Managing Laminitis Ponies

By learning more about laminitis and its causes signs and treatments you may be able to minimize the risks of laminitis in your horse or control the long term damage if it does occur.

Managing laminitis ponies.

Laminitis is a complex cascade of events that causes the soft tissues laminae within the hoof to swell weaken and die. Although diagnosis usually isn t difficult laminitis remains a frustrating condition to treat. Foundering is an extremely painful condition and should never be taken lightly. Managing a horse with laminitis on grass pastures.

Managing a horse with laminitis on grass pastures. Consider that a common cause of laminitis is overfeeding a management factor that is normally within our control. When your horse progresses from painful laminitis to disabling founder as many do you ll naturally want to educate yourself on the various treatment techniques and management strategies available. Laminitis affects so many horses and ponies that it is now the most researched aspect of lameness worldwide.

Horses prone to laminitis need help when grazing on grass pastures in the spring time and early summer when grasses grow quickly and lush. However for the horse with endocrine related laminitis diet becomes an important part of managing the disease. Save for later print. You can also help your horse by limiting how much it grazes since too much grazing can cause laminitis.

What works for one horse may not work for another and in many cases only time will tell whether a treatment is effective. This can all occur before any symptoms are apparent and once the process has started it is extremely difficult to stop. When a horse develops equine metabolic syndrome it is similar to type 2. A horse with acute laminitis is generally exceedingly painful.

Laminitis is quite unlike any other equine disease. Recognized for centuries laminitis is an all to frequent and sometimes devastating condition affecting the connections between the horse s hoof wall and the vital structures inside the hoof. To manage a laminitis prone horse replace all of your horse s grain based feed with hay since excessive grain can cause laminitis. Also feed your horse beet pulp so it s getting enough fiber which helps prevent laminitis flare ups.

This research continues to explain why certain horses and ponies do not respond to correct dietary management alone and also tells us more about how we should manage susceptible horses and ponies.