My Quarter Horse has intermittent lameness. Is it laminitis?

Question

I recently bought a 4 year old Quarter Horse and he was fine for a while (bought him in June) and now, I've been dealing with intermittent lameness. First, it was his back feet, then it cleared up, then it was all four feet and now, it's just hist left leg he's having trouble with. He needs to be trimmed, which I've set up for this week with a farrier but I've felt all four legs for any signs of other issues and they feel normal, no heat, pulse is good... all that... Pet's info: Farm Animal | Horse | Male | neutered | 1500 lbs

Dr. Davis · Accepted Answer

With all four feet involved at some point laminitis is likely. Quarter horses tend to get heavy and are prone to laminitis. I would reduce or eliminate grain from Harley's diet and you can feed soaked plain beet pulp with a small amount of low carbohydrate pellets if you need to supplement him. Keeping him off lush pasture or only having him turned out for a short time will help also. Many horses get mild laminitis without long term problems. Weight loss is crucial as well as changing from rich feeds. Your farrier will be able to give you an opinion about the lameness also particularly about the feet. If the lameness persists I recommend a veterinary exam and X-rays if indicated. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to get answers to your veterinary questions.

My Quarter Horse has intermittent lameness. Is it laminitis?

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