COLIC! Why, When, How? Any warnings?

[Elsbells]

After reading another sad post today, where a member had suddenly lost her otherwise healthy and thriving gelding to colic basically overnight, I'm asking why does this happen so often and without warning?

Is it as it appears just an unlucky throw of the dice and that we as owners can do absolutly nothing about or act to prevent?


Terrifying if that's the case.

 

[keepmeinmind]

After reading another sad post today, where a member had suddenly lost her otherwise healthy and thriving gelding to colic basically overnight, I'm asking why does this happen so often and without warning?

Is it as it appears just an unlucky throw of the dice and that we as owners can do absolutly nothing about or act to prevent?


Terrifying if that's the case.

After reading another sad post today, where a member had suddenly lost her otherwise healthy and thriving gelding to colic basically overnight, I'm asking why does this happen so often and without warning?

Is it as it appears just an unlucky throw of the dice and that we as owners can do absolutly nothing about or act to prevent?


Terrifying if that's the case.

The general rule of thumb is to call the vet out whenever your horse has colic as its classed as an emergency in the same way laminitis and choke is. However some people (me included) treat our horses ourselves when we know that they are horses who have recurrent colic otherwise we'd have the vet out on a weekly basis.

My horse used to get colic all the time, at least weekly at one point (rich ex cow pasture). The vet said to give him three or four bute, put him on the walker for twenty mins and then return to his stable. If he was no better by then to call him out. Because it was reoccuring gassy smasmodic colic and I knew the horse inside out and it was always the same type of colic I was probably quite safe to do this. Of course if the horse ever displayed differing signs (which he did on a couple of occassions) then the vet was called immediately. Touch wood (stupid thing to do I know! ) he's been fine for the last 12 - 18 months on pink powder and more work.

The vet gave me the option to explore further into why he was getting the colics but I didn't want to go down the route for fear he wouldn't be covered on the insurance as the vet had been out so many times. I think we were kind of the opinion that he would self regulate eventually and the colic would be a thing of the past which it is!

At the end of the day it depends on the horse. I would say to always call the vet if you are in doubt, or you have the inner voice calling you. You know your horse better than anyone. Sometimes its good to go on gut felling despite what othes tell you.

 

[be positive]

Colic presents in many ways, from the fairly simple gassy type which is usually easily treated to the catastrophic type which occurs out of the blue and can be fatal or needs surgery if that seems to be a viable option.
I lost two of my horses to colic, I had owned them for over 20 years, neither had ever previously had any colic and both were pts within hours of going down with it.
My big horse started while I watched, he went out in the field and rolled looking normal then went down again obviously distressed, got up and pawed violently, the vet was here fairly quickly but he deteriorated over night and was pts at 3am. I did not have a post mortem done, he was 25 years old, in perfect health otherwise and I assume something ruptured inside causing such pain so there was nothing that could have warned me, or prevented it.

Horses that colic regularly can often be managed to help prevent it, there will usually be something that acts as a trigger if that can be found and eliminated it may prevent further colics, the ones that come from nowhere are usually more devastating and in older horses may well be due to internal tumours or weakness somewhere that cannot be predicated or managed in any way.

 

[Tammytoo]

There are several different types of colic. Colic is just a generalisation to cover pain in the gut from mild gassy, trapped wind to catastrophic damage to the intestine.

Four years ago our pony developed the most violent symptoms in the space of an hour. Fortunately the YO called the vet instantly and she was in Horspital within a couple of hours and being successfully operated on. She had 12 feet of dead intestine removed which was caused by a piece of fatty tissue wrapping itself around the gut and cutting off the blood supply. The vets said it was something that could have happened at any time of her life and there would have been no warning signals. She had never had colic before and hopefully will never have it again.

As has been said, if your horse is prone to gassy colic attacks you learn to recognise the signals and manage them accordingly. But if you have the slightest doubt, don't wait and see, get your vet out - time really can be a life or death factor.

 

[rockysmum]

I have found with the times mine have coliced that hindsight is a wonderful thing. I should have seen it coming and didn't.

However because we watch ours regularly we spot a change in routine almost immediately, which has meant they were caught early and treated.

For example my oldie will go into his stable, turn round, have a pee and then eat his tea. When his tea is finished he will pick at haylage. If he doesn't do this then something is wrong, it has been every time.

And by hindsight, I mean I have seen something and not analysed the consequences. The first time the oldie coliced I had noticed his poos were dry. I now realise he probably was not drinking enough from his automatic waterer. Now he has a large bucket as well and his feed is very sloppy.

