We have learned so much about laminitis in the last few years. One huge breakthrough was discovering that up to 90% of laminitis cases are endocrinopathic – meaning they are due to a metabolic issue. For these horses, diet and exercise is crucial to prevent laminitis, and some horses need medication to keep their metabolic status under control.
While an overweight horse is a clue into a potential metabolic issue, not all overweight horses have equine metabolic syndrome.
But what if we could reliably predict which horses would have metabolic issues and be at a higher risk for laminitis?
Dr. Elaine Norton has spent the last few years researching the heritability of equine metabolic syndrome, in finding which genetic factors put a horse at higher risk. She presented at the 2021 No Laminitis Conference, and I found her presentation fascinating, so decided to reach out to her to share her findings for the podcast!
You can hear the conversation on your favorite podcast app under “The Humble Hoof,” or directly at this link: https://thehumblehoof.libsyn.com/the-genetic-side-of-metabolic-syndrome-and-laminitis-with-dr-elaine-norton
Read more: The Genetic Side of Metabolic Syndrome and Laminitis