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  Discussion on Urgent help! Possible Founder
Author Message
Member:
Bibababy

Posted on Saturday, Jun 18, 2005 - 9:45 am:

Hi
I have a 21 year old TWH mare with COPD, who is walking stiff in her back end. I had the vet come to check her two weeks ago because she did not appear to be gaining weight and she was supposed to be nine months pregnant. He said she had lost the foal since he last checked her at five months. I had her on fescue but pulled her off two weeks ago and put her on a two month old millet pasture.She has blossomed in the last two weeks and looks heavy. Yesterday I noticed that she walks with her head down and very stiff in the back end. I took her off the millet and put her back on the fescue pasture which has very little grass left. I also did not feed her last night or this morning. I cant give her hay or it will cause the COPD to start up. What should I do, all I have available is a 3 sided lean to for shelter.My vet can come Monday but is on vacation and there are no other horse vets available within a two and a half hour range.My farrier is coming to check her this afternoon.
Please advise any remedies for short term care.
Dayle
Member:
Jojo15

Posted on Saturday, Jun 18, 2005 - 11:46 am:

did you take her temp and make sure something else isn't amiss? will she eat? Drink? Gums pink or white? her feet are hot? What is that called when you take her pulse rate down by her feet? Distal? Is that beating too fast?

I would start hosing her down in her back leg area every 20 minutes or so for the rest of the weekend. and keep her moving if she will. No more grass. And if i had some bute would give her that. If the vet isn't out till monday, than i would stop with the bute on Sunday afternoon. and see if she isn't just tying up. Also, wouldn't founder happen in the front feet?

Is there a chance she rolled wrong and pulled something?

I am no expert but if i saw these signs in my mare and no vet available this is what i would do. NOT saying this is what you should do. Can't you call his service, just to get him to call you back and give some info on the phone?
Member:
Nisquy

Posted on Saturday, Jun 18, 2005 - 5:15 pm:

If she's just walking very stiff in the hind end, and is unwilling to move around a lot, I might suspect tying up and would not force her to move. If she has her hind end kind of tucked under her and her front feet out more in front, trying to take the weight off the front feet, I would suspect possible founder and would get her front feet in ice water or a puddle of cold mud. Hopefully by now you have gotten some help! Best of luck - and I hope she's feeling fine soon.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Sunday, Jun 19, 2005 - 9:38 am:

The problem Dayla is without knowing what is wrong how can we give advice that is useful? If you think it is founder you need to follow the recommendations, at least as best you can, in the article associated with this forum. Concerning feeding there are substitutes for hay for COPD horses, for more information see Equine Diseases » Respiratory System » Heaves & Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. In the meantime, you could daily mow the millet field and feed small amounts of that and begin mixing in the new forage. I would not use a lawn mower but a hay mower or a sickle bar mower or even a weed eater so that the stems are long.
DrO
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