Another example is I got the odd wiff of bad breath. Didn't think anything of it as his dentist was up to date. He coliced which we caught quickly. The next time the dentist came his first question was "has this horse had colic" turns out he had a loose tooth which probably caused it.

Sounds as though it happens a lot, it doesn't I have owned him for 31 years

 

[BlackVelvet]

Think its just bad luck.

My boy never had colicy symptoms, never had a bad tummy, worms etc. but one morning i got a call to say he hadnt eaten his breakfast (he was a pig and never left his breakfast) knew immediately something wasnt right. Got to the yard, he was trying to roll and the next morning he had passed away after getting an infection. I think sometimes you do all you can but you never really know how colic is going to end up. It all happens so quickly sometimes.

 

[scewal]

I lost my girl to colic last year. Checked on her 8pm the night before, totally fine. At 8:30am she was dripping in sweat, rolling and her breathing was awful. Vet gave her two lots of injections that had no effect what so ever.
While arranging transport to get her to my local vets she went down so the decision was made to let her go.

 

[keepmeinmind]

A girl on our yard lost her horse yesterday. He was found in the stable in the morning and despite the vet tubing him and various other things was pts on the operating table at the vets in the afternoon after they found too much damage to his intestine. This also happened to another friend of mine.

Very sad, and very quick.

 

[redriverrock]

I have been up since 5am this morning with my TB who started colicking in the night...we keep our horseys at home and I could hear him 'shuffling' about in his stable..just didnt sound right. So got up and with torch in hand could see he had got himself into a right state rolling about and was clearly very distressed.
This has been a terrible week for me and him...we avoid stabling him as he cribs but he banged a hind fetlock and we were adviced to give him a few days of box rest as his field is so muddy and he was struggling but then he colics so really dont feel I can win!
Thank goodness the vet came out straight away and he seems to know have made a remarkable recovery and is nibbling abit of grass in his field...I took the decision that being out was better even if he has got a achy leg.
The worse part of it is I should have learnt that him and stables/confinement just do not work and I am now feeling like the most awful horsey owner in the world
As far as warnings I think it really does depend on the horse...this morning my horse was thrashing about, drippping in sweat, steaming, bleeding from his mouth (he has bit his tongue) and then laid flat out shaking and breathing very heavily...compare that to his last episode nearly 11 months ago, no rolling, no pawing, no sweating...just a reluctance to eat or drink and looking very sad. It was this colic that nearly killed him and involved 4 days in horspital, that for me is the scariest part of it.
I am just going to have a rule that he no longer gets stabled...no matter what the reason.

 

[flintfootfilly]

I'd agree there are many causes of colic, BUT there are some things that we can do as owners to reduce the risk of some types of colic.

Take a quick look at this RVC website, and scroll down for just a short list of causes of some colics:

http://www.rvc.ac.uk/supervets/documents/equine/colic.pdf

Appropriate worming, gradual changes to any feeding regime, and ensuring that clean fresh water is available at all times are some very simple things that we can do to help reduce the risk of some types of colic.

Sarah

 

[maccachic]

This is a good read:

Horses need a constant supply of fibre passing thru there system to keep the bateria in the gut healthy, and to stop the gut collasping in on itself or twisting. All equines (ponies and horses) need a minimum of 1.5% of their body weigh in fibre (this is on a dry matter basis) it can be hard to get that much on over grazed paddocks in winter.

Horses and ponies should be fed an absolute minimum of 1% of their bodyweight in dry matter fibre per day, and ideally between 1.5-3%.
Why is fibre so important?
1. Fibre is a major source of energy.
2. Fibre keeps the hindgut healthy. The horse’s gastrointestinal tract is an enormous organ and it needs to be kept full. This prevents it from physically collapsing on itself or twisting up in a severe case of colic. A healthy hindgut is dependent on keeping the bacterial populations healthy and to do so, they require plenty of forage for fermentation.
3. Fibre provides hydration. Fibre soaks up and holds water in the horse’s gut, which then acts as a water and electrolyte reserve for when horses need it.
4. Vitamin supply. The bacteria in the hindgut produce vitamins which may be absorbed by the horse.
What happens if a horse doesn’t get enough fibre?
1. Colic – too little fibre, dehydration and fermentation of grains in the hindgut may lead to a serious case of colic.
2. Diarrhoea – low fibre diets very often result in loose sloppy manure, which in-turn affects the whole dynamic of how the gut works. Horses with diarrhoea digest what fibre they do get less efficiently and they are prone to problems with dehydration and electrolyte deficiency.
3. Dehydration – horses on a low fibre diet don’t have a readily available water reserve in their gut.
4. Weight loss – horses fed insufficient fibre are also most likely not being fed enough energy (calories) so they may lose weight or having difficulty gaining weight.
5. Boredom – horses on low fibre diets will often have a lot of spare time to fill in during the day that would normally be spent eating. This will often lead to problems like cribbing, weaving and chewing on strange objects or eating dirt.
6. Constant hunger – fibre is the part of the diet that provides the ‘gut fill’. A diet low in fibre will leave a horse always feeling hungry, which causes its own set of problems including behavioural issues.
7. Sand colic – when horses are fed low fibre diets it increases the chances that sand and dirt will accumulate in their hindgut and cause colic or severe diarrhoea.
8. Vitamin deficiency – lack of fibre can disturb the bacterial populations in the hindgut which in turn leads to reduced production of vitamins.
9. Ulcers – fibre encourages the horse to chew, which produces saliva. The alkaline saliva then buffers the stomach acid, which helps naturally reduce the incidence of gastric ulcers

