The Trials and Tribulations of Owning a Pony Mare
- rawdesigns5
- Aug 27
- 6 min read
TLDR: I think Janie has Equine Metabolic Syndrome with subclinical laminitis.
I've closed my businesses and quit all my jobs so I can spend more time with Janie. (That is a sarcastic joke). From the time I took her in for training 3 years ago (2023), I said she needs a job, she needs work, she needs discipline. And she did well with those things, but she does not do well in rest. Not physically or mentally.
Janie’s owner and I decided Janie was not suitable for a youth trying to advance, at least not until Janie had matured and furthered her training. The change from her rider-previously sitting and letting the pony lead, to now asking the pony to do better and listen to the rider- was not accepted with grace, therefore needing a more advanced rider that would follow through when Janie was resistant. I took Janie to a show where she was full of attitude in the warm up but went into the ring ready to perform. That was her strength. I haven’t had a show horse since I was a kid. My current horses can be shown, but that is not their training, lifestyle or purpose. The 2 horses are around 20 years old and they would rather trail ride and work cows slowly. So I took her on a care lease for the summer to improve her training and learn more myself. I had an amazing first summer with her, learning from a western professional that challenged me. By the end of the season, the owner was ready to purchase a different horse and I decided to purchase Janie and continue developing our partnership.
In case you haven’t been following, Janie started showing lameness in July last year (2024). With the lameness vet booked until October, we went through some other options before being diagnosed with a stifle injury. She started with front end lameness and was put in a small corral for limited movement. Lameness lifted from the front and showed up in the rear, so we assumed front was compensation for a true hind lameness. We visited our local vet since she could see Janie sooner and Janie tested positive for Lyme using a rapid test. So we treated Lyme with heavy antibiotics using an IV catheter for 3 weeks, which was a chore. She was mildly better, able to lift her right leg when picking the hoof easier than before antibiotics. October 2024, the lameness vet was able to identify right hind stifle pain in flexion testing. The inflammation was obvious in ultrasound and we chose to inject PRP, which was a success. With little work over winter, we had a followup exam in April, showing no inflammation on ultrasound of the RH stifle. I was given the go ahead to condition slowly back into work.
Janie and I attended a Ranch Horse show in June, which consisted of several patterns, a rail class, and a halter conformation class. She and I had the most fun in Reining, and I did not ask her to perform to the level she had been able to before injury. She performed sound, although we did have to correct a lead a couple times but nothing strange.
About a week after the show, Janie started showing that subtle off-ness again. Not an obvious head bob or hip drop. My assumption was that we went too hard and her stifle is sore. Maybe I didn’t spend enough time doing slow rehab and conditioning work. I emailed the vet with some suggestions on exercises. I made the commitment to focus on muscle building and repeat the PRP injection if needed. I had a plan, but ND weather and insects made for miserable conditions and I haven't been able to work her or Roy the way I wanted. So she has gotten occasional work, but I've still been observing and tracking different things. Her weight and diet, soundness, behavior etc.
Her weight has been a question since spring. I laughed about her coming out of winter a little crusty, but assumed she would come into condition as usual. With less work, it has been slow. But with no round bales, and some work, it shouldn't be non-existent. As we have gotten further into summer and now fall, her slight off-ness, cranky behavior, and fat patches have me believing we are looking at Equine Metabolic Syndrome. The good news is if this is the case, I am catching it before she has full blown laminitis. Bad news? It's mostly changing diet and nutrition, with additional hoof care. It's another rabbit hole for me to go down. But I can manage it.
Interestingly, I have been working on pasture improvement due to a specific weed that has exponentially spread where the grass was sparse in our partial "dry lot" and sacrifice pasture. Although I am adamant about mowing, dragging and resting pastures, I have not previously learned much about herbicide, fertilizer, or seed. It's been fun to talk to my friends at the Soil Conservation and Extension offices as I make a plan.
And to tie that together with my lightbulb moment, yesterday was the first time in a month or more that I loped Janie-soundly! I also weigh taped her to find she has last 30-40 pounds.
I have not been leading horses out to our big "lush" pasture due to the bugs for a while. I closed our sacrifice pasture about a week ago to spray, and the "nice" but sparse pasture was closed 2 days ago due to cold nights with sunny days (higher sugar in grass). 2 Days! Does 1 week on weedy pasture or 2 days on sparse pasture make that big of a difference? I think it’s possible. And I’m also looking back as I remember last year’s front lameness lining up with turnout in the lush pasture. I just thought it was an injury exacerbated by the “turnout take-off” when the horse would gallop off as I released them to the big pasture. I have written that May 24 this year was the first 15 minute pasture session, which means the first week of June may have had her to pasture full days. By 2 weeks later, I observed some type of soreness.
So, why is that not obvious? The timing lines up with starting work. I can’t feel heat or pulse in the foot. The lameness is so subtle that I can’t identify the source. She has other conditions such as Lyme and a previous injury. I have checked the pastures for listed toxic plants. The pastures are generally not lush and green.
Another thing I’ve questioned: Roy and Janie are both heavy on the front end-due to confirmation or overloading as compensation from hind injury or weakness. Roy has also always been tender footed and shod every summer. Both Janie and Roy struggle walking on driveway and gravel road. Both get heel buttress flares- from stomping flies. When I trimmed their toes, Janie had toe to trim, but Roy didn’t really-it was more sides and those darn heel buttress flares. Janie’s front feet are not straight or symmetrical and they have same lateral wear-not mirror image. Its slight enough you wouldn’t notice if you aren’t looking, she wears more on the right and flares laterally on the left. I previously brushed off what I read about tender feet and thin soles, being a symptom of laminitis. So now I’m questioning if Roy has subclinical laminitis as well. He’s never been clinically lame, although it’s clear to me he is stiff and sore-I just thought it was hind limb joints. Roy does have other diet related symptoms that I thought were more GI issues. Itchy skin! Another symptom of EMS/IR that Janie has always had. Whereas Roy gets welts from insect bites and rain rot in the winter and spring.
I did have a chiropractor on her a couple weeks ago. The chiro said she needed adjustment in the right shoulder, but also sore hind end, lower back, and left hock. She was all out of place (just like me). While Roy, who is visually sway backed, holds his tail to the left, and is very stoic-so hard to know if he is feeling pain-was noted to be in pretty good shape with sore hamstrings-due to sway back.