Worrying signs?

Gropony

Gropony

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Hi all. I just got back from a week away. My sharer was looking after my pony and he is out 24/7 on a grazed down paddock with four other fatties.

I noticed when I brought him out of the field that he was stiff. He is round in the stomach and looks more bloated than anything, although he is too fat he hasn't put on weight elsewhere. I checked his feet and the front ones were possibly a bit warm but it is hot here. So I free lunged him (sand surface). He was stiff behind, I could see from the way he was carrying himself but it looked more like a reluctance to engage the core or a stiff back. He was walking exaggerated steps behind (bad description) and lifting each side of the pelvis, it just wasn't loose. So I tried a couple of groundwork exercises in a small circle around me and he refused. To get a better idea I free lunged him very gently for 15 minutes. At first he was stiff, head in the air and to the outside. Then he started to stretch his head to the floor, we did some trotting and transitions, he was tracking up no problem and after 15 minutes looked like usual (relatively balanced, engaging the core). But he was hot given he hadn't done a lot.

He is barefoot and I know that my sharer did a 9km ride on Friday at all paces. The ground here is like concrete.

I am just worried about laminitis. Given that he loosened up during lunging, is it more likely that he is stiff after Friday (hard ground, maybe he was tense, plus he had just had a hefty trim the day before apparently) or should I worry it is early laminitis signs?

I waited an hour after and watched him in the field and he was walking stiff behind again.
 
Gropony said:
Hi all. I just got back from a week away. My sharer was looking after my pony and he is out 24/7 on a grazed down paddock with four other fatties.

I noticed when I brought him out of the field that he was stiff. He is round in the stomach and looks more bloated than anything, although he is too fat he hasn't put on weight elsewhere. I checked his feet and the front ones were possibly a bit warm but it is hot here. So I free lunged him (sand surface). He was stiff behind, I could see from the way he was carrying himself but it looked more like a reluctance to engage the core or a stiff back. He was walking exaggerated steps behind (bad description) and lifting each side of the pelvis, it just wasn't loose. So I tried a couple of groundwork exercises in a small circle around me and he refused. To get a better idea I free lunged him very gently for 15 minutes. At first he was stiff, head in the air and to the outside. Then he started to stretch his head to the floor, we did some trotting and transitions, he was tracking up no problem and after 15 minutes looked like usual (relatively balanced, engaging the core). But he was hot given he hadn't done a lot.

He is barefoot and I know that my sharer did a 9km ride on Friday at all paces. The ground here is like concrete.

I am just worried about laminitis. Given that he loosened up during lunging, is it more likely that he is stiff after Friday (hard ground, maybe he was tense, plus he had just had a hefty trim the day before apparently) or should I worry it is early laminitis signs?

I waited an hour after and watched him in the field and he was walking stiff behind again.
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Just what nobody wants on return from holiday, I’m sorry.
Any raised pulses in any fetlocks? If you have hoof testers, be worth ‘pinching’ all round his feet, particular at the toes, to locate sore reactions.
The advice to shut him off all grass, with deep bed, and to treat as laminitis until the vet has been, is really, really sensible. Laminitis is an emergency, but if vet is delayed, would be worth strapping frog pads or bandage rolls onto his feet for support.
Hopefully, will be the combination of ‘hefty’ trim /riding on hard ground, or something else altogether, but no point taking risks.
Generally, horses are better with far lighter trimming but more often, and maybe some hoof boots with comfort pads, if sensitive.
Good luck!
 
Thank you all. I noticed straight away that the other farrier had done his feet (there are three). The angles are completely different and he takes more off. I will see how this turns out and invest in some hoof boots for hacking.

I was very shocked by the size of his belly. It's massively round, and solid. I could hear lots of gut sounds and he pooped. He just looked uncomfortable but not necessarily in his feet. But I know they can compensate. He wasn't any "fatter", just a large belly at the back. I have a photo from two days ago and he is nothing like that.

@Exasperated no pulses. Difficult to judge if he has pain because he just about tolerates having his feet messed with anyway so any additional time/manipulating provokes a reaction in any case. He walked over gravel/stones without trying to avoid them.

Anyway, just worried. I will treat as lami and see what the verdict is. I am visiting a track livery this week to try and move him because it is too difficult to manage his weight on grass.
 
Distended belly would worry me too. You say the paddock is grazed down- is it possible that they’ve been over fed hay/or not been fed enough and have been foraging hedges etc. eating inappropriate stuff?

I’d be having a chat with the vet. Hope it’s nothing serious, but better safe than sorry.
 
Gropony said:
Hi all. I just got back from a week away. My sharer was looking after my pony and he is out 24/7 on a grazed down paddock with four other fatties.

I noticed when I brought him out of the field that he was stiff. He is round in the stomach and looks more bloated than anything, although he is too fat he hasn't put on weight elsewhere. I checked his feet and the front ones were possibly a bit warm but it is hot here. So I free lunged him (sand surface). He was stiff behind, I could see from the way he was carrying himself but it looked more like a reluctance to engage the core or a stiff back. He was walking exaggerated steps behind (bad description) and lifting each side of the pelvis, it just wasn't loose. So I tried a couple of groundwork exercises in a small circle around me and he refused. To get a better idea I free lunged him very gently for 15 minutes. At first he was stiff, head in the air and to the outside. Then he started to stretch his head to the floor, we did some trotting and transitions, he was tracking up no problem and after 15 minutes looked like usual (relatively balanced, engaging the core). But he was hot given he hadn't done a lot.

He is barefoot and I know that my sharer did a 9km ride on Friday at all paces. The ground here is like concrete.

I am just worried about laminitis. Given that he loosened up during lunging, is it more likely that he is stiff after Friday (hard ground, maybe he was tense, plus he had just had a hefty trim the day before apparently) or should I worry it is early laminitis signs?

I waited an hour after and watched him in the field and he was walking stiff behind again.
Click to expand...
Distended belly, stiff gait and hot - I would consult a vet as this does sound like gas colic. Hope he is better and you don't need to. Not something you ever want to deal with but definitely not on a Bank Holiday and after you have been away.
 
Quick update. I think that you are right and it was gas. There is not much grass, his poop is green and soft. He was a bit dirty today under his tail. He.could be foraging for something inappropriate. I actually think that he has realised that the electric fence is not on and he has been putting his head through to eat the grass in the next field.

Today he is walking normally and his belly is not as large. We agreed to monitor it over the next few days.

I am crossing my fingers for the other yard.
 
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