Tied Up...

Well... I took Sera to Rex's for a ride last Saturday. 

I went out to get her and she was hot, sweaty and blowing.  The horses have been kept in their pens because of the huge amount of snow we got in 2 different storms.  Pretty much everything is, or was, muddy, slick and icy.  We didn't need the horses out running like wild jungle animals, slipping and injuring themselves or tearing up the pasture.

She and Rosso had been fruiting around because they are bored and pent up and it's cold and they feel good.

I unloaded her at Rex's and she was tying up pretty good.  Sigh.  Called the vet and she was there in 30 min... steroid and non-steroid anti-inflammatories given.  A dose of ace to relax and get blood flowing to the muscles... some laser treatment.  Still took at least an hour before Sera could walk again and she was still sticky on the left hind.

She hadn't tied up since November 2008. 

Caught me by complete surprise.  Last time she tied up I was feeding 100% alfalfa from another hay supply source... we stopped and she hadn't tied up since.  I figured that was the cause.

Since Sera had been penned up from the storms, we cut the Purina Healthy Edge complete feed back by half.  (They only get 1lb in the AM and 1lb in the PM with loose mineral salt)  And we gave them some extra hay at night since it was our first true cold snap and they don't have woolly winter coats yet.  It's a grass hay with a tiny bit of alfalfa - whatever grows in the pasture when the hay is harvested.  We've gotten it consistently from the same hay supplier - same fields since 2008 - nothing different about the hay.

It's quite disappointing. 

I ordered some Platinum Hemo-Flo supplement which is supposed to have good results for horses that tie up... ??  I'm never really sure if supplements are truly helpful or if they are just good marketing?  Anyone have thoughts about that?

I think Theresa asked about the new lifestyle Furry Husband and I are working on...
The book is:  The Primal Blueprint by Mark Sisson - very good, easy read, and explains more the why of eating and living this way.  He just released a new book, that in my opinion is maybe a little more condensed, a little updated and more of a specific "how to" vs. "why to".  It's the 21-Day Challenge or something... both are good reads.

There is a website tho' that is free which offers lots of information for anyone looking... www.MarksDailyApple.com