I went by last week to check on Bonita. She is continuing to improve. Her hoof has almost grown off the resection which was done last August. She still has a pulse in both hind feet but that does not bother me since she is looking so good when she walks.

Laminitis in horses is such a challenge because you almost always have multiple systemic problems which are the underlying cause of the pain in the horses hooves. In Bonita’s case her blood work shows that she still has elevated ACTH levels and now she is showing some insulin resistance as well. Since we already have her on a very restricted low carb diet I have to believe the cushings or PPID is driving the insulin resistance so I have increases her pergolide to 1mg twice a day.

Laminitis in horses can be a real challenge for the farrier as well. In Bonita’s case we have Cecilia Adamson working on her and Cecilia and I have treated so many cases together that we think almost exactly the same about what needs to be done the the horses hooves to stimulate growth yet protect the function of the foot. We have not used shoes to treat laminitis in horses in years because returning the horses hooves to normal function as quickly as possible is what helps so much with the hoof circulation.

Bonita’s quality of life is excellent right now despite her lab results. She is teaching riding lessons to little kids and living out in the pasture with other horses she likes( I know the pasture grass may be high in sugar but being out keeps her stress level down also). She loves her home and her people. I will continue to monitor her blood work and keep an eye on her hooves but so far I am pleased with her progress. Madalyn