# Laminitis



## marty137 (Nov 23, 2009)

My wife Christine's, Welsh cob has been suffering from Laminitis for twelve weeks and is no better. The vet only gives her sachets of Bute to numb the pain . Is there anybody who knows of a natural cure or remedy that might help:frown2:


----------



## Zayna (Apr 19, 2009)

what are you feeding him on? My old mare used to suffer with this and we found that if she had anything with sugar in it she would get a flare up (even carrots used to set her off). She also had to have hay rather then haylege and limited grazing.


----------



## RachyBobs (Oct 18, 2009)

You need to set up a 'starvation paddock' for him and feed him only hay no haylage because its to sweet. You can also buy feed specially designed for horses and ponies with lamanitus which is low in sugar. 

If he is or needs to be stabled, provide a deep, supportive bed of clean, dry wood shavings or another material that moulds to the underside of the foot, pick out and thoroughly disinfect hooves twice a day to avoid build up of foreign matter. 

There is a special shoe called the 'Imprint' which provide all the support and flexibility together with increased wear and grip qualities on most surfaces, we found these a god send with my riding pony mare!!

Good Luck


----------



## marty137 (Nov 23, 2009)

:frown2:Christine has only been feeding Daniel [her welsh cob] old hay with a small amount of bran and a dollip of sunflower oil,she's also been giving it epson salts.While cleaning his feet out today the sole was penetrated with the hoof pick and there was blood.She decided not to go any further with the pick in case there was more discomfort.Christine seemed to think by releasing the blood it released the pressure on its hoof.
It's now 14 weeks since we realised it had Laminitis and are still giving it bute.
There doesn't seem to be any change in him. Christine thinks there should have been some developement for the better by now.
Has anybody anything to add please. Your advice is truely welcome


----------



## shortbackandsides (Aug 28, 2008)

depending on your vet sometimes your farrier can be of more help.A vet diagnosed laminitas on a horse at our yard,we all knew it wasntthis particular vet has made errors before with othersthe farrier found a absess.


----------



## marty137 (Nov 23, 2009)

We have ruled out any absess, because it's lame in all four legs.We have taken off its shoes thinking this might help, but it hasn't. has anybody any other ideas to help Daniel get back on his feet.
Kind Regards 

Marty


----------



## Zayna (Apr 19, 2009)

has a farrier looked at his feet? does his hooves feel hot to touch? is he quite happy to have his feet picked up? also how is his walking? does he seem to have more trouble turning round rather then walking forward? its unusual for all 4 feet to be affected.. i might be wrong but its normally the front feet.


----------



## marty137 (Nov 23, 2009)

Yes you are right it has only got the condition in it's front feet.The back feet are fine.
He feels it more when he is turning, maybe because he is cooked up in the loose box all day and he is stiff.Christine gives him gentle exercise each day and this seems to help him for a while outside of the loose box.
He is less resistant to having his feet lifted than what he used to be, but still hesitant.
Do you think that we will have to let nature take it's cause and let it's hoof's out grow the condition.
your thoughts would be welcome

Kind Regards,

Marty.:confused5:


----------



## RachyBobs (Oct 18, 2009)

marty137 said:


> Yes you are right it has only got the condition in it's front feet.The back feet are fine.
> He feels it more when he is turning, maybe because he is cooked up in the loose box all day and he is stiff.Christine gives him gentle exercise each day and this seems to help him for a while outside of the loose box.
> He is less resistant to having his feet lifted than what he used to be, but still hesitant.
> Do you think that we will have to let nature take it's cause and let it's hoof's out grow the condition.
> ...


His feet will not grow out of the condition, I have 3 ponies with lamantius. As I say the best way I have dealt with it is to keep them on box rest until the soreness has lightened up and fence off a starvation paddock, it sounds drastic but he needs as little grass as you can feed him. He needs hay and water and happy hoof with bute mixed into his feed everyday.

Its never failed for me :thumbup1:

Welsh ponies are hardy ponies, they do not need the grass people think.. I feed mine Alfalfa Chaff which is a good source of additional calories and fibre whilst they are not eating the grass

1. Obesity / Overeating.

The most common type seen in GB. Many animals perform no work and are used as garden ornaments by people with limited understanding of horse management. Horse owners are encouraged to overfeed their animals by feed companies, show judges and peer pressure. Native ponies require very little to eat and are unable to cope with fertilised cattle pasture.


----------



## Zayna (Apr 19, 2009)

RachyBobs said:


> His feet will not grow out of the condition, I have 3 ponies with lamantius. As I say the best way I have dealt with it is to keep them on box rest until the soreness has lightened up and fence off a starvation paddock, it sounds drastic but he needs as little grass as you can feed him. He needs hay and water and happy hoof with bute mixed into his feed everyday.
> 
> Its never failed for me :thumbup1:


I agree with this... also if he isnt working can your wife cut down on the amount of feed she is giving him to keep his weight down (im not suggesting that you have an overweight horse just that if he is having lots of box rest and is eating the same he might start to put weight on which wont help his feet). I used to only give my mare hay and water when she was on box rest, but she was an arabian and they can live on air, lol.

