How I Treated Arthritis in My Pony, Ben

My little pony Ben who was 13 h.h. that I had1) Black pepper: Commonly used for stimulating
from a young child suffered from arthritis in histhe circulation, muscular aches and pains.
old age, Ben had a knee injury he had before I2) Yarrow oil: Used to reduce joint inflammation.
had him and I loved him to bits.3) Geranium oil: Used as a circulation tonic.
When the arthritis started to effected him he4) Juniper oil: Used as an anti-rheumatic.
was around fifteen years of age, this is when he5) Lavender oil: Brilliant even on its own for
started to have slight joint puffiness , now thisrheumatisms and for muscle's pain.
might sound strange to you but if you have a6) Lemon oil: Is well known for its stimulating
pony with this condition putting them intoantiseptic powers as well as being very good for
complete retirement could be the worst thing youarthritis.
could do because joints need strengtheningDo you love your pony enough to have it living in
muscles to protect them but with your vetsyour house? I did and it was the most marvelous
assistance with a regular exercise programand rewarding experience.
tailored to your horse or ponies needs and age,I used to take Ben for walks every day just like
you can increases his joint-fluid circulation and getyou would a dog on a lead. Ben loved to go down
his nutrients up while getting wastes out, this willto the beach in the summer and would go into
help keep his cartilage as healthy as possible.the sea with me, or should I say alongside me to
Whilst keeping his appetite up, his digestionswim, this I believe also helped him a lot, plus of
system working properly and his attitude of wellcourse he loved doing this, he was after all one of
being going nicely.the family. He especially liked his aroma therapy
Specific nutrients added to your horse or poniesbath when we got home. I have very found
nighttime feed can have a significant impact on hismemories of the way he would lift his upper lip
joint health, consult with your vet for a list ofand laugh at me when I washed him down, and
these and get him or her to help you putrun around after me like a spring chicken in the
together a diet plan with supplements like I did asgarden. Ben's last summer was such a happy one
this can really help a lot.a real treasure in my minds eye.
Never change your horses diet without consultingTowards the end of Ben's life, and he lived to 32
with your vet first as this can be damaging.years of age, he needed warmth in the winter
I worked Ben's affected joint passively, all thatbecause of his arthritis, so for the last winter of
this means is that I used a range-of-motionhis life Ben slept on a huge mattress in front of
exercises to en-courage cartilage and soft-tissueour oil fired central heating radiator in our kitchen,
healing in his inflamed joints that decreased hisnow he could go in and out as he please into the
scar-tissue formation as this is what causes a lossgarden, as he could open the door himself, and
of range of motion. I used a blend ofbelieve it or not he could also close it when he
aromatherapy oils and took the advice of acame back into the house. He never did a dirty in
physiotherapist friend at the time on the bestthe house, and yes my kitchen door was a half
way to do this, so I was self trained but now youstable one with an easy latch for Ben to use.
can get the information on the internet by usingI do hope that this article helps another horse
your search engine, but one of the main things tolover out there to make the most out of the
do is to gently massage, bend and straighten thelater years they have with their horse or pony as
affected joint or joints between 7 to 10 times.I did with Ben.
This is the mixture I used watered down.