but it’s not quite what you want for a recovering laminitic!
Apizz2019
Well-Known Member
TwyfordM
Well-Known Member
Oh nightmare! I’ve had to put signs up on madams door because she’s in the first barn of pony stables in a busy riding school so of course you get people going round with carrots regularly ??
Red-1
I used to be decisive, now I'm not so sure...
Gosh, well done! I am so lucky that Rigsby isn't accessible by anyone but us, and still it is a nightmare.
He can now have 4 hours in the morning and another hour at night, muzzled, when my nerve can stand it.
One thing, Rigsby needed physio in his recovery as he had some musculature issues after standing in an abnormal way to relieve his feet. It has taken several sessions to get him out of an unhelpful pattern.
He can now have 4 hours in the morning and another hour at night, muzzled, when my nerve can stand it.
One thing, Rigsby needed physio in his recovery as he had some musculature issues after standing in an abnormal way to relieve his feet. It has taken several sessions to get him out of an unhelpful pattern.
TwyfordM
Well-Known Member
First bite of grass in a while!
We are having to lunge now as school gate is a bit too loose for free schooling. She’s not overly impressed that she’s out of retirement ?
We are having to lunge now as school gate is a bit too loose for free schooling. She’s not overly impressed that she’s out of retirement ?
PinkvSantaboots
Well-Known Member
She looks so much better well done is she retired because she wasn't sound?
Rumtytum
Have Marmite, will travel
Crikey she looks better! Gorgeous as always and the princess of facial expressions, just a lot less of her ?
You should be very proud of yourself.
TwyfordM
Well-Known Member
She had a field injury (we think tried to jump gate and had rotational fall) and fractured a vertebrae in her neck 3 years ago. Was mechanically unsound for a fair while snd struggling on lunge due to stiffness in neck, she came sound randomly about a year back. But I’ve only free schooled/walked in hand as worried too much work on a circle would make her sore, so we stick to the track in the school rather than a traditional lunge circle
Meowy Catkin
Meow!
She looks amazing! Well done.
scats
Well-Known Member
She looks fantastic!
I’m hoping to start working P again next month. She’s now unmuzzled on a bare field. It got so bare that I had to take the muzzle off as she couldn’t get anything through it and had taken to pacing quite badly.
I’m hoping to start working P again next month. She’s now unmuzzled on a bare field. It got so bare that I had to take the muzzle off as she couldn’t get anything through it and had taken to pacing quite badly.
TwyfordM
Well-Known Member
Still dropping weight so I’ve upped her hay rations and feed. Plus added a little tiny bit of linseed. She does feel the cold so could just be the drop in temp. Thankfully looks like the high insulin levels were purely caused by her ACTH spiking up and not EMS ?
We are stone crunching sound, loving being back in work and bouncing around the place like a youngster ?
This pony keeps me on my toes but she sure does bounce back against the odds!!
Hepsibah
Well-Known Member
Its such a flippin' shame that we have to reduce their weight so very much to get their fat pads off. You've done a sterling job there but I bet it all but broke your heart to do it.
You've done a sterling job there but I bet it all but broke your heart to do it.
TwyfordM
Well-Known Member
Its such a flippin' shame that we have to reduce their weight so very much to get their fat pads off.
It’s horrible, I’ve tried my best to trickle feed but she’s pretty smart and if you make it too difficult she will just starve herself in protest ??
She’s eating the top spec zero better now so upped that as I really worry about ulcers etc But it’s a fine line to tread. Didn’t really have much choice in this scenario. I’ll be clipping her out soon and starting to rug as she gets sweaty under the thick coat and gets skin issues otherwise. So I’d like a little bit of weight on before that ideally ??But having to watch that is doesn’t flare up any issues in the process
scats
Well-Known Member
Not the best picture but snapped this this morning after she had come in for her soaked hay. Body weight has dropped but that crest isn’t budging any further now. Ribs can easily be felt.
We had to manage her slightly differently as she wouldn’t box rest without constant pacing so she has been out on a bald paddock overnight and in by day on weighed soaked hay. Giving her another couple of weeks and then commencing some ridden walking work.
scats
Well-Known Member
We’ve had a setback. Went to turn out last night as normal in her paddock and she was hopping on one front foot. Back to the box and on a deep bed. Pulse in one foot, no heat. Presenting like an abscess but it’s too coincidental so treating as a lami flare up again.
Nothing has changed in her management or routine.
Resting her this weekend then will go back to smaller pen turnout next week as I know she’ll be box walking as soon as she feels a bit better.
Feel so deflated.
Nothing has changed in her management or routine.
Resting her this weekend then will go back to smaller pen turnout next week as I know she’ll be box walking as soon as she feels a bit better.
Feel so deflated.
Zuzan
Well-Known Member
It could well be a post lami abcess .. it isn't unheard of at all.
And just to add so impressed with the efforts to bring them all back from the brink..
scats
Well-Known Member
Quick update, back to pen turnout on Sunday after making a huge improvement (got vet go ahead to do things a bit differently with P) and she walked in sound Sunday evening and has remained sound, though huge golf balls appeared above her eyes so she was clearly having a metabolic response to something. Fortunately they were gone this morning.
Frustratingly I was hoping to commence work with her next week as I think this is the best way to get on top of the crest and insulin issues but now I think we’ll have to push that back.
Frustratingly I was hoping to commence work with her next week as I think this is the best way to get on top of the crest and insulin issues but now I think we’ll have to push that back.
TwyfordM
Well-Known Member
Oh how frustrating ?
Madam went a bit footsore the other day but I’m 99% sure it’s the thrush. Cannot seem to get on top of it though.
She is however being a prize idiot ??
Freeschooling last night she stacked it because she was showing off a ridiculously tight turn. School is quite deep so doubt she’s hurt anything and hopefully learnt her lesson ?
before the dramas ...
