It is generally assumed that you cannot have too much of a good thing, well, there should be many caveat to that statement, especially if you are a horse or pony, left in a field with lush green grass to eat, yes, you can have too much of a good thing under these circumstances and that good thing is the very grass you are eating. Over eating, especially on green lush grass is one of the causes of Laminitis. Laminitis is one of the most common causes of lameness and disability of horses and ponies.

Experts argue that rich green grass itself does not cause Laminitis, however over weight/overfeed horses and ponies are more susceptible to Laminitis. Other cause of Laminites includes stress among other causes. Stress induced Laminitis could be triggered by overworking a horse that is unfit, prolonged travelling in hot or cold conditions, it is even said that some vaccination can stress some horses and ponies enough to induce laminitis.

The scope of this article does not extend to covering all aspects of the causes of laminitis; the article is just a basic introduction to it to help create more awareness about it in the horse and pony owning communities. As with all horse health issues, your vet is able to give you expert advice on how to treat your horse or pony for laminitis but as another saying goes, prevention is better than cure. If you can take action to reduce or completely eliminate situations or conditions that could cause laminitis in your horse, then take such action, this will not only help you keep your horse health but save you money on vet bills.

Before the article concludes, here are some misconceptions about laminitis. Some people say that if a horse drinks cold water after exercise, it may develop laminitis. Horse health experts disagree with this however it is still not advisable to give your horse cold water after exercise as this may cause colic. Allergies are also said not to cause laminitis nor heat in the animal’s foot.
Laminitis can also affect one foot or all feet; it is not confined to the front feet only.

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