Limiting grazing is the best way to prevent horses or ponies from founder

As the days begin to lengthen in Montana and we begin to see more of the sun, the grass in our pastures and in our fields takes on the beautiful new green that makes us think of spring.  

This new growth is often high in water content and low in nutrition.  Sometimes, this can change quickly and the new growth of grass may contain enough carbohydrate to pose a threat to horses and ponies that tend to be overweight.

The horse or pony that spends long hours devouring this succulent green grass may suddenly be stricken with a condition know as Laminitus or Founder.

Founder causes the horse to be sore and lame in the feet, most commonly the front feet.  The disease is seen most frequently in horses that have become somewhat overweight or have had previous attacks of the disease.  Its symptoms mimic those of gout in man, but the soreness comes from the feet in the foundered horse (not from the joints as with the human gout patient).  

The syndrome occurs with a shut down of blood supply to the feet and a separation of the hoof from the foot along with a rotation of the bone within the foot. This causes pressure and pain within the sole of the foot.

 The resulting pain may cause signs varying from mild stiffness to a total inability to walk or even stand. Severe cases may result in protrusion of the bone through the bottom of the foot and may necessitate the destruction of the animal. Many more animals are left with weak or deformed feet that prevent their use for most activities.

Most grass founder can be prevented by carefully watching the horse’s (or pony’s) weight and by regularly checking the crest of the neck for any firm thickening.  At the first sign of an overweight condition, the animal’s grazing time should be severely limited.  Any sign of stiffness should signal quick medical attention.

There are some animals that can  tolerate only 30 to 60 minutes of grazing each day before running the risk of founder.  It is far better to lock the horse in a corral for much of the day than to try to deal with a thousand-pound critter that can’t walk.

(Dr. Fred Conkel is a veterinarian who owns the Westgate Clinic.)