The farrier came today. As soon as she started trimming Rocky's hooves she told me he has laminitis.... in all four hooves.... It's probably mechanical from not having his feet trimmed in years and being ridden with extremely long toes (not by us, it happened before we brought him home). She said we have his diet perfect and he's a great weight, so it's unlikely to be metabolic.
She said it's a mild case and she's confident it can be completely turned around, but it will probably take a full year for him to grow out a new hoof that is completely attached. She said he should be pain free within a couple of months and we will be able to ride him by fall (not that I really care at this point, I just want him healthy). She has had much worse cases that she was able to reverse the damage and bring the horse back into full work (obviously once fully healed) without the use of shoes. That gives me hope, but I won't lie. I cried when she told me and I've been in a slump all day about it. I'm pissed that this could have been prevented with proper trimming and the common sense not to ride a horse with f***** up feet. I haven't told my friend yet... not sure if I should... or how I should tell her... or if I even want to talk to her...
So the plan at this point is to put him on a four week trim cycle (Chrome will be too just because his hooves grow at an insane rate in the summer) and I'll be rasping his hooves weekly. It's very important to keep the toes back and not let any flares happen (just in the month we've had him the flares came back and his hoof was getting distorted... and he was trimmed the day we picked him up). We are also going to start treating for thrush and white line disease. I've never dealt with white line disease so all tips and advice are welcome.
Anyway there is probably a lot I'm forgetting to mention, but it's late and I really don't want to think about it anymore.
To lighten up the post a bit I will share something that isn't so sad....
I hate when Chrome's mane is so short on his withers.... I wish it would all stay long....
Oops, I did it again....
Yeah I couldn't take it anymore... so I roached him again.
What should I do with all of his mane??
The vet comes out Monday to do teeth, vaccines and coggins. I'll update then on everything.
So sorry to hear this. I'm glad though that he is now in good hands. Good for you for doing right by him.
ReplyDeleteThanks. I'm glad I have him too. It makes me so sad seeing him in pain. At least now that he's with me he will always have proper hoof care, deworming, dental care (have no clue if he's ever been floated), feed, etc. He'll be living like a king. :)
Deleteoh that is too bad- I understand how you feel. Ask the vet about the feet as well- a second opinion can't hurt.
ReplyDeleteI am definitely going to talk to her about it! Thank you.
DeleteAwh man, that stinks. One of the reasons I dislike getting horse's from loved ones is when stuff like that happens it's so hard not to get mad. :( I'm happy y'all have him now and are taking care of it!
ReplyDeleteAs for the hair...it's super easy to make bracelets and even earrings out of the hair!
Yeah it makes things difficult. :\ I'll look into trying to make horse hair jewelry. That would be so cool!!
DeleteI wouldn't hold it against your friend. The problem may not be as cut and dry as your trimmer suggests. A horse doesn't have to be fat to have metabolic issues. Hooves are early warning signs for so many things: illness, feed changes (summer pasture), health issues, medications, allergic reactions, and yes, mechanical stress. Since there is no way to know for sure, don't pass the blame, just take care of the horse.
ReplyDeleteThanks Val! You make a very good point, which is why I'm not bringing the issue up until after I've calmed down. The problem is that her horse care has HUGE holes in it. There are many other things you don't know about that I dislike and disagree with that I've kept my mouth shut about because it isn't any of my business, but when a horse has laminitis I have trouble just letting it go. This isn't the only horse who is lame either.... In my humble opinion she should have rehomed the horses a long time ago instead of waiting until things got this bad. I'm sorry I can't go into details on a public blog, but trust me I have reasons for being upset with her. She's been going through a rough time in her personal life and I love her to death and she has a genuine loving, caring heart so I'm not going to be ugly or rude or drop her. She'll still be my friend, but I do feel the need to educate her about a few things relating to horse care and responsibility. I'll be nice though I promise, because I'm a really nice (to a fault) kind of person. Also, yes taking care of Rocky is my number one priority!!
DeleteThe absolute best thing for laminitis is ice water. Look up Dr. Chris Pollitt's cryotherapy study. If you can get him to stand with his hooves in ice water (you can use the dry bags from the sporting goods store) with an Ace bandage or Saratoga at the top to secure it, that would really help. And gentle walking. If you can get him some hoof boots with pads, that would make him more comfortable. As for white line disease, chlorine dioxide soaks are the best thing. I think I mentioned before that, instead of White Lightning, I'm using Oxine. It's the same thing, but marketed for poultry farmers, and is way cheaper. I just got a gallon off of Amazon for $33 including shipping. I've been through several founders and am a bit of a hoof nerd, so feel free to email me: toplineleatherinfo@gmail.com. Best of luck!
