More on Laminitis—The Benefits of Vigilance

By Connie Paschall, RN

We really enjoy having Connie and Dexter with us at the Farm, and appreciate her expertise as a registered nurse—she will be co-leading a first aid class in our upcoming "All About the Prep: Safety and Readiness for Rider and Horse" camp. This is a very timely and interesting article which adds another useful tool to our equine health toolkit! -MG

Author’s note: 
The Wise Horseman at Freedom Farm monthly blog posts well-researched, timely tips and tricks for the care and training of our horses. How many read and practice the wisdom sent to us for free...? Well, I do. Allow me to add my story to the thread of articles here on grass laminitis prevention [select ‘laminitis’ from among the tags at right to call up the articles - ed.] -

vig·i·lance

/ˈvijələns/

noun

1. The action or state of keeping careful watch for possible danger or difficulties.

I have a dream. My dream is to have my horse Dexter out in a pasture, frolicking with friends and living a horse’s full life. However...

Connie and Dexter

Dexter is fat. Everyone knows Dexter is fat. Well aware of the risks associated with such an easy keeper, I regularly monitor for cresty fat along his neck, puffy deposits at the base of his tail, and changes in his coat. He has been clear of these signs for long enough that I recently decided to let him transition into pasture with a nice group of geldings, and all seemed well. Dexter liked his new situation and showed none of the signs of imminent grass laminitis. Then one day I checked his pulses and felt a strong, bounding pulse in his right foreleg—not a good sign.

So what’s this about checking pulses? Let me digress:

Laminitis - Annual Spring Grass PSA

Look for 'cresty' fat deposits along the top of the neck.

When Audrey posted this to our Wise Horseman Facebook page in May of 2018, we thought of it as a routine heads-up for local horse owners. A year later (at this posting), it has been viewed by close to 45,000 people, and shared almost 450 times! We are glad to help get the word out so friends can help friends avoid grass-induced laminitis in their horses! - MG

Hi Everyone, Audrey here. 

Fat deposit visible above the base of the tail.

This is a quick PSA* to remind everyone to be SUPER careful with the spring grass. Keep an eye on your horse and make sure he’s not exhibiting any of the signs of trouble ahead. The pictures here are of a 20+ year old gelding that is on the verge of laminitis. While he’s not sore yet, his body is giving us some pretty significant signs that he’s in trouble. His neck is cresty and he has large fat deposits above the base of his tail. At this point, this horse should be off the grass completely. 

Magnum’s Rough Year, Part Two: Oh No! Laminitis!

Not feeling well at all!

by Mary Tulin

Mary and Magnum's story of insulin resistance continues with more hard times, dealt with effectively. A good example of proper horse management. -MG

Magnum really wasn’t feeling well.

His move to a dirt pen with old pals had seemed like the perfect situation: get him off grass, keep him in a herd with room to play. The big dirt pen by the hay barn was roomy, with his old herd right next door. Within weeks after the move, however, he got worse again. Dirt pens are great, but this one was next to pasture, grass within easy reach of questing muzzles. Magnum munched freely, and paid dearly.

Magnum's Rough Year: What I learned about insulin resistance (his) and denial (mine).

by Mary Tulin, with Kip Tulin, MD

“Is your horse insulin resistant?”

“No. Uh, what’s that?” I asked, feeling oddly defensive. I was chatting with a woman participating in a clinic at Freedom Farm last year (2015), a fellow Morgan fancier.

“It’s kind of like diabetes, “ she replied. “My horse has it, and mature Morgans are prone to get it.” Her Morgan horse, a handsome, trim gelding, stood nearby.

I quizzed her further, sure that my 15-year old gelding Magnum was perfect in every way and destined to be healthy and fit into old age.

“Well, I noticed Magnum had some little bumps,” she pointed to his side. “My guy had those, so I had a vet check him.”

Bumps? Yep, there they were. But there weren’t very many. And even though a few professionals (riding coach, saddle fitter, etc.) had pointed out Magnum’s occasional crestiness, I’d never worried. He was a lively, feisty middle-aged horse and I was sure he was fine. Perfectly normal.

Magnum and me, a few months earlier. 

Springtime means sunshine, green grass, and risk of laminitis!

by Barbara Noble

With the warmer weather and another early spring, laminitis is a good topic for all horse owners to have on their mind. Our northwestern grass will soon be growing high, and also high in sugar. All horse owners could benefit from knowing about the risk of laminitis, and being proactive in preventing it, whether or not their horse is showing symptoms. Horses prone to laminitis of the most common variety are thought to be horses with an inherited gene which predisposes them to obesity (the easy keeper type) and a different metabolism of carbohydrates. Even if your horse does not have laminitis, you can be proactive and possibly avoid this condition altogether.

Signs of Spring: Thoughts on Supplementation, Hay Analysis, and Laminitis

by Barbara Noble

When Barbara Noble sent us this article, I appreciated the reminder that springtime brings new growth of all kinds, including the prospect of new hay, rich new grass, and definitely, a few seasonal concerns. A timely post! - Mary Gallagher

Not long ago I took a course in Equine Touch. One of my fellow participants was a veterinarian from the area where the clinic was held.  Other participants were eager for the opportunity to access her expertise during free time and kept asking her questions, mostly, ‘should I give my horse a supplement?  What supplement should I use?  Does my horse need a different type of supplement?  I heard many supplement questions and only one answer: It depends upon what is in your hay.  You have to get a hay analysis.

Spring is here! And so is the risk of founder and laminitis!

It's great to see the lush, green grass of spring, and important to know that beautiful, fast-growing spring grass stores much more sugar than it needs for growth, and definitely more than most horses should consume in quantity. Too much of the good stuff can cause grass founder or laminitis, which is the inflammation of the laminae of the horse's foot, an extremely painful and dangerous condition.