Horse Laminitis: Prevention and Welfare Management

Laminitis is one of the most painful and debilitating conditions in horses, requiring urgent management, prevention, and long-term care to protect welfare.

Key Facts

Laminitis affects the laminae connecting the hoof wall to the pedal bone, causing severe pain.
Dietary triggers including rapid pasture access, grain overload, and obesity are the most common causes.
Endocrine diseases including equine metabolic syndrome and PPID significantly increase laminitis risk.
Severe laminitis can cause rotation or sinking of the pedal bone, resulting in permanent damage.
Recurrent laminitis is a leading cause of euthanasia in horses and ponies globally.

Welfare Considerations

Laminitis causes acute, intense pain characterised by reluctance to move, heat in the hooves, and a characteristic leaning-back stance. Even mild episodes cause significant suffering. Long-term management of chronic or recurrent laminitis requires strict dietary control, specialist farriery, pain management, and endocrine testing. Prevention through pasture management, weight control, and early recognition of endocrine disease is far preferable to managing repeated episodes of suffering.

What You Can Do

Learn to body condition score your horse and maintain it within healthy ranges to prevent obesity-related laminitis.
Restrict pasture access during spring and autumn flush periods for at-risk ponies and horses.
Test horses with repeated laminitis for equine metabolic syndrome and PPID.
Work with a specialist farrier experienced in therapeutic shoeing for laminitic horses.
Act immediately at any sign of laminitis — early treatment dramatically improves outcomes.