Hi Connie,

Thank you for sending your question to Just Answer!

Unfortunately, I have had many ponies that have come through my stables that had laminitis (founder), however with immediate and continual care these ponies can still be able to "earn their keep" (as mine did in my Riding School), and be great pleasure riding ponies. It does take quite a while for the pony to recover.

However, it does sound as though you caught it early and had your vet look at him, which is the best senario you can want. Wrapping his feet, since they are very sore does give the pony some relief from the pain. Do you have him on Bute?

Wrapping can be somewhat of a problem, but I too have used the boots you are talking about and here are a few suggestions that can help, and you should select the one that you can best do.

1) The boots you are referring to are generic and don't fit most of the time. You can cut the back out of the boot that is pressing into the heels. Then you can pack the hoof, put the boot on and use Co-Flex or duck tape to secure them. For now, since he is sore on the area that he previously rubbed, take a 4x4 pad and put Furisin or Betadine Ointment on the pad and hold it on the sore area to keep it in place under the boot. You also want to try to keep the tape off the coronet band, since that is where new growth comes from. You can also leave the boot out of the picture, and pack the hoof, then wrap with Co-Flex all around the hoof, and then secure it with duck tape.

Your main goal is to help the pony stand on these sore feet and hope for as little rotation in the coffin bone as possible.

2) You also can purchase padding for the stall. It has become quite affordable these days, and is now available if locked squares so you can do the stall and not go all the way to the wall. You can stay about 6" off the wall.

3) The next way to keep the floor of the stall soft, is to buy straw rather than hay. Take a bale of straw and shake each leaf open around the exterior of the stall until you reach about 2 feet or more. Then take these mounds and turn them towards the wall making a roll around the stall. Then fill in the middle of the stall very thickly. As you clean the stall you will use the exterior straw until you need to add more.

I would use the straw with any of the above situations since it is less expensive than hay (and you certainly don't want him eating it) and gives lots of extra cushion to the floor and a much more ease of cleaning the stall several times per day.

I hope this helps. If you need more information, please feel free to contact me.

***If this answer was helpful, please go ahead and click ACCEPT. Thank You, Tammy ****

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Hi Connie,

I see you have a "Houdini" too! Had to eventually put a padlock on one of my pony's stalls as he could open a bullsnap and get out, then he would go around and let other out! Quite a character.

Is your blacksmith and vet working together? This always seems to be a problem. As the hoof wall becomes dead, your farrier will need to trim it off and yes, you may see the foot get into the white line or sole area, so it again is vital to keep it wrapped securely during the healing process.

If the hooves are in good enough shape, I have had my blacksmith put shoes on backwards, or use a shoe with a v-shape center to protect and help with the frog and keep the sole of the hoof off the groud.

Your vet is correct, in that you do not want to feed your pony too much protein which can cause founder. Horses/ponies are prone to weight loss if they are in pain. Supplements at this point would not help the hooves I do not believe, but you can use one that contain "biotin" which helps with hoof growth.

The feed I use for older ponies is "Equine Senior" and in small amounts for now and you can also use "Beet Pulp". It comes shredded from the Feed store, and it is vital that you soak it in water for at least 6 hours (for the small flaked) and 12 hours for pellets)   It is loaded with fiber and fat, but no protein that would effect his protein intake. It is coated with molasses and you want to introduce it to him with just a handful at first for a while, then you can eventually add equal parts of it to the grain.

****I hope this helps. If so, please go ahead and click ACCEPT. Thank you. Tammy****

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