 

[Ninfapaola]

There are several different types of colic. Colic is just a generalisation to cover pain in the gut from mild gassy, trapped wind to catastrophic damage to the intestine.

Four years ago our pony developed the most violent symptoms in the space of an hour. Fortunately the YO called the vet instantly and she was in Horspital within a couple of hours and being successfully operated on. She had 12 feet of dead intestine removed which was caused by a piece of fatty tissue wrapping itself around the gut and cutting off the blood supply. The vets said it was something that could have happened at any time of her life and there would have been no warning signals. She had never had colic before and hopefully will never have it again.

As has been said, if your horse is prone to gassy colic attacks you learn to recognise the signals and manage them accordingly. But if you have the slightest doubt, don't wait and see, get your vet out - time really can be a life or death factor.

I have lost 3 horses to colic in this way even after surgery. Now even seeing or hearing the word colic makes my blood run cold. Even now when I see any of my horses taking a roll in the field I pray it is just a roll and not colic.

 

[Penny Less]

I am seriously worried about the long wet grass in our field, if they stuffed themselves with that Im panicking they will get colic

 

[callmelucky]

Iv come to the conclusion that even though we can do everything within our power to stop it happening...if they are going to get it they will. my gelding was 8yo, fit and healthy, no change in routine or feeding, wormed properly etc etc. i went up one morning at 8am and he started to colic in his within a few minuted of me being there. 12hrs later, despite the vet being called right away and him being referred , he was dead. the funny thing is, despite having a displaced colon and ruptured stomach, he didnt give much away...yes he was sore and he rolled but when they opened him up they described his abdomen as a bomb site, and i couldnt believe he wasnt going mental with the pain. maybe he had a very high pain thresh hold i dont know. it was gutting to loose him but after nearly 3 years iv come to learn that sometimes it just happens, despite ur best efforts to prevent it.

 

[brucea]

We used to get colic with one of ours every 3-4 weeks - really bad spasmoduic. I cut out all bagged compound feeds, feed balancers and we never had another colic - like a switch being thrown.

My lads are all on a fibre based diet - they get lots of roughage, good hayage, barley straw etc. No compounded feeds!

Linseed helps to keep the digestive tract soothed - it helps a lot wiht a horse prone to colic - it contains a lot of mucilage and that calms and settles the gut.

 

[Nickijem]

I lost my last horse to colic. It was very sudden, fine on the Sunday afternoon on a hack although he did sweat up more than usual (it was a hot day so i wasn't too alarmed). Then found him on Monday morning colicking badly. Called the vet immediately but he was in too much pain to transport to horsepital so he was pts. He was only 15 and never had a days illness in the 9 years i owned him.
My present horse has had colic twice but quite mild in comparison and is probably linked to the flush in the grass. He is now on coligone and has been fine since - touch wood!

 

[amandaco2]

One of mine had it last night.
First time ever.
She's been in on hay for two weeks due a cut, then she had four hrs on the grass and was not right.
Pawing, hot, bit sweaty, not eating, rolled once, stood for about hr and then gradually looked ok. Touch wood now ok, checked on her hourly.she will have to have muzzle on to reintroduce grass

 

[SizzlerB]

I lost my beloved mare two weeks ago to colic...totally unprepared for it.

Got her in 4pm on a Wednesday - havy rain and wanted to give them a break; she just wasn't right although nothing obvious going on, but you just know when something is wrong don't you ?

