What Is Laminitis

Once a horse has had an episode of laminitis they are particularly susceptible to future episodes.

What is laminitis.

Diseases with inflammation hormonal diseases and mechanical overload are just some of the causes of laminitis. This means the cause needs to be investigated and then managed to help prevent future episodes. Laminitis is a disease of the foot that can vary in severity from the merest hint of lameness to a situation described as sinking which can be fatal. Laminitis should be thought of as a sign of a disease rather than a disease itself.

Laminitis can affect one or all feet but it is most often seen in the front feet concurrently. As laminitis develops the attachment of the pedal bone to the hoof wall starts to fail leaving the pedal bone to rotate and point towards the sole and in the worst cases to sink right through it. Laminitis is a painful and potentially crippling disease that can be fatal to horses. Hormonal laminitis is the most common form.

The causes of laminitis fall into three broad categories. Laminitis is a disease that affects the feet of ungulates and is found mostly in horses and cattle clinical signs include foot tenderness progressing to inability to walk increased digital pulses and increased temperature in the hooves. 1 hormonal endocrine laminitis. However founder usually refers to a chronic long term condition associated with rotation of the coffin bone whereas acute laminitis refers to symptoms associated with a sudden initial attack including pain and inflammation of the.