That was how my vet advised me many years ago when having my horses on actual pasture. Mine all did well on that schedule. It is just when you have an " easier keeper" that you need to adjust. My daughters mare is out 24/7 unmuzzled. She is a little heavier than she normally would be but she is not a risk.
I know exactly what you mean. I thought I had killed my horse when I let him get so fat he got laminitis, and oh the guilt! The best we can do going forward is own up to the mistake and resolve to never let it happen again. And thank our lucky stars it wasn’t worse.
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DESPITE a greenguard, my fjord still had a bout with springtime laminitis in 2021. Thankfully it was mild, but I am extremely on top of him now. Hay Chix extreme slow feed net in his stall, iFeed auto feeder that dispenses a few ounces of hay pellets hourly overnight to keep something in his stomach. He is currently out on a dry lot with his GG on; there is second cutting that is in the pasture for the horses and I don’t want him to overdo it on that. I also tape his weight weekly to make sure we dont start to creep up.
I have a constant mental battle with turnout with him. I wish he could have as many hours and be able to graze to his hearts content, but it’s too much risk. He’s on less turnout than I would like, but he just stands and eats at the hay for the most part. Its a better view than his stall but if there is hay, that is 100% the focus.
At the barn he was at with the laminitis, he had been out on 20 acres of nice pasture 12-14 hours a day. After the laminitis, he was back out on a drier lot with the GG and was out about 6 hours daytime while everyone else was out overnight.
The next barn, he was out longer hours on dry lots with round bales, but the quality was garbage so he did ok. I did not keep the muzzle on him.
Our current barn, he is on the 6 hour daytime with the GG on the second cutting on the drylot. They will have the option for night turnout soon and we should be ok with that, esp. once its back to first cutting hay. I still plan on keeping the muzzle on for that though since the hay is so much better. I will also be able to test it too once the new field comes in so that will help!
Easy keeper is a misnomer.
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I have a ~10 hand, 450 pound pony. My farrier thinks he was bred as a mini and grew past the height standard.
So I monitor him carefully and he pretty much lives in his muzzle April - October.
Even with all that, he has had mild founders in the fall twice.
I don’t know why fall founder surprises me, but it does. We’ll be going on just fine, and we’ll get some rain and cool weather and bam!
I have felt guilty and epically stupid when it happens; why I keep it under control all spring and then get careless in October, I don’t know. I know better. But the sugar in the grass just comes back with a vengeance after some rain in the fall.
I love this. Truer words never spoken.
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This is often the first sign of PPID, so I’d test asap
This particular horse, had an episode of winter lamitnitis, I never heard of winter lamitnitis, I thought he had an abbcess or pulled something on the snow/ice. We had a small window of extreme weather changes middle of January and evidently it triggered the founder. Vet found 5% rotation in his right front. All my horses are over weight; I know it’s not healthy, but I just can’t stand feeding them crappy hay. They are on a ration balancer now, and will be wearing the muzzle while on pasture. I can’t see that they’ve lost much weight, but it’s going to take time.
As someone who has danced the laminitis dance, these two comments in particular make me cringe. I wish I could let my guy eat to his hearts content but it’s not worth risking his life.
Do you/can you test your hay? Unless you do, you don’t know what the nutrient density is. It might not look great to you but could nutritionally be surprising, and what looks good may not be. Do you feed by weight or flakes?
If your horses are at high risk…I’d encourage you to really consider getting any excess weight off. That’s really step one. When my guy popped up with laminitis, he got cut back big time from hay and pasture. Especially since he couldn’t be worked. I didn’t like it, but that was the better option. I wish I had my auto feeder at that time, that definitely would have helped tremendously. He got three flakes a day for a couple months and that did the trick; he’s been able to maintain this weight since then as well.
Now he gets about 15 pounds of hay; 4 flakes about 3 lbs each over breakfast/lunch/dinner in extreme slow feed nets, plus 3 pounds of pellets dispensed hourly from 8PM to 6AM. And hay in the pasture with a grazing muzzle, currently for 6 hours. Two meals of a forage balancer + supplements in a couple cups of soaked beet pulp and that’s it.
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I hope you are limiting hay while on dry lot or stalled, otherwise they won’t lose with 12 hours on pasture even if muzzled. They can get a surprising amount of grass with that muzzle on since they are basically eating the whole time.
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I echo everything here. My mini has foundered and is a constant struggle. Even worse, he is NOT fat so I constantly need to watch his weight because he can get too thing. Generally though? His weight is perfect. Most people see him and ask me how I keep his weight where it is. Despite that, we struggle with founder scares.
He’s muzzled year round and on a 12/12 schedule. I do remove his muzzle in his stall. I don’t have a lot of grass, but right now what I have is too much for him. Hopefully I’ll be able to give him some access later this summer. But, he does get access to hay in either a net, slow feeder, or portagrazer which he happily eats through his muzzle though it’s a challenge. It’s not grass though and if he has an opening, he’ll make his way to the grass. Right now he gets 1-2 small flakes of soaked hay in his stall in his feeder. I don’t weigh it. He usually finishes 1, never finishes 2, but sometimes 1 is tiny and I don’t feel like breaking apart a second. And since I’m soaking it forever, he can eat what he wants.
Feed wise? He gets a handful of TC lite (1/3 2x/day) with supplements and 8 soaked hay cubes. The hay cubes soak up nicely and he REALLY enjoys his mash. Sometimes he gets a little fibre beet mixed in too. Again, it’s about managing sugars for him rather than weight. Right now I’m being extra strict and he’s definitely missing out on treats, even the low sugar kind. But, I’m trying to keep him safe and comfy. So, if your horses are fat and have a history, please take steps to keep them safe!
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They certainly can. Greenguard also makes a “diet” insert with smaller holes as well; I bought one of those to have on hand if needed at any point.
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It’s “cold induced laminitis” that sometimes happens in IR horses. Some people work with it by keeping wraps on all Winter to help with some warmth. It’s a beast to manage, unfortunately 
You don’t feed crappy hay (though some vets still suggest finding the lowest quality hay, that’s not good). You feed quality hay that’s less than 10% NSC, or < 10% ESC + starch with starch < 4%, depending on who you ask.
If you can’t find that hay (and yes, it can be hard to impossible), then you buy quality hay and soak it. That’s the hardest part maybe about managing the IR horse
As for how much to feed - 1.5% of the current weight, or 2% of the ideal weight, whichever is more, and then adjust from there
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Thank you everyone, for your advice and insight. I really appreciate it!
I have started soaking his hay and have them on a ration balancer. I will see how thing go.
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Tested and negative. But I will continue to test as he ages.
Do you remember what test was done on what date? I ask because I’ve seen a lot of “normal” but mid to high end of normal, tests done in the Spring, using the endogenous ACTH test, for horses who tested blatantly positive using the same test in the Fall, or the TRH Stim test in the Spring
