turnout and laminitis.

[Christmas_Kate]

Okay, new pony arriving in a couple of weeks (fingers crossed).

Anyway, shetland 10 yrs old, NEVER had laminitis, is in good health, but a little over weight.
I have to bring in at night, that I don't really have a choice over.
The paddock I have access to ATM is very good grazing. rich green about just over ankle height. size...about 3/4 acre.
I cannot tape off any of it, cannot cut, and just have to use it 'as is' really.

What is the risk of lami at this time of year? Will the frosts have killed off any of the gooodness? Should I muzzle him on turnout? Don't really like muzzling but if need be I will. we move to more sparse grazing in aprilish time, so need some ideas about grazing until then.

 

[hoofsculpture]

make sure he is trimmed shortish at the toe, that will reduce tugging of the lamina, ie stretched w line. that will mean that even if[god forbid ],he does get a bit inflamed from his system you will have removed the tug out factor which would be the first thing you would have to do in any case. really what you are doing is staying one step ahead of any lamina prob . also you are correct about thje grass,there is not much sugar in it now. so if he is not banging his feet on the road[concussion] has no long toes[local] then you are onlywatching for systemic.[grass,sugar,toxins]etc. gd luk

 

[claireross]

I have read that grass on frosty mornings is not good for laminitics

. Also I would be wary of unristricted grazing due to the mild winter we have been having. I'd put on a grazing muzzle and give him hay overnight. I soak my ponies hay all day as it meant to remove some of the goodness. Now is probably the best time to get him back to his ideal weight before he piles it on in the spring

 

[Christmas_Kate]

Yes, i'd ideally like him to trim down before spring. I think I may go down the grazing muzzle route, with soaked ad lib hay over night.
I'm not too sure about doing too much to his feet as we have a road with no verges up to the padock, and most of the hacking means a bit of roadwork, and he is barefiit, so want to minimise the discomfort to his feet.

 

[hoofsculpture]

if he is a sound barefoot ,what discomfort do you mean. keeping his toes backed up will make him more comfortable

 

[Thistle]

Agree with muzzle, soaked hay (soak for at least an hour to remove sugars) and keep his toes nice and short. You may find he self trims that way anyway if he is doing some roadwork.

 

[sojeph]

My laminitis prone pony is out on 15 acres ATM. Theres plenty of grass out there(out 24/7 with no hay or feed) and my lot are maintaining their weight but not putting any on..that includes my shettie(not laminitic). I play it day by day and just watch out for signs of the grass coming through but I'd say at this time of year you should be pretty safe. In your circumstance I would definitely go for the muzzle towards the spring though. Watch out for the frosts early spring..they're the ones to look out for.

 

[ru-fi-do]

A friend of mine had a horse that got frost induced lamitis every time she eat frozen grass. We turn out out shetties atm when the frost has more or less thawed and make sure they go out after a feed and some hay to fill there bellys a little too as one of them suffers with lami and the other colic.

 

[JessPickle]

Benji a horse at my yard who has history of laminitis is so retricted turnout which doesnt have that much grass. If he is left out he escapes into other fields with more grass so has to have resricted turnout. Allthough he has many other condition as well

he has a strange skin condition and has a history of cushings. Poor thing has to be boxed most the time then turned out in the old outdoor school when its possible

 

[Lynne21]

Beware of the grass even at this time of year! What with mild, wet winters the grass does not go backwards at this time of year like it used to and can still induce laminitis. Do not let your guard down and treat all grazing (especially where there is lots of it) as suspect. It is far easier to put weight on slowly than it is to get it off quickly in an emergency. Trust me I speak from experience - laminitis in December and I couldn't save him.

 

[Christmas_Kate]

Thankyou for your replies.

I intend on getting him fit over the coming weeks, with a little walks out and hacking. Hopefully that should help with his weight.
I will keep an eye on the grass, and make sure I turnout after the frost has thawed.
Will also be soaking hay, and using a muzzle when needed. As his hay will be ad lib I'm hoping his belly will be full so he won't feel the need to eat so much grass.

Thanks again.

 

[sleepingdragon10]

Hi Katy

I was in much the same position when SWUO arrived.She needed to lose some weight,and although she had never had Lami I was absolutely paranoid about her developing it through the stress of being somewhere nbew,and a change in pasture type too.
As it turned out she was, and still is, fine....has lost weight and is looking really well.
She's strip grazed,plus has a small feed of Hi-Fi Lite,speedibeet and a balancer.If the grazing here gets too lush as spring arrives then like it or not she'll be muzzled too

Good luck with the little fella,sounds like you're doing everything you can to make sure he stays Lami free

Bethxxx

ETS :When it's frosty I put out some hi fibre haylage for her to munch instead of the grass as she hates being in too long.Keeps her occupied til the frost has thawed

 

[Christmas_Kate]

Thanks hon. I'm terrified of lami

.

 

[amandaco2]

keephis feet trimmed, dont over feed him, keep his weight off and restrict grass by either taping off sections off or using a muzzle.
dont turn him out on frosty grass, esp when its sunny.