ReplyDeleteThanks Frizzle! I can always count on you to help with my hoof troubles hehe. I am using the Oxine (yes you are the one who told me about it, thank you!!). That's what I used when Chrome had thrush. Is the ice water necessary/beneficial right now? There is no heat in the hoof, no digital pulse, no visible bruising, etc. The only symptoms he has right now is a founder line (that appears to be about a month or two old), really bad white line stretching (his hooves were VERY overgrown for a very long time) and limping (more on one side, but obviously sore on both). He still trots up for supper and is happy and alert. I'm going to get pictures and video tomorrow and I'll email you tomorrow night. Thank you!!
DeleteSo, it sounds like he had laminitis but doesn't have it anymore? Laminitis is inflammation of the lamina, so if he doesn't have any heat or pulse, it sounds like he no longer has it. Icing certainly wouldn't hurt, unless hoof softening is a concern (especially with wet weather). The boots would definitely help with comfort, and I would leave them on him for a while. You do have to be careful because they trap heat/moisture, so I use Gold Bond medicated powder and make sure to take the boots off and clean/air them and the hooves out for a few hours a day. And I definitely would not be riding him now, since he's sore. Some hand walking would be good, as it will get the blood flowing to his hooves, but I wouldn't ride him for a while. If possible, I would get at least some lateral x-rays so you can see the orientation of the coffin bone.
DeleteYikes!! Of course I'm not riding him!!! I was just asking if I needed to get boots now or wait until he can be ridden lol. Sorry for not being clear.
DeleteYeah he doesn't have laminitis right now I don't think. That's why my farrier wasn't concerned and is sure that everything will be just fine in time with correct hoof care. The laminitis seems to have happened when my friend moved him to her house or right before we brought him home. I think he's just sore right now from laminar stretching/white line/thrush/all of the above. Maybe bruising that we can't see yet? I initially thought abscess. I never would have guessed laminitis because I didn't notice the ring in his hooves before she pointed them out. Trimming his toes way back helped immensely with his comfort. I'll get a video of him walking for you tomorrow.
I definitely don't want to soften his hooves... he rolls in the pond almost everyday because of the bugs and the ground is soft and wet, so his feet are rarely dry. That's probably why he has the thrush. :\ Now that the rain is stopping the ground will get rock hard and we won't have rain for months... maybe I should spray salt water on his soles everyday to help toughen them back up?? I used to do that with Chrome and it helped a lot!
Oh and I'm definitely asking about x-rays tomorrow!
Oh! And Soft Ride boots are the good standard, but are $$$. Easyboot now has a theraputic boot called the Cloud that is apparently similar but much less expensive. They're still not cheap, but way better than the SRs. https://www.valleyvet.com/ct_detail.html?pgguid=83f3b1f9-54cb-4107-b0e2-6003378c1959
ReplyDeleteHmm I hadn't heard about the new Easyboots! I'll check them out. :D Do you use them 24/7 on a horse with laminitis or only while riding? He's still moving around a lot on his own in the pasture even with the soreness (the limp is much less pronounced after his trim by the way!). The ground has been soft from the extreme amounts of rain we've been getting.
DeleteLook at my boy after having laminitis last year! And ours is metabolic! Now I can ride him everyday! Xo
ReplyDeleteSo true!!! Kaspin is a great example of what good care does for them. :D Thank you for that reminder! Did you get x-rays of his hooves when he had laminitis? Do you think it's worth the cost for a mild case? As a reference point if nothing else?
DeleteEek. My mare has been on Dex for like 2 months and I'm so worried she'll get laminitis. Rocky is lucky you have him. And honestly I grew up around lots of well meaning peeps who half added their horse care. Hell I'm a bit of a slacker with shoeing and worming.
ReplyDeleteYikes, Dex scares me! A lot of horses do just fine on low doses though so I'm sure she will be fine. Just pay attention so you can catch it early if she does have a problem.
DeleteI'm not saying I'm perfect. I have gone too long between trims and deworming too. No one is perfect. I just wish he wasn't in pain...
I'm sorry to hear it! It's frustrating dealing with others' mistakes, however unintentional.
ReplyDeleteLaminitis is pretty common in my area (metabolic due to our native grasses) and I've cared for several cases- all are sound now. Even Archie had laminitis and he's barefoot and sound! You're more than capable of fixing him up :)
Thank you!! That's great to hear!! The part about them all being sound... Not the part about laminitis being common.
DeleteI'm glad he's with you now! I would be upset too initially, but it sounds like you have a great plan in place :)
ReplyDeleteThank you! I'm much calmer now than I was when I wrote this. :)
DeleteFirst off, take that beautiful bundle of old mane and make a nice bracelet out of it. You deserve it! You're such a good horse mom, all worrying over your two charges... Of course they'll both be jut fine - they're with you! (Well, Chrome was always fine, but Mr. New Guy there obviously just hit the Jackpot getting to come home to your barn!)
ReplyDeleteAwww you're so sweet! Thank you!
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