Horse
Dealing with Laminitis in Horses
Laminitis in horses is a disease of the digital laminae of the hoof. The prevention and treatment of laminitis in horses are possible with special care. A horse or pony with laminitis will resist moving and tend to bear its weight on the unaffected hind feet. They will appear to be slightly tilting with the front legs stretched forward. In severe cases, a horse or pony may spend a lot of time lying flat out on his side. If you have any concerns that your horse or pony may have laminitis a vet should be called to examine as soon as possible.
Prevention & Treatment of Laminitis in Horses
- Restrict grazing – Horses must be moved from any fields which have plenty of grass and put into a paddock with limited grazing. If this is not available a grazing muzzle would help or break up a small piece of land with electric fencing.
- Do not give concentrated feed.
- Do give small feeds of hay. Hay should be soaked if it is new – but do not give haylage.
- A high fibre diet would benefit (lookout for the laminitis trust logo on the bag).
- If your horse or pony are susceptible to getting laminitis. Specialised supplements should be given in advance of the new spring grass.
Pain Relief
To relieve the pain, restore circulation, and stabilise the pedal bone. Your vet may recommend the following treatments or cures for laminitis in horses:
- Removal of shoes.
- An equine anti-inflammatory such as Phnylbutazone – “Bute”.
- Box rest at the start of treatment.
- ACP to calm the horse and lower blood pressure.
- Grooving the hoof walls with ¼ inch wide vertical grooves 1-11/2 inches apart to relieve pain.
- Aftercare with corrective shoeing to prevent hoof contraction with rolled toes can be helpful.
- Using a hoof dressing to stimulate healthy growth of new hoof.
- Frequent trimming of the hooves at least once a month to help the horse feel more comfortable. Also, to give support to the coffin bone and laminae.
Products That Can Help Laminitis in Horses
NAF Laminaze Five-star now with additional gut support to harmlessly flush out toxin buildup and added herbal defenses for comfortable feet. This unique nutritional formula targets hoof strength and a healthy lifestyle in all ponies and horses.
Spillers Happy Hoof Contains very low levels of cereal starch and sugar making it ideally suited for horses and ponies prone to laminitis. Low in calories making it ideal for good doers, native ponies, and those at rest or in light work. Contains a special blend of natural fibers to help keep your horse or pony eating for longer when compared to cubes and mixes.
TopSpec AntiLam ideal for Horses and Ponies prone to Laminitis. As well as overweight Horses and Ponies, good-doers in light work requiring only vitamins and minerals, and Horses and Ponies in light work. The product features: Biotin to improve hoof quality, as well as methionine, cysteine, lysine, calcium, zinc, copper, iodine, and vitamin A, improving the efficiency of the biotin. Also found within there are high levels of pure, protected yeast which helps maintain near-neutral conditions in the hindgut. Additional MOM (mannan oligosaccharides) and generous levels of antioxidants including vitamins A, C, and E plus selenium are also present to combat the free radicals that have been increased by stress.
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