Colic out hacking?!

Captain Bridget

Captain Bridget

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I went out for a hack on my share horse this afternoon in the sunshine. First half of the ride was lovely, walked, trotted, cantered and popped a little log. All perfectly normal.

Had a canter up a short section of track, it's uphill so I let him stretch out. All seemed fine, he pulled up like normal. I turned left downhill and as he walked he started to stomp his front feet more and more. At the same time he was twisting his head to the side and forward.

The stomping got worse and worse so I stopped him and he wouldn't settle so I hopped off to have a look at him. I thought maybe he had something stuck in his shoe.

He continued to stomp around, constantly walking circles round me, wouldn't stand still to let me check his feet. I noticed he was sweating quite a lot and it was getting worse. He was pawing the ground, tossing his head and then sniffing the ground sometimes snatching a piece of grass, he also had a little bit of blood from one nostril.

Next he spun round and starting screaming his head off. There were no other horses around at all.

At that point I loosened his girth, ran his stirrups up and decided to walk home. I couldn't do anything for him out on my own. Unfortunately it was probably a good couple of miles home! He started off quite wired and dragging me along but gradually settled and walked nicely.

When we got home he didn't show any signs like previously. Just a little of colour perhaps. He wasn't eating his hay at all, just stood with his head down in the stable. He tucked into his dinner okay, we left him with bran mash as well.

Obviously this was all pretty scary out hacking on my own on a horse that doesn't belong to me! Especially as I have no idea what was/is wrong.

Anyone any idea from those symptoms what it might be?
 
kerrieberry2 said:
defo sounds like colic. did he poo before you left? I'd go back and check him and get vet if hes not ok
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amymay said:
Will he be getting hourly checks?
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Ditto. Does the owner know and is the horse going to be checked throughout the night? I would not leave a horse with feed either after something like that.

Sounds very scary, but the important thing now is to make sure he gets checked regularly for the next 24 hours.
 
Doesnt sound like colic, more of a rupture of some sort, possibly too much exertion up this hill at a canter. I hope you have called the vet and let the owners know, will horse be checked through the night??
 
He's peeing and pooing fine, did a poo on the yard before ride and one half way through, and peed when I put him in his stable this evening. His stable from the night before looked the same as normal.

His owner has been informed and she didn't seem too concerned so wasn't planning on calling the vet. Now I'm even more worried about him! Luckily the horses are at her house so I'll text her and ask her to check him.
 
If it was after a good canter on the ground we have at the moment it sounds like a mild tying up. Many get very agitated, sweat up and appear colicky. They should be rested completely. I'm a little surprised that you gave him his normal evening feed when you suspected colic symptoms and didn't even call the vet for advice though.
 
I am prepared to say that in 50 years with horses I have not seen this ,but it worries me. What you describe seems an accurate account and certainly not to be disregarded. I commend you for your observation and "actions on". But hell ,I am at a loss,(an HHO first). My immediate worry is a cadiac problem but I suspect that it might be hard to reproduce under veterinary exam. Be carefull,keep owner very much informed , play it by ear and keep us all informed too. (there is a wealth of knowlege here when we are not bored and bickering amongst our selves.
 
Mike007 said:
I am prepared to say that in 50 years with horses I have not seen this ,but it worries me. What you describe seems an accurate account and certainly not to be disregarded. I commend you for your observation and "actions on". But hell ,I am at a loss,(an HHO first). My immediate worry is a cadiac problem but I suspect that it might be hard to reproduce under veterinary exam. Be carefull,keep owner very much informed , play it by ear and keep us all informed too. (there is a wealth of knowlege here when we are not bored and bickering amongst our selves.
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^^ Ditto this
Would definitely get a vet asap, as could be any one of a number of things, but agree that whatever it is may be difficult to reproduce under veterinary surveillance. The symptoms that worried me were the head tossed to one side, pawing, circling and the calling out. Unfortunately, these were very similar signs to the ones my ID showed whilst fitting (thankfully not under saddle at the time)
 
have also seen similar signs with aneurysms in horses, discomfort (sometimes v mild)/pain after exercise and decreased appetite. Difficult to diagnose though. Tying up would be more common. Agree with vet check and bloods.
 
I would think he's burst (especially with the blood) after the canter, or had a mild tying up, but not typical symptoms.

Either way I'd have rung the vet, not necessarily for a visit but certainly for advice.
 
A friends horse had an episode of spasmodic colic whilst on the hunting field, so it is possible, but the blood from the nostril would worry me....

Any news? x
 
Any news OP.

I missed the fact he had blood from the nose when I first read. That would really worry me and I have never seen those symptoms together like that.

I think I actually would get the vet out this week to give a thorough once over and have a chat about what happened.
 
He seems to be fine, unfortunately I couldn't see him much today as I've been at work all day. Spoke to the owners dad who turned him out this morning and apparently he was perfectly normal, cantered off up the field as usual. I couldn't check his stable or hay either as he'd already been mucked out when I got there.

If he were my horse I would have had the vet out straight away to check him over as it was incredibly scary for me to see him like that. But like I say, I only share him so it's down to his owner to make the final decision. I told her exactly what had happened and she agreed it was very abnormal but as he was behaving normally once home I guess it's hard for her to understand..

Although I'm a fairly experienced rider I'm a novice 'owner' so honestly I couldn't disagree with her. I did what I could by getting off and walking him home.
 
To be fair to the OP this is not her horse so not up to her to call the vet. From what she describes it sounds like he may have burst a blood vessel. That or something went up his nostril and caused the bleed. Just the blood sensation could have been enough to cause the pawing and head shaking I'd have thought. I am of course no expert though but that would have been my first thought anyway. Maybe seen if anyone experienced with racehorses can assist as this is relatively common in racehorses.
 
I really feel for you OP, having had a share horse recently who I felt needed to see the vet but the owner refused point blank, it's a trying situation to be in. I felt the horse needed the vet but having never owned a horse, in the end I had to bow down to the owner's "expertise". I did the best I could for the lovely boy but eventually walked away from the situation and went on to share another horse but with an owner who has a more similar attitude to her horse's welfare as I would have if the horse was mine. Sharing a horse is very different to loaning a horse and I think it's easy for people to make a judgement without taking on board that this is a share not a loan. It's so difficult, ethically you want to call the vet but essentially you are bound totally by the owner and without their permission, you and the vet would be trespassing on their property!
 
I really feel for you being in a scary situation with someone else's horse, and for you wanting to call the vet but having to bow down to the owners wishes.
 
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