Vet came out about 6pm and injected her, I stayed with her till 11pm and she seemed fine, she was allowed a small amount of hay. Went back at 6am, slight signs of discomfort again so vet was called where she was injected a second time, plus tubed with liquid paraffin and a rectal exam done (where they established a small blockage). Advised to allow her small amounts of grass in hand. By late afternoon no change so vets out again and she was yet again tubed and examined. Relatively calm evening (although I was pretty made up by that point that if no change the following morning I would call it a day). However these things never go to plan and by 2am - whilst we were on night watch - she went downhill very quickly and I made the decsion there and then

She had Cushings and COPD and I was always extremley careful about her management and routine, so I think just sometimes its one of those things; you can "what if" forever but you can't change the outcome :-(

 

[hannahmurphy]

Today, Xmas eve .... my darling boy was fine all morning, fine when I popped up to yard at lunch time, the rain stopped so gave him a short lunge to stretch his legs, got back in stable and he collapsed. Breathing went crazy, wedged himself up against the wall. Dragged him away and made him get up, took him for a walk and the while he was struggling to stand, wobbling and wanting to roll. He had actually pooed more than often in the time I had been with him, 3 big poos and then 3 squits! This was a bit confusing as he definitely wasn't compacted. After walking for a while he really did just want to lay down so had to let him, he led flat on the stable floor like he was dead, all the colour drained from him, his breathing was irregular - I really was fearing the worst by now, thankfully the vet arrived pretty quickly.

His heartbeat was completely irregular and murmuring, we got him on his feet so the vet could have a feel inside him - while he wasn't twisted (thankfully), he wasn't right and vet thinks it could have been nephrosplenic entrapment. She was quite concerned as a few things weren't adding up, kidneys couldn't be felt. Poor baby was in immense pain. He was sedated and given buscopan, then tubed as he was dehydrated by this point. Vet wasn't sure which was it was going to go, she said she was 50/50 and when I called later on to update her she was surprised and actually said she was expecting bad news :-/

Nothing out of the ordinary had happened today, it was completely random and the onset was ridiculously quick. Thankfully he has picked up and seems pretty bright (at last check). Touch wood he will be 100% back to normal come Xmas morning (and no sleep on my part).

 

[Dizzykizzy]

Hope your horse is ok Hannah, we weren't so lucky, one year ago today we lost our 4 year old to colic. Nothing had changed in his routine, he lived out with his Mum, was wormed, teeth done etc. Wouldn't eat his feed on the evening of the 23rd Dec, brought in, vet called. To cut a long story short he was PTS in the early hours of Christmas morning after spending a day and night at the vets.
I have kept horses for over 30 years and have been lucky to never experience colic before. I don't believe it was a management thing, I think he was just unlucky.
All I can add is, like others have said never wait and see with colic, I had the vet here in minutes as he was next door at the time, we still lost our boy.
RIP Obi remembered as you are every day, one year since the terrible day we lost you. Hope your Mum is with you again, we lost her 15 days ago :-(

 

[Sprocket123]

An interesting thread.
2011 brought my mare in from field, she was a bif "off", hour later colic, waited till 12am with vet. then was sent to vets for the colic op. She had a small chance pulling but she made it luckily , she had never had colic before or since (touch wood) she has had the same routine since I brought her was totally un explained.
Not much I can add to the excellent answers already given just don't wait and see just get the vet.
Hannah - hope your horse is ok x

 

[charlie76]

Are you sure that all the horses lost had colic? atypical myopathy shows very similar symptoms, many vets think its colic.

 

[hannahmurphy]

Thanks all. He is OK now! He's a bit bored and a bit hungry while I am slowly building the quantity of his feed/hay back up! Spoiled him with a new fleece rug yesterday

Blooming horses like to give us a scare huh!

 

[Tonks]

I am surprised that no-one has mentioned that this time of year is typically 'colic season'.

Vets do see an increase in colic at this time of year [and apart from the management practises other posters have mentioned, fibre, etc] there is thought to be an increase in colic due to an increase in stabling.

The movement of the horse's gut is linked to the movement of their legs [as is their breathing]. When a horse is subject to increased stabling, which reduces their ability to move, their gut also slows down - which increases the risk of colic.

If it snows, a frost or there is a lot of rain there is a tendancy for owners to limit turnout or not turnout at all, which decreases the amount the horse's legs move thus decreasing or slowing the gut's natural movement - Hence an increase in colic.

There was a Horse and Hound article on this very subject, about 3 years ago now around this time. Did try to look for it but couldn't find it. Anyone care to do an Internet search as it provides more detail in how to reduce the risk associated with increase in stabling during this season/bad weather?

As a livery yard owner I am always moaning about turnout this time of year as we don't have a horse walker. However, this has to be balanced with a horse's welfare that is standing in all time due to lack of exercise or movement.