>>> The thing that baffles me is that I know horses (icelandics included) that are kept 24/7 on a pretty lush pasture and seem to do fine - a little plump but not dangerously so. In fact, that is how Doppa was kept the 2 years before she came to me. It was that farm owners contention that if they are kept that way all the time that they will regulate themselves - it seemed to work for him.
There might be a morsel of truth in the "self-regulation" theory, but I wouldn't bank on it. I simply think some horses don't have the genetic tendencies to Insulin resistance/Cushings/whatever metabolic disorder. I think it's likely that most fat horses are in some danger, but how would these people explain how one fat horse in a herd might founder, while another equally fat one doesn't...on exactly the same pasture? I also think that age is a factor. We do hear of young horses having laminitis, but the frequency climbs with age - Holly was 9 or 10 when she had her first bout, and that was pretty young. (I've heard of some being much younger, but most seem to be at least that old, or older.) Mac, however, was at least as fat as Holly during those years, and he never had a problem, and he was two years older. We had them both for about 7-8 years, on some of the lushest grass we've ever had, before we had our first instance. I could easily have deduced that "TWH never founder on rich grass" during those first years, but it wouldn't have been correct. So, instead of the self-regulation, I'd betcha some of those people just haven't had their lucky-clocks run out yet! When I first got Icelandic's, I often heard that they never founder (yes, it's in the archives, for that person who is bound to say "never happened" - sigh) but I've heard of many cases since. I think part of the deal is that either it was ignored, or people who had horses who suffered were shamed into silence, for not "riding their fat horses enough." I read that admonition several times to the first few people who admitted their horses had laminitis. We've had three past instance of laminitis in our herd, and I'm praying we'll never have another...but I also know that my herd is aging...and I know that even thin horses can get laminitis... Karen Thomas, NC, No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.503 / Virus Database: 269.15.17/1103 - Release Date: 11/1/2007 6:01 AM
