Annie got out!

[Willow Flats]

I am trying not to freak out, but this morning Annie was out on the only area of green grass I have. The person who gave her to me said she had a slight episode of founder. Maybe she meant laminitis. Anyway I have always introduced her to green grass very slowly starting with 10 minutes at a time and she wears a grazing muzzle. This spring I did the same building up to an hour, but one day I forgot to set my timer and she was out maybe two hours and the next morning had trouble walking. I pulled her off green grass and she hasn't been on it since. I let my two grazing pastures go to dry grass where they can spend time, but have a large area around some sequoia trees that we water where the grass is all green. This is where I found her this morning when I went out to feed and the lock on her gate was sprung open. She sometimes stamps on her gate and must have just hit it just right. She willingly walked over to me and into her dry lot and was uninterested in food which shows me that she was full, because Annie is a voracious eater. I am afraid of what might happen here. What should I be doing? Take her on some short walks, soak her feet in cold water? Any advice is greatly appreciated and if you are a praying person, I would appreciate that too!

 

[Kelly]

OMG! I would be freaking out too! I am a colic worrier, my vet told me one time (when sitter didn’t give Thunder hay for 12 hours) that colic would more than likely show up in the first 24-48 hours, after that time the chances lessen. Not sure if that is the same for founder or not but I would definitely be keeping an eye on her.

I am thinking about you both and hopefully everything will turn out ok. Please keep us updated on what you are doing and on how she is doing. Wishing you both the best!

 

[Cayuse]

I'd call your vet and tell them what happened, they might want to start her on something (banamine maybe) or have some other trick up their sleeve. I'm sorry that you are having to go through this. My welsh pony foundered badly 18 months ago. Laminitis is the inflammation, founder is when they rotate. He had rotation. It's a constant worry. Sending prayers your way for Annie.
Oh, I'd take her vital signs now while she is ok and check her digital pulses so you can get a baseline, then moniter her a couple times a day for changes. My vet said sometimes their heart rate will elevate at the start of laminitis. Keep us posted.

 

[MaryFlora]

You got it Willow Flats

I think Cayuse advice to call your vet makes perfect sense. Keep us posted and thoughts and prayers you and Annie sail through this unscathed!

 

[Willow Flats]

Thanks you guys. Her temp is normal so I have that baseline. Can't feel a pulse (at least it isn't pounding!) and her feet are cool so far.
Vet said to just keep monitoring her like I am doing.
I drove Rocko today and saw two piles of poop way out in front of one of the dry pastures that would mean she was out for a while, but that is a ways from the green grass area, so hoping that is where she spent the majority of her time. Everything in that area is dry except for Chicory here and there. Just have to wait and see.

 

[HersheyMint]

Oh Willow, that is scary! I sure hope Annie will not have side effects from her escape. Hopefully you are right that she was mostly in the dry pasture

 

[Abby P]

I'm so sorry that happened! I think that as Kelly said, 24-48 hours is the window where you'd expect to see an issue if there is going to be one. You might see something in her feet growing down weeks or months later (like a "fever ring" kind of thing) but if she doesn't get sore or anything in the first day or two you're probably fine in terms of anything acute happening.

Rowan got INTO the middle of his paddock last fall, where all the grass is. He must have spent the whole night in there since there were 8-10 piles of poop in there. The barn owner found him in there when he went to feed breakfast, had to let him out through the gate because he must have gotten shocked pretty well on the way in, and when I got there a little later he had only eaten half his very small breakfast (like Annie, he doesn't leave any food behind) and was standing in the corner looking rather stuffed and sad. I took him for a walk, which perked him up, and kept an eye on him for the next few days but he was OK. Hopefully Annie will be too!

The irrigated grass might actually be lower in sugar since it wouldn't be as stressed as the dry grass, so there is that, too. Plus it was morning and presumably not cold overnight so another mark in favor of lower sugars. Fingers crossed!

 

[Willow Flats]

Thank you for the encouragement Abby! You know first hand what the wait feels like. So glad Rowan was alright!
There are 30 acres behind me which is irrigated for cattle and the fence was down all night as their fence guy just ran the new wire today, but that is where our ditch runs along and it's a climb to the top on the other side, so glad she didn't go there! She likes to keep her distance from cows even though they were moved to another section.
The neighbor will be flooding their fields again soon so I'll get some water in the ditch to drive through!

 

[candycar]

I know I'm late to the party, but the vet site I watch always says to soak/ice their feet as much as you can for the 1st 24 hours if laminitis is a concern. Keeping the feet cold is the key to prevention of laminitis.

 

[Cayuse]

How is she today?

 

[Willow Flats]

She is her usual. Was afraid to check on her this morning! Her manure was spread all over her dry lot, indicating she had been running around. She is full of energy so I'm getting the feeling (hope) that we may have dodged a bullet! If she is still good by tomorrow morning then I'll breath a sigh of relief.

 

[Abby P]

How is Annie today?

 

[Willow Flats]

She is doing great. I notice she has been hungrier than ever after she stretched her stomach to the limit! The gate to the dry grass pasture was closed that night but it looks like she went all around the edges eating where the mower the doesn't get to.
Got a new lock and I think I should leave the gate to that pasture open at night in case she ever somehow breaks out again because they usually go where they know.

 

[Kelly]

So glad she is doing good, that’s great news

 

[Marsha Cassada]

Whew! Hopefully tomorrow brings the same good news.

 

[MerMaeve]

Our minis have been getting out lately too, guessing they have figure out the latch system. We have started putting an extra clip on the latch, and they haven’t gotten out when the extra clip is on. The first time we found them all in the barn with the gate wide open, and Stormy was lying down….I was worried about colic too, but she ended up being fine, just tired from eating all night! Then they got out again the next night, but my sister saw them out before she went to bed at 5:30am and got them back in. Since we have put the extra latch on, they have gotten out twice, but we were in the barn/pasture and got them right back in. The crazy thing is, they can open it SILENTLY! (It’s a loud latch too!) I was out there the 2nd time it happened, picking poops 20ft away from the gate, and I look over two of them were half way out the gate, speed grazing. (Speed walking and grazing)
The other crazy thing is, my brother mows the neighbor’s lawn and found two piles of what looks to be mini horse poop… They are probably 2/10th of a mile away, up the gravel road. We did take the minis up there once last fall, as the neighbors said they couldn’t tell if they were mini or full-sized, so maybe they wanted to go visit again?!

Thankfully no one got injured or colicky!!

 

[Willow Flats]

@MerMaeve ~ "Speed walking and grazing!" That describes what Annie does when I go out to bring her off pasture! I know just what that looks like! Lol

 

[Capriole]

How nerve wracking!! What a relief , I'm so happy she's ok!
I think people think I'm overreacting when something like that happens....I don't think they're taking it seriously enough.
It especially bothers me when my SIL doesn't take it seriously, since she had a horse that foundered, and she should know how serious it is.