Horses which have developed laminitis as a result of over-feeding need to be removed from the food source immediately. Mares with retained placenta constitute a medical emergency — your veterinarian will need to remove any remaining placenta, flush the uterus with saline and start appropriate medical treatment. Horses with a septicaemic condition will similarly need aggressive medical treatment by your veterinarian Anti-inflammatories are the cornerstone of therapy. Alternatively a sand yard can be used, however it is crucial that you use a hoof pick twice daily to prevent sand packing up in the sole.
In the early stages exercise should be avoided as it may result in further rotation of the pedal bone Hoof care is vital. Your farrier should consult with your vet and trim the hoof according to the degree of rotation of the pedal bone.
Ongoing dietary management is crucial. Consult with your vet on the most appropriate feeding regime. Many feeds promoted as being safe for laminitic horses are not appropriate if your horse is also receiving other feed sources high in soluble carbohydrate. When the founder is severe, the hammock laminae breaks, dumping the man toe bone onto the ground.
In severe founder, the toe bone comes through the sole on the bottom of the hoof. There was the problem that inflammatory cells, an important mediator of inflammation, were missing during the acute phase of the founder. Something else appeared to be going on. Why Does The Hammock Break? Ischemia For a long time acute founder was thought to be a disease caused by inflammation and was dubbed laminitis -itis means inflamed.
It is easy to see why: Heat, swelling and pain were present and these are all signs of inflammation. On closer study, several problems with the inflammation idea surfaced. It was often hard to understand what caused the inflammation. Several researchers developed an alternate theory: founder results from too little oxygen getting to the hard working laminae. This was hard to accept because the increased heat and pulse seems to suggest increased blood flow. They had an explanation: the presence of blood vessels that shunt the blood away from the laminae.
During founder they inappropriately open and route blood away from the laminae. Tissue becomes damaged and inflammation follows to help fight infection and remove damaged tissue. The theory has gained support in the last several years and the shunts have been identified with electron microscopy.
Recent research suggests that an important component may be platlet aggregation which forms thrombi clots and routs the blood away from the lammelar capillaries resulting in ischemia AJVR, v 58, n 12, pg There are two recognizable forms of founder. In the acute form the disease comes on suddenly and the severity can vary depending on the size of the insult to the laminae.
Some lameness experts believe that in the acute form, most of the damage is done in the initial few hours of the disease. The chronic form of founder affects ponies and overweight horses on rapidly growing pasture or too much concentrate. This form of the disease is a recurring problem whenever the horse or pony is allowed to get overweight, eat rich foods, or his feet are allowed to get too long. Damage done during the flare up is usually not as severe as seen in acute attacks but over time the damage can build up.
Usually the flare ups are preventable with good management. Whenever an acute case of founder occurs, radiographs are vital to keep up with changes in the foot. Radiographs can monitor rotation of the toe bone within the hoof capsule that correlates to the amount of damage done to the laminae.
It may be that you will be watching changes over which you have little control, but rate and degree of change will be your best prognostic guide. We know some of the causes of founder, but some cases are hard to explain.
Listed below are some of the common causes of acute founder:. Acute founder is always an emergency requiring professional help to minimize permanent damage. First aid measures include:. There are currently dozens of treatment regimens suggested for the treatment of founder, many whose theories conflict with each other. Except for the nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug NSAID phenylbutazone bute no single treatment has been shown to be more efficacious than another.
One would be to put the horse or pony on a dirt dry lot until the grass settles out and starts to turn brown. Bummer for everyone. The grass goes to waste and the horse stands around in a small lot, drooling. Take a look around the dry lot. Is there any way the horse can contort himself to gain access to grass on the other side of the fence?
Remember, dry lot means no grass, not short grass. Besides, stressed grass like that often contains higher sugar levels. Exercise is the single best way to treat EMS.
Do I sound like your own physician? So, locking Flicka up in a small pen is at odds with combatting the problem.
A second strategy is to limit the time the horses are in the pasture, preferably favoring the morning when the sugar content of the grass is lowest. Many people adopt this strategy in all-you-can-eat buffets! The solution I like is a grazing muzzle. This allows the horse to be out walking around all day with her pals, and drastically reduces the amount she can eat.
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