May 2004

Chronic Laminitis Requires A Lifestyle Change

Horses that appear to have periodic “founder attacks” are likely to be constantly enduring the pain of laminitis.

A thick, cresty neck is an indication of obesity and a risk factor for laminitis.

Many horses that seem to suddenly develop a full-blown laminitis attack may actually be battling a constant, low-grade, smoldering laminitis. They may not be head-bopping lame or move with that noticeable “walking on eggs” kind of gait, but they’re likely always compensating for pain to some degree. When too many factors get out of whack, they appear to experience yet another “acute” attack.

In reality, they’ve never actually been “cured,” and each day that goes by without a proper therapy reduces the chance of complete recovery. The first task, of course, is to get past the acute stage with the least amount of damage possible, as outlined in our April…