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The Top Five Horse Health Problems
Pet Plan Equestrian insurance is a leading provider paying out millions of pounds each year to horse owners for sick and injured horses the top five horse health problems in previous year is arthritis, colic, laminitis, cushing`s disease and desmitis (inflamed ligaments), these five health problems resulted in insurance payouts of £2,474,854 from Pet Plan.
1) Arthritis (£732,000) - A common problem in horses especially as they get older, arthritis can cause pain and discomfort for you horse, although there is no cure for arthritis, there are a number of treatments that could help improve your horses condition. Arthritis is more common in sport horses, signs of arthritis include stiffness and lameness as well as swelling in the horses joints.
2) Colic (£672,000) - Severity of colic can range from a mild stomach ache through to a twisted gut. Signs of colic include pawing the ground, rolling and increased temperature. In severe cases of colic costly surgery may be required removing the parts of intestine that has been twisted. Colic can be avoided by an appropriate diet, and not feeding to soon after work, although some horses are more prone to colic than others.
3) Desmitis (Inflamed Ligaments) (£569,000) - Not a commonly known health problem by horse owners cases of desmitis is surprisingly high, inflamed suspensory, check and collateral ligaments can result in lameness and performance problems when being ridden. Chances of your horse getting desmitis can be reduced by strengthening your horse ligaments with working on hard surface`s and straight line excersises. If your horse has problem`s with the ligaments there are number of treatments from box rest with structed rehabilitation, walking the horse`s out. In some cases an operation may be needed to repair ligament damage.
4) Laminitis (£325,000) - Laminitis is the inflammation of the horses soft tissue in the hoof, resulting in severe pain, signs of laminitis include the hoof being warm to the touch and lameness. Laminitis can be cause by a rich diet to a horse that may be susceptible to it, treatments include special shoeing and reducing the amount of calorie`s your horse is consuming.
5) Cushing`s Disease (£177,000) - A hormonal condition often found in older horse`s, cushing`s disease is a result of an increase in steroids in your horse that affects the pituitary gland in the brain. Cushing disease is still not fully understood, but some vets believe that weight problems in the horse life may be a contributing factor. There are a number of drugs available that can help alleviate the symptoms of cushing`s disease that include, weight loss, muscle wasting, laminitis and low immune system.
Figures From Pet Plan Equestrian Insurance 2015
1) Arthritis (£732,000) - A common problem in horses especially as they get older, arthritis can cause pain and discomfort for you horse, although there is no cure for arthritis, there are a number of treatments that could help improve your horses condition. Arthritis is more common in sport horses, signs of arthritis include stiffness and lameness as well as swelling in the horses joints.
2) Colic (£672,000) - Severity of colic can range from a mild stomach ache through to a twisted gut. Signs of colic include pawing the ground, rolling and increased temperature. In severe cases of colic costly surgery may be required removing the parts of intestine that has been twisted. Colic can be avoided by an appropriate diet, and not feeding to soon after work, although some horses are more prone to colic than others.
3) Desmitis (Inflamed Ligaments) (£569,000) - Not a commonly known health problem by horse owners cases of desmitis is surprisingly high, inflamed suspensory, check and collateral ligaments can result in lameness and performance problems when being ridden. Chances of your horse getting desmitis can be reduced by strengthening your horse ligaments with working on hard surface`s and straight line excersises. If your horse has problem`s with the ligaments there are number of treatments from box rest with structed rehabilitation, walking the horse`s out. In some cases an operation may be needed to repair ligament damage.
4) Laminitis (£325,000) - Laminitis is the inflammation of the horses soft tissue in the hoof, resulting in severe pain, signs of laminitis include the hoof being warm to the touch and lameness. Laminitis can be cause by a rich diet to a horse that may be susceptible to it, treatments include special shoeing and reducing the amount of calorie`s your horse is consuming.
5) Cushing`s Disease (£177,000) - A hormonal condition often found in older horse`s, cushing`s disease is a result of an increase in steroids in your horse that affects the pituitary gland in the brain. Cushing disease is still not fully understood, but some vets believe that weight problems in the horse life may be a contributing factor. There are a number of drugs available that can help alleviate the symptoms of cushing`s disease that include, weight loss, muscle wasting, laminitis and low immune system.
Figures From Pet Plan Equestrian Insurance 2015