I think this has been covered already but is he on hay or haylege and what bedding is he on?


----------



## marty137 (Nov 23, 2009)

Daniel is on hay and his bedding is straw.What i meant when i said his feet will grow out of the condition, i meant the bout he is suffering now.
When he is fit Christine and her father go out together with thier exercise carts for a two hour drive. She is sorely missing this.On a finer note she has the winter to get him right for the coming Spring. Will she have to keep him off the spring grass alltogether or just limit him?:confused5:


----------



## Zayna (Apr 19, 2009)

When i had Zay she had good days and bad days with her feet. If his feet are that bad I would recommend that he has no grass at all. Either put him in a paddock with no grass or if he is turned out with other horses you can get a muzzle to put on him so that he cant eat the grass. I know it sounds cruel but you should notice an improvement.

If possible change his bedding to woodchips as this will mould to the shape of his feet while he is standing and give him better support.. I know that woodchip is more expensive then straw so i dont know if this is an option fo you.


----------



## RachyBobs (Oct 18, 2009)

The grass is low at the minute anyway so if you fence him off a section of a already nibbled down to nothing field. Bed him on woodship/shavings that clump into the sole of the foot to add extra support


----------



## tonette (Dec 28, 2008)

Hi ......... has the horse had an xray? When we had Shrek we had him x rayed and this showed that his pedal bone had started to rotate, we tried everything for him he even had plastic shoes fitted. But sadly we had to have him PTS as his pedal bone dropped.... please have a look at my web site there is lots of info on lammy
Here is the link Laminitis


----------



## jackson (May 22, 2008)

Have a look on the Laminitis Trust website and ring them for advice.

Horses with laminitis need to be on _complete_ box rest for at least 30 days after they become sound. If the horse moves there is more chance of the pedal boen rotating and the horse having to be PTS. The horse will also not become sound whilst having any sort of exercise.

Some vets do not know an awful lot about laminitis. Has your horses been x rayed? The Laminitis Trust will look at X rays if you want them to and give advice based on those. You can also have frog supports fitted once you have had the horses feet x-rayed.

The horse MUST be kept stabled on a very deep (30cm minimum) shavings bed. That box rest includes keeping the horse in the stable whilst mucking out. Feed hay in two or three small holed haylage nets, one inside the other so it takes the horse longer to eat and you can substitute some of the hay weight for weight for Hi Fi Lite. You can feed small amounts of Speedi beet, which is unmolaassed sugar beet and also a whole swede hung fromt he stable roof for something for the horse to do. If he's not fat he can be fed normal amounts of forage, but if he needs to lose weight, it is important not to let his total food fall below 1% of his bodyweight at the absolute mimimum. Starving him will make things worse.

Has your vet given you ACP for the horse? This helps dilate the blood vessels and will increase blood flow to the feet, which will help. It will also mildy sedate the horse and so help stop him going mental whilst on box rest! The ACP should be given as well as the bute. If you feed a supplement such as 'Formula 4 Feet' it will help support healthy hoof regrowth.

Again, I cannot stress how important it is that the horse is not moved AT ALL.

I hope this helps.


----------



## tonette (Dec 28, 2008)

Unfortunately my best friends Shetland came down with lammy 2 months ago and he is still on box rest, he had an x ray taken on Christmas eve and it showed a slight rotation. He is still foot sore but no where near as bad as he was, he is now showing signs of being back to his old cheeky self! My friend has put Rocky on laminaze now it is quite pricey but worth it if it helps... but the vet said the best thing that she can do is complete box rest and deep bed until he is sound again... and as already that has been said she has to watch his diet as he needs to lose some weight so he is on hay that has been soaked (to get rid of some of the sugar) and hi-fi lite


----------



## jennyb (Jan 28, 2010)

My vet is a laminitis specialist and he takes their management extremely seriously. You have to look at the whole of your horse's way of life and see how you can change it to cope with the fact that he is laminitic.

As this is something that will affect your horse's whole life, I really think that it would be worth your while finding a vet that specialises in treating laminitis and get him to advise you.


----------



## merlyn26 (Feb 4, 2010)

personally i would be concerned about the blood coming from the sole that a degree of rotation has already occured - definately advise getting x-rays done. also be careful of turning out onto frosty grass and even starvation paddocks - stressed grass is often the worst to give laminitics due to the fructans in it. (longer (but not long) old unfertilised for years type pasture is usually the best - the type of thing moorland ponies live off) i would keep the horse on total rest, on a shavings bed and give soaked hay and have the vet (or another one) out again.


----------

