Lush pasture is the arch enemy of horses susceptible to laminitis and founder.
Yet few horse owners can resist the kindness of turning horses out in green meadows, and do so with the best intentions. Horses most at risk include ponies and any horse already overweight or suffering from a condition like Cushing's syndrome. Some own hardy horses which seem resistant to the damaging effects of lush pasture, and never know what it is like to see a horse shifting from one front foot to the other, or extending both front feet while hitching the hind ones up under his belly to get weight off the forefeet. These are the persistent owners you see chasing experts like Burney Chapman and Ric Redden, DVM, at seminars. They wave radiographs, innovative horseshoe designs, and checkbooks in the desperate hope of helping a crippled horse.