Epiphysitis, also known as equine rickets, is a condition of the bones that occurs in horses and is recognized by a slight lameness in the animal. It usually affects the longer bones, occurring when joints, such as the knee joint, become enlarged. While there are several theories as to where this comes from, the most respected one is that it is caused by the overfeeding of young horses. When a young horse is fed on a high plane of nutrition, or a high caloric diet, its metabolism becomes unbalanced, sometimes causing growth issues like rickets on the small body. In short, their bones grow too large or too quickly for the rest of their body. It is most commonly seen in Welsh Cobs and fillies that are preparing for an exhibition or show, and generally doesn’t affect every type of horse. Symptoms and Types
Pain in the joints
Swelling in the joints
Knee joint problems (e.g., knuckling of the knee joint, slight lameness)
Knuckling of the fetlock (or the metacarpophalangeal and metatarsophalangeal joints)
Abnormal contraction of flexor tendon (allowing the flexing of the joints)
Abnormal contraction of cannon tendon (between the fetlock and the knee joints)
Causes Horses on a high plane of nutrition, whether they be preparing for an athletic event or show, are more susceptible to rickets. Mineral and hormonal imbalances, especially brought on by overfeeding, can also lead to this condition. Diagnosis In order to diagnose epiphysitis, your veterinarian will probably need a great deal of information about your horse, including its medical history and nutritional information. What your horse has been fed is vital in determining the diagnosis. Treatment Most cases of rickets are treated with ease. Since the condition is based almost entirely on dietary imbalance, it is important to establish a nutritional plan with your veterinarian that will allow the horse's body to heal and grow in proportionately. This new diet should balance minerals and vitamins respectively, while lowering the caloric intake of the animal. Prevention Proper nutrition and a well-balanced diet recommended by your veterinarian should prevent rickets in your young foals.
Rickets is a vitamin D deficiency or otherwise known as calcium, it's rare for cats to get it, but they do. If the kitten has bowed legs that could be a sign. The only thing a vet will do is change the cats diet and possibly add a vitamin supplement, but since cats only need a small amount of vitamin D, it will be small doses. It could have been caused by not the right nutrition, or simply a defect in the cats gene coding. Few people imagine that such a thing as rickets exists among kittens, just the same as with growing children, resulting in deformed spines and crooked legs. This is caused by improper feeding on foods which are not bone forming. The first symptoms are lameness when jumping, and in bad cases the kittens become unable to walk at all, and cry when the spine is touched near the tail. If steps are not taken immediately to effect a cure, the cat has to be destroyed or the spine becomes shortened and a lump forms near the tail on the back, the legs become bowed and enlarged at the joints. Excessive milk and cereal feeding can cause rickets, as the animal becomes too fat and the legs are not strong enough to carry the weight. Very lean meat, free from fat and gristle, with no other diet, will also result in rickets. Kittens bred from old cats are very subject to this disease, and need more than an ordinary diet. To learn more about rickets, please read: Disorders Associated with Calcium, Phosphorus, and Vitamin D in Cats
Do you know why animals get rickets? Rickets is a deficiency of vitamin D. They get it from not having enough vitamin D in their diet. It could also be a deficiency in phosphorus, calcium or simply that the animal is not getting enough sunlight. Rickets have the same causes in dogs as they do in humans. Diet is very important to your pet. Try adding Cod Liver Oil to meals daily and make sure your dog gets plenty of sunshine. There are cases where this treatment helped tremendously! If you dog has rickets they must be under a veterinarian's care immediately and receive treatment to prevent permanent bone deformities. For more information on rickets, please read:How to Treat Rickets in Dogs
Epiphysitis, also known as equine rickets, is a condition of the bones that occurs in horses and is recognized by a slight lameness in the animal. It usually affects the longer bones, occurring when joints, such as the knee joint, become enlarged. While there are several theories as to where this comes from, the most respected one is that it is caused by the overfeeding of young horses.
