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You don’t think they can learn about laminitis from horses that just get it....they have to learn about it from horses that they KNOW are going to develop it from other causes???

I’m sorry, from what this vet said, laminitis is very painful...I would not knowingly put a horse thru that. Know beyond almost a shadow of a doubt that it’s coming.

This horse shed his whole hoof wall...you could see it in some of the film clips...can you imagine how that had to hurt, and they knew that was probably going to happen. But because of emotion they hoped it wouldn’t.

Becky

The problem with just taking the horse who happens to founder is that you don't necessarily have all the factors that were in play here.

This was a unique combination of a whole lot of factors. You had a young, vigorous, healthy horse in absolutely fit condition. You had the very best research/teaching facility in the country for orthopedic injuries. And you had owners who could afford the very best care.

That does not happen very often.

I've unfortunately had to make the decision to put down animals who were ill or severely injured. It's a very difficult call to make, and there is always an argument that you waited too long -- or didn't wait long enough. You want to give the animal a fair chance to get better, but you don't want the animal to suffer unnecessarily. Unnecessarily being the key - transient pain, even severe pain, may be worth the ultimate result. That's true in almost any surgery.

With 20/20 hindsight you can argue either position til the cows come home (or die).

Both the owners and the vet were well aware of the emotional component and the wishing component - those are present in all cases, because vets wouldn't be in that job if they didn't empathize with animals (believe me, the money ain't it!)

But, again, I'm not going to sit behind a keyboard with imperfect information and try to second-guess the best orthopedic veterinary surgeon in the country or a couple of owners who obviously loved this horse.

That’s an interesting point but I think the key is prevention. You have a horse that is injured. It’s a high risk. What can we learn to prevent laminitis from happening to begin with? Should animals be kept alive , just anticipating they will founder? No, of course not. You have to treat all his injuries, hoping for a healthy recovery from the fracture without developing laminitis. They made good progress with the fracture. There is still a lot to learn about circulation though.