Daily spasmodic colic- advice please!

J

JessGingerfred

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Hi all,

I have a very fat pony who has decided that he doesn’t have an off button when it comes to overnight grazing- the past two mornings I have brought him in and he has started colicking within 2 hours. Yesterday was aggressive spasmodic, thrashing around all over the place, white with sweat, heavy breathing.... this morning I caught it earlier and it wasn’t so bad but still visibly uncomfortable and trying to go down. Emergency vet was called yesterday, gave him buscopan. Suggested giving him bute today and he’s much more comfortable.
Apart from sticking a grazing muzzle on him overnight as the vet has suggested, is there much more I can do to help him?! Seems to be an ongoing thing every morning now!

His routine is that he comes in at 7am (been on the same field for two weeks now), has a very small token feed (then colics at around 9.30 apparently!!!!!), stays in for the day with a small soaked haynet and then has a token feed and goes back out at around 4pm.
 
one of mine coliced recently due to grass. I have no idea if it was wet grass, grass at a certain stage of growth or a certain weed that was causing a problem at it's stage of growth . (the horse had been in the same field for nearly 20 years) The only solution was to get him off grass. I kept him on hay and then gradually a week later put him back on the grass for a couple of hours only. Now he is back out 24/7 but he is not a gutsy sort. All you can do is change the routine and get him completely off the field for a while till you can get it sorted. If he is a fat gutsy pig there is also the danger of EMS and laminitis so possibly a change of management overall will be required.
 
I would reduce the grazing time or tape off the field and strip graze it so he can't gorge all night, I wouldn't mess about it's pretty serious to be going down with colic so often and if the grass is long and rich he could also go down with laminitis.
 
It’s been so difficult as he’s also been out of work!!! Starting trot work with him this week which I’m sure will help. He seems happier this afternoon and I intend to work him later.... Vet suggested the grazing muzzle as he thinks that changing the grazing so suddenly may cause him to colic in the night?! It’s only ever in the morning when he comes in- late checked him last night and he was fine, and he was fine first thing when I brought him in too! All seems very odd, he’s never had colic in the 7 years I’ve owned him so all very new to it!!!
 
Is he drinking overnight or waiting until he gets to the stable?? Worth checking, I had one once who had spasmodic colic after coming in off the field and drinking a lot...
 
I would ensure that he is full when he goes out, so that he doesn't gorge on the grass. I suggest giving him a small amount of hay and also giving access to oat straw chaff, while he is in.
 
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