Re: swollen joints in foal

["Susan Garlinghouse" <suendavid@worldnet.att.net>]

> Could someone tell me what the name of this is, I can't for
> the life of me remember.

Developmental orthopedic disease, or more specifically, epiphysitis.


 My friend has a yearling she has
> been feeding alot of alfalfa to and now her joints are very
> swollen. She has switched to grass hay, but curious as to
> other things she might try. MSM/glucosamine, etc. Any
> write-ups out there I could print for her?

Yes.  Go here http://www.shady-acres.com/susan/10.html

>
> This filly's dam is pregnant again and due any day. She is
> being fed alot (too much in my opinion) alfalfa right now
> and would also like to find information on feeding a
> broodmare.

The best discussions I've seen are in Lon Lewis' book Equine Clinical
Nutrition.  He also has a somewhat less lengthy and in-depth book called
Equine Nutrition that is also very useful.  Feeding straight alfalfa to the
broodmare isn't as much a problem as it is for when the foal starts sharing
her hay and eating appreciable amounts---when it doesn't have the right
mineral balance to support quality growth, with the results often being DOD.
My broodmares get free-choice grass hay, a max of about ten pounds of
alfalfa (the only time I ever feed more than a pound or two of alfalfa to
any horse), and beet pulp mashes mixed with fat and a broodmare grain ration
such as Omolene 300.  When the baby starts sharing her food and eating an
appreciable amount,  I delete the fat and limit the baby's alfalfa to just a
pound or so a day and otherwise follow the guidelines listed on the website
above (which were derived from excellent and extensive research into
avoiding developmental growth problems).  Once the mare is past peak
lactation (about eight-ten weeks or so), then I delete the alfalfa from both
rations entirely and rely on grass hay, beet pulp and the broodmare/foal
ration.  I also add a yeast culture called Yea-Sacc.

When you hear the inevitable arguments that a low-alfalfa ration for babies
isn't enough nutrition for growth, I'll send you photos of my two Anglo
babies, both enormous, straight-legged and never a breath of DOD.


Tell your friend good luck.

Susan G