Hormone Related Colic in mares

[Darkhorse]

Im hoping that there may be some people on here that can share some experience/advice with me.

I have a mare that is 13 years old and I have owned her for 10years. She has never had colic until 2 years ago.

She went to stud for the summer of 2007 and came home not in foal after a number of failed AI attempts. On returning home she started with colic this went on for a number of weeks, she was referred to Minster Vets at York where she had a 2 week stay, she came home and started to colic again and was then referred on the Chris Proudman at Liverpool where she diagnosed with low grade Peritonitis - she came home on antibiotics and all was well.

She has had no signs of colic at all from then until recently.

She foaled on 7 May and when the foal was 6 days old she started with mild colic symptons again, she has had one bout that was acute and took longer to clear. So we are now 20 days later and we have had 6 bouts of colic in that time.

I have had very lengthly discussions with my vet about it and he now intends to contact Liverpool again for further advice on her.

Her foal is 4 weeks old on Thursday so I really am in no rush to start shipping them off to the vets but I need to sort my mare out.

I have had a read of things on the internet and am wondering if the colic is in some way related to her hormones.

Would really value any experiences that people can share with me on this.

 

[Halfstep]

It could be. My friend has a mare who shows colic symptoms when ovulating. Vet described it as "period pains", which the horse reacts to in the same way as having a stomach ache/colic.

It could be worth having her scanned now, especially as she has so recently foaled, to see what is going on. You may have to find ways of living with it until the foal is weaned as you can't be giving the mare stuff like regumate when she has a baby at foot.

 

[Darkhorse]

One think I didn't put in my original post is that she doesn't just show signs of colic type pain - she loses all gut movement and gets bunged up. So the pain if it is hormone related is causing her to impact.

Within hours of drenching her and giving painkillers her guts start moving again.

 

[Halfstep]

Hum, that sounds like true colic, being caused by something else. I'd definitely get the vet to have a look at her. Poor girl!

 

[Darkhorse]

My vet has seen her on a number of occasions over the last few weeks and is fully consulted on this.

She seems to be a medical mystery at the moment which is not good for my sanity !

 

[fatpiggy]

My mare suffers from pre-oestress pain. The week before she comes into season she gets very sensitive in her back behind the saddle, then wanders about pressing her bottom on the wall and squealing alot. Sometimes she even headpresses. When she is REALLY bad, she sits like a dog on her bottom or lies down and to anyone else it looks just like spasmodic colic. The fact that your horse has had several "attacks" in the 20 day period says to me, either hormones all over the place or genuine colic, and I would lean towards the latter to be honest.

 

[Tidy Paquet]

My friends pony kept having colic . When the mares ovaries were scanned it was found that one was always enlarged. The mare is now on regumate all year round and has not had colic since!
The colic symptoms were that of true colic - impaction - and the mare was spending alot of time at the vets.
She sometimes seems "off colour" usually this coincides with the start and end of the breeding season and is therefore not ridden on these days. But apart from that is now totally pain free.
Why not suggest this, tactfully!, to the vet?
I do wish her well especially since she has a foal at foot . x

 

[Darkhorse]

Thank you for the responses.

Vet is coming back tomorrow afternoon and she is having all her lady bits scanned to check that they are ok and we are going to take a fluid sample from her abdoman and bloods, so hopefully amongst that lot we should get some answers.