Hot on the heels of my first yr2 shadowing day, today I'm out with Debs.
One of my fellow students, Charlene is also coming out shadowing today, plus I know Debs from a few years back as she was the first EP to trim my own two ponies when I initially decided to go back to using an Equine Podiatrist, so it should prove to be a fun and informative day.
We saw 6 horses today, from an 18mth youngster still learning her balance and her arthritic companion, whos timely move from a boggy pasture to a more suitable environment was evident to see from the strong event line, to a lovely Connie who was recovering from laminitis and currently on a three week trim cycle.
Oh and the cutest little grey cat.
Having completed my first two shadowing days in yr1, I now have an additional four to book if for yr2 and today I went out again with our tutor, Jayne Hunt.
We had a busy day, visiting five for routine trimming and then back to Jaynes yard to take a look at the couple of laminitics Jayne had been looking after on my previous visit. It was great to see that both had improved enormously and no longer required padding for support and comfort but were happily moving about quite readily.
And of course, I couldn't leave without saying hello to the delightful Moonin and a quick trip to Wadswick Country Store.
In all the excitement of covid lockdown and finally being able to get going again with the course I've noticed that I hadn't done a post on my Trim1 Assignment.
I found this one quite challenging as we had to compare various other trimming methods and the literature on some is definitely not so easy to follow as the teaching we are receiving from EPT but I'm pleased to say I passed (after revisiting a couple of questions).
Day 2 of the laminitis module saw us once again visiting Richards yard and a demonstration on how to apply a trim to a horse who has previously had laminitis and is currently growing out the damage caused at that time. This felt familiar as the same landmarks were used as I've seen applied for my little Teddy ponies trim.
Following this, we spent an hour or so out in the paddocks with Richards wife Clare, recognising key grasses and plants which are commonly found in our pastures. Clare also presented on grassland management, including the best way to manage pastures and the differences between old natural pasture and the modern requirement in farming for high yield pasture such as rye grass.
On our last day we discussed various causes and laminitis models which not only delved into those causes we commonly associate with laminitis such as carbohydrate overload, insulin resistance and fructans, but also lesser known models such as vasoconstriction/dilation, AVA shunt, oedema and enzymatic mmp activation.
There are certainly common predisposing factors which are often seen or noted with laminitis but its clear that laminitis is not just a single condition and an open mind is needed for each and every case.
I've been looking forward to the laminitis module as I have a little lami prone pony myself and have always known that his trim had to differ slightly to Sallys and now I was going to start understand why in more detail (the EP I had been using has always been great for explaining things as she went but there's so much more to learn which could never be covered in an hours appointment).
We started the day with a definition of Laminitis- inflammation of the laminar corium. This in itself makes it sound like it should be so simple to understand, diagnose and treat and yet it is amongst the most complex conditions that a horse can develop.
To start with there's the developmental stage, followed by acute and chronic cases. With a chronic case, there are always signs or evidence of previous (sometimes very small) acute attacks, whether these are obviously visible, within the horses history or both. The chronic cases can sometimes be mistaken for the horse being lazy or a bit naughty, always pulling to the grass or reluctant to pick up feet.
We also learnt to recognise the signs of both acute and chronic rotation and sinker. All laminitis attacks must be diagnosed by a vet but as an Equine Podiatrist we can help provide immediate support and comfort by way of boots and pads and during discussions with the vet can agree on a treatment plan that includes ongoing management, feeding and trimming.
Finally today we also looked at the stance of a laminitic horse. Did you know that the classic position of front feet right out in front and rocked right back on the heels relieves pain from the toes of the front feet but if the horse is suffering laminitis in the hind feet, then the hind legs will be far forward and with chronic low grade laminitis in the hind feet, the signs may be much subtler, with just the appearance of being camped under behind.
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