Danny is a Welsh section D and is 15 years old {January 2010 at time of writing} . My summer management consisted of strict strip grazing using electric fencing. To the best of my ability, I watched Danny's weight carefully. In December 2007, he went a little pottery. A young vet suggested that it was laminitis, but neither I nor my farrier agreed, and within a few days he was sound.

But, in May 2008 he developed laminitis and, if I knew then what I know now, I probably wouldn't have persevered.

He got it predominantly in both back feet. Following the vet visit, we managed to get him to a well bedded stable and started treatment.

Very soon it became apparent that this wasn't going to be a run of the mill laminitis. Within a few days Danny started abscesses in both back feet and was in excruciating pain. Trying to poultice, bandage and duck tape both hooves was nothing short of a miracle. Both the farrier and the vet could not believe that I could manage it, as they struggled to just lift a hoof a few inches off the ground. However, I am a professional horse healer www.healinghorses.co.uk of some 11 years, and this was absolutely our saving grace. Without the healing, it may all have been a different story.

It was backbreaking, heart-wrenching physical and emotional work, and I know that many would have given up even at this point. This was all compounded, as it happened only two days before my dad died of cancer, so I was struggling with my grief as well as not knowing if I was going to lose my horse.

I read and researched every single day. My vet wanted to put Danny down as she said this acute abscessing was not normal. I found many cases of it happening and I fought on. After about six weeks or so, both soles came off completely, which was a turning point. During that time, I started Danny on Equine Herbals PURIFY. This is a liquid detox which I believed would get into his system quicker than a powder. After a couple of months, I changed to Hilton Herbs Hepaphyte - which is also a liver detox. The vet, by this point believed that Danny had Cushings Syndrome. His coat had been more hairy year on year and I suspected that she was right. So I started him on Agnus Castus.

One awful day, he seemed worse. I called the vet and discussed euthanasia, and which method to use. I wanted to have him injected, but there was then the issue of what to do with the body. I decided to give him 24 hours. The next morning he was bouncing round his pen and clearly didn't want to leave this world!

After three months, I put him out with the others in a pen around 12' square and gradually extended this every day until, eventually he was in the starvation paddock with the section A pony.

Prevention has to be the best possible method for laminitis, but if your horse has Cushings this isn't so easy to prevent unless you notice the signs well before then. Danny's signs were minimal.

This is pretty much the way the three months went: -

• Danny diagnosed with laminitis/Cushings - vet gave initial injections and then put him on Danalon anti imflammatories - 1 twice a day
• Stabled on deep shavings with the Equi-Life pads. These are pretty rubbish as they eroded very quickly. I wrapped them in duck tape to stop them from falling apart and this served the purpose
• Started on Purify after one week and agnus castus
• Poulticing twice daily for the first three weeks
• Farrier attending every 2 - 3 weeks
• Vet attending once a week for the first month, then reduced to every 3 weeks or phone consultation
• After two weeks I made a small pen on rubber matting outside the stable, about 12' square
• Poulticing once daily
• Danalon reduced to one a day after a month
• Started on Hepaphyte, took him off Purify
• After six weeks tried reducing Danalon to half a day. Had to juggle this a little as sometimes he seemed worse, so I put it back to one sachet
• After 8 weeks - wanting to give up - both feet rotting and stinking, but the farrier feels we have turned the corner
• After 9 weeks both his old soles came away and lovely new hoof underneath
• After 10 weeks, started walking him up to see his mates for a few days then made him a pen in the field.
• Turned him out in his pen for one hour the first day, two hours the second day and so on. He wore Hoof boots to keep his feet clean
• After twelve weeks he was in a starvation area around 100' long and 40' wide. Over the rest of the year, I extended this gradually until he had the whole field.

Right now he is in a six acre field until late Feb/early March. Depending on the weather and grass growth, I then start a starvation paddock for two of them. During the summer, I weight tape all three of them every few days, so I can manage their weight. I am sure they hold their tummies in so I will give them a bit more grass :-) I feed them on High Fi lite and Spillers high fibre cubes - both recommended by the Laminitis Trust. During the late winter, they have good quality hay.

During frosty weather I have them all on Hepaphyte as with sunny frosty mornings, the grass contains much higher levels of fructons. Be warned, laminitis is not just a summer problem. It has been 18 months since Danny had his laminitis I keep anti-inflammatories in all the time, just in case and I watch him like a hawk.

All of that said, I have decided that if he does get it again I will not put the both of us through it. I believe that Cushings will add to his deterioration over the years and that we have to be ready to let them go when the time is right.

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