Coming into spring with the grass starting to come through – and likely some warmer weather coming soon here is a reminder of what laminitis is and what we can do with laminitis.

We have already given a brief summary on facebook (click here) and Holly has written about feeding for a laminitis prone horse / pony – click here for more details.

If you want more details there is also a recent information leaflet by BOVA - here, and a weight management leaflet here.

Why is laminitis such a concern?

Laminitis is a very painful condition of the hooves in horses, ponies and donkeys, which in some cases can start without any warning. It is common and unfortunately once you have laminitis it is much more likely to have another episode in the future. Laminitis can also lead uncontrolled pain or a poor prognosis and is one of the more common reasons horses are euthanased.

Even with milder cases horses can be on rest and out of work for long periods of time.

What causes Laminitis?

In the vast majority of cases laminitis is caused by one of two hormonal diseases (endocrine):
Cushings disease (mostly in older horses) or Equine metabolic Syndrome (EMS – similar to type II diabetes in people) which is usually seen in overweight horses.

Both of these conditions can be diagnosed by blood tests and are managed with medication, weight management, diet and exercise – details of which are coming in a blog in June, or click here for an older article.

Other causes include:

• Diseases with severe inflammation – for example retained placenta after foaling, certain severe colics and bad diarrhoea.
• Overloading the limb – if there is a severe lameness on the opposite limb overloading of the other leg can cause laminitis.
• Severely overgrown hooves – a lot of pressure on the limb from overgrown hooves can also cause lamintis.

Signs:

Acute sudden cases can show: severe pain, weight shifting, high heart rate, reluctant to move or recumbent (lying down) – and they can in some cases be difficult to distinguish from colic.

More chronic cases – often have more subtle signs, but have pain especially when walking on hard or uneven ground, difficulty turning and raised digital pulses.

Below is a short video of a horse with laminitis trying to move:

What to do if my horse has signs?

If out bring your horse in slowly and rest them in a box with a deep bed. Make sure there is fresh water available and keep them on a restricted diet – ideally on soaked hay, but making sure you avoid anything rich in carbohydrate or sugars – see Holly’s recent post for more details.

Most horses with laminitis will need a visit from your vet for a diagnosis, pain relief, blood tests and x-rays/treatment as recommended.

Treatment

Rest on a deep bed is an important part of treatment – this should reduce further damage to the laminae in the hoof and allow the hoof to start to repair. Hoof support from pads and when more comfortable remedial farriery to fit support shoes like heartbars may also help.

X-rays can be important as they allow us to see what is going on inside your horses hooves - and help assess severity and plan treatment / farriery. They can also help assess how long it will take for your horse to recover and make a plan going forward.

Pain relief – as above horses can be in a lot of pain and need courses of pain relief including bute or other NSAID drugs and in more severe cases other types of pain relief are likely to be included as well.

Weight management – overweight horses are more likely to have equine metabolic syndrome (EMS) which is a common cause of lamintis, but losing weight reduces this risk and can control it well in many horses. In the shorter term medication can help control this condition.

Recovery

Recovery can take weeks in milder cases and months in more severe cases – more than 60% of horses are back in work within 8 weeks.

How to prevent laminitis

Laminitis cannot be cured completely with many severe cases not returning to complete comfort, and recurrence being common. However steps to avoid recurrence and also the first episode of laminitis include:

• Weight management – horses at the correct body condition are much less likely get an episode of laminitis.
• Restrict access to very rich feeds – other than breaking into a feed room and eating a large quantity of rich food, avoid very rich pastures and feeding sugar rich foods – especially in EMS or horses with previous laminitis episodes.
• Blood testing for Cushings disease – in older horses (teens or older) the risk of having Cushings disease increases. Monitor for signs of Cushings and consider testing every year to rule out the disease in older horses – especially if your horse has had previous laminitis.
• Keep your horses feet well trimmed/shod – although farriery is unlikely to cause laminitis overgrown poor quality feet will not help, and severely overgrown feet may be a cause.
• If your horse has severe lameness on another limb consider a deep bed and possibly support for the opposite weight bearing limb.
• In severely ill horses prompt treatment and management may reduce the risk of laminitis.

If you have any concerns your horse may have laminitis please remember to speak to your vet - we can be contacted on 07747 717474, please note we can only give opinions on horses in our area who are registered clients.