Very fat but lame horse

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yvonne36

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My horse has been lame since Oct last year. Diagnosed with laminitis to start with she is still lame although much better. She had 6 months box rest and put on loads of weight. She is still lame but the vet says to work her to get weight off and she should improve. How do you work a lame horse? She is on very restricted grazing through the day and comes in for hay at night. The only feed she gets is hifi light and formula 4 feet. She is the type that lives on fresh air. Should I ask the vet for a painkiller for her?
Roll on the winter when she can shiver off calories!
 
Friends exceptionally good doer lost weight while box rested as she 24 hour soaked her hay to get rid of any goodness then just fed a tiny handfull of hifi light with a multi vitamin in every day. When you say she is on restricted grazing is she muzzled? again friends horse manages to put on weight just by looking at scrub land if unmuzzled.
I wouldnt be happy to 'work' a lame horse however i can understand the benefits of steady walk walk to stimulate blood supply to the feet. I wouldnt fancy giving the horse a pain killer as this is going to mask any further lameness.
 
I echo the others... is the hay soaked? if not, it should be for at least 12 hours and restricted to 2% of her bodyweight.

Bedding shouldbe changed to something she can't eat too. I realise shavings are costly but if the horse can eat it's bedding, this is why it is putting on the weight.

I would be wary of working a lame horse however turnout with frog supports on could be beneficial as long as there is VERY limited grass to eat.
 
My mare is kept on very restricted grazing, her pen is probably approx 18m x 20m ish, and there is grass throughout but it is very very short and sparse, however there is enough to mean she is constantly nibbling which is important - dont resort to starving. She lives out in here 24/7 and has one feed a day of hi fi good doer which I normally sprinkle around the pen so she has to hunt for it. I also chuck carrots about and again she marches around hunting the carrots, long after she has eaten them all. She has lost quite a bit of weight through being kept this way, as she is constantly marching about. She also cant be excercised due to lameness (not laminitis though). I'm really really pleased with her weight now, she was too fat imo which wasn't helping her joints. She can still look to loose a bit more!!

She was in for 8 months on box rest, and her hay was rationed as well as soaked for 24 hours and she didn't loose any weight at all, in fact I think put weight on! If you can, I would leave out 24/7 rather than bringing in, as standing around in a stable wont encourage weight loss.
 
Hiya- my boy was diagnosed with concussive lami start of jan and after 3months box rest with pads on made no improvement if anything he got worse. So my Vet spoke to farrier and they put on heart bar shoes and back filled the sole only from the heel to the point of the frog with gel - the idea being that this puts no pressure on the point of the pedal bone which is just in front of the frog (hope this all makes sense!) The difference was amazing and more or less straight away was more comfy.

After a further 4 weeks in he was allowed out 2x 5 mins in hand in the arena soft surface and 4 weeks ago allowed to start going out in a pen with a muzzle.

So we are slowly getting there and have started riding at last now as well albiet 10-15 mins at walk in the arena
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Just an idea for your neddy to see if that helps with the lameness

good luck
 
If she is lame beacuse she still has lami do be careful with exercise and imo her feet should be supported with pads and boots.
Is there anyway she can stay in the paddock, so long as it is bare 24/7 with soaked hay at night or could she go in a school with soaked hay at night. The sand will support her feet and being in a bigger area will allow her to move more at her own pace that she can cope with.
Just a warning short grass can be stressed and so full of sugars... it's a nightmare isn't it. I'd definitely stop the high fi light and possibly the F4F. Hi fi still has molasses in it and some horses are sensitive to alfalfa. She doesn't need a feed if she's over weight just forage and good minerals and salt.
Have you looked into mineral deficiencies? Magnesiun oxide is often helpful (if the grass/hay is lacking) also a good balancer like Top spec anti lam may be better for her that the F4F.
As it's been 9 months have you considered getting her a second opinion or even perhaps a consultation from an experienced barefoot Trimmer... sometimes the foot needs different trimming.
Another way to help her loose weight by moving at her pace is to put up a track round the edge of her paddock (if possible) and put soaked hay at intervals to encourage her to move. It'll also reduce her grass intake further.Electric tape is a quick and cheap way to do this.
I'd be very careful 'working' her (especially without foot support) until you know 100% that the cause of her lameness isn't lami.
Has she been Xrayed?

I highly recommend a Book... Founder, prevention and cure the natural way by Jaime Jackson. It's a real eye opener.
Also these paddock pillows will help slow her hay consumption whist keeping her head in a normal position to eat. I use them in bare paddocks and yard and they're great for all 'fatties'. Scroll down the page.
http://www.naturalhorseworld.com/Article-Feeding.htm
 
my pony battled with laminitis for almost 6 months, and it wasn't until I took her off feeds containing Alfalfa that she came sound. Inspite of it being recommended by the Laminitis trust and included in many feeds for laminitis prone horses, some horses can not tolerate even small amounts of alfalfa.
 
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my pony battled with laminitis for almost 6 months, and it wasn't until I took her off feeds containing Alfalfa that she came sound. Inspite of it being recommended by the Laminitis trust and included in many feeds for laminitis prone horses, some horses can not tolerate even small amounts of alfalfa.

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Yes I think sensitivity to alfalfa is more common than we realize. I do think it's a good plan to take horses with laminitis off all feeds and stick to forage only diet (hay not grass btw!) and supplement with a good balancer and salt and magnesium and see if this improves their comfort.
 
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