SUPPORTIVE LIMB LAMINITIS:

Our big girl, Cleo, is very sick, bless her.

Cleo is suffering from a condition called Supportive Limb Laminitis (SSL).

While most people have heard of laminitis, this is a much rarer type that is not caused by grass or diet.

So, to tell you a bit about it….

SLL is a secondary condition that happens when a horse has lameness in one limb.

Being lame in one hoof causes the horse to overload weight bearing onto the other 3 legs, which leads to inflammation in the laminae that we refer to as laminitis in the other supporting limbs.

What this means is that when a horse is lame, say due to a hoof abscess,or leg or hoof injury or condition etc…, then the other limbs are put under duress, as the horse uses more force onto them to try to alleviate the pain and discomfort in the affected limb.

This additional stress, along with a general reduction in movement of the horse, results in reduced blood flow and leads to separation of the biological “glue” that bonds the laminae, which are made up of inner hoof tissues, blood vessels and nerves. This causes the laminae to separate from the hoof wall, which is referred to as laminitis. Which literally means inflammation of the laminae.

Unfortunately, this is what has happened to our big Percheron mare, called Cleo as shown, and it is just heartbreaking to see her like this.

Cleo has been under our vet now for around a month. Starting with a minor lameness in one hoof, which we couldn’t find a cause for but think that it could have possibly been an abscess or perhaps a strain or sprain.

Then as typically happens with 20% of lame horses, matters have progressed and she is now severely lame on all four hooves due to developing SLL.

As part of her diagnosis, Cleo has been assessed for poisoning (both chemical and plant-based), along with tendon and ligament damage. She’s been checked for peripheral neuropathy, plus muscular conditions and had a muscle biopsy, as well as a neurological assessment and various blood tests, which thankfully have all come back normal.

All the while, she continues to be lame and those other 3 legs are continually being overloaded, which is especially a problem with a draft horse of this mass, as she is a very big girl indeed, and sadly she continues to suffer from this awful situation.

So, it’s been back to the drawing board and I’ve been studying hard to try to find a solution for her, as can be seen from my research below.

I’ve found out a lot of info on SLL but frustratingly none to cure the condition.

We still have a few options left to try and are currently using ice hoof baths to try to reduce the inflammation, which seems to be giving her some respite.

Due to Covid, we’ve had delivery issues as so many drivers are off sick at the moment, but thankfully we are finally having a special sand/ pea gravel mix delivery happening tomorrow to try to give Cleo a deeper area of comfort for her to rest in our sickbay.

Hoof boots frustratingly still aren’t an option for big draft horses like this, which would be the go-to for normal-sized horses, though as can be seen, we are using some soaking boots with her again to some success.

We have also been exploring foam pads which again are a challenge due to her size but thanks to a local rubber merchant we have some options to try to pad her soles to improve her comfort.

For now, she is spending time resting with her two miniature friends in dry lot and our deeper sand bay sheds.

As can be seen, Oscar, who is our stocky Shetland fella, is shown guarding Cleo.

Despite their massive size differences, ever the gentleman, Oscar is taking his guarding duties of Cleo very seriously bless him and he’s never far from her side, despite her protest at his fussing.

All his chivalrous behaviour gives us some much-needed warm relief of this otherwise dire situation.

We are nursing Cleo around the clock and will continue to treat her for pain and inflammation with a mixture of bute and our devil's claw tincture. Which seems to be helping, along with the support of our fantastic vets, who are continuing to work hard to find a solution to help our lovely girl.

I will keep you posted on Cleo’s progress and hopefully, we will have the breakthrough we are all begging for to help this amazing horse.

I’ve added my references below in the hope it’s might help others whose horses could be suffering from this condition. .

References Parsons C.S. Orsini J.A. Krafty R. et al.Risk factors for the development of acute laminitis in horses during hospitalization: 73 cases (1997-2004).J Am Vet Med Assoc. 2007; 230: 885-889

Peloso J.G. Cohen N.D. Walker M.A. et al.Case-control study of risk factors for the development of laminitis in the contralateral limb in Equidae with unilateral lameness.J Am Vet Med Assoc. 1996; 209: 1746-1749

Bramlage L. Research: goals and reality.J Equine Vet Sci. 2003; 23: 77-78

Redden R.F. Preventing laminitis in the contralateral limb of horses with non-weight bearing lameness.Clin Tech Equine Pract. 2004; 3: 57-63

Richardson D.W. Complications of orthopaedic surgery in horses.Vet Clin North Am Equine Pract. 2008; 24 (viii): 591-610

Belknap J.K. Pathogenesis of laminitis.in: Robinson N.E. Sprayberry K.A. Current therapy in equine medicine. 6th edition. Saunders, Philadelphia2008: 541-543

Baxter G.M. Morrison S. Complications of unilateral weight-bearing.Vet Clin North Am Equine Pract. 2009; 24: 621-642

Hood D.M. Grosenbaugh D.A. Mostafa M.B. et al.The role of vascular mechanisms in the development of acute equine laminitis.J Vet Intern Med. 1993; 7: 228-234

Hood D.M. The mechanisms and consequences of structural failure of the foot.Vet Clin North Am Equine Pract. 1999; 15: 437-461

Hood D.M. The pathophysiology of developmental and acute laminitis.Vet Clin North Am Equine Pract. 1999; 15: 321-341

Buras K.D. Hullinger R.L. Sack W.O. Light and electron microscopy of keratinization in the laminar epidermis of the equine hoof concerning laminitis.Am J Vet Res. 1989; 50: 1150-1160

Pollmann R. Struktur und Funktion desHufbeinträgers beim Pferd [Structure and function of the suspensory apparatus of the distal phalanx in horses] [PhD thesis]. Diss Med Vet, Freie Univ Berlin, 1995

Pollmann R. Budras K.D. Bragulla H. Structure and function of the suspensory apparatus of the coffin bone in the horse.Pferdeheilkunde. 1997; 13: 53-64

Hood D.M. Laminitis in the horse.Vet Clin North Am Equine Pract. 1999; 15: 287-294

Pollitt C.C. Equine laminitis: a report for the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation.(RIRDC Publication 01/129) RIRDC, Kingston (Canada)2001 (p. 99)

Pollitt CC. Aetiology of fructan-induced laminitis; mechanism of fructan involvement, alteration of hindgut microflora and quantities required.

In: Proceedings of the Dodson & Horrell Ltd. 4th International Conference on Feeding Horses, United Kingdom, 2002 Collins SN. A materials characterisation of laminitic donkey hoof horn [PhD thesis]. De Montfort University, Leicester; 2004. Collins S.N. Van Eps A.W.

Pollitt C.C. et al.The Lamellar Wedge.Vet Clin North Am Equine Pract. 2010; 26: 179-195

Cleo having an ice soak

Ice baths are great for reducing swelling