Possible cause of Rockys colic - any thoughts

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rockysmum

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My 36 year old has been hard to keep weight on all winter. He appeared to be eating well enough and he had been given the all clear by the dentist in Autumn

Two weeks ago he had colic. The vet came and he got through it. She didn't suggest any likely cause so I put it down to old age and possibly something that would reoccur.

On Wednesday I got the dentist out again, to the stressy warmblood, she need a wolf tooth removing. While he was there I got him to give the other two a quick check up, even though they were not due.

Good thing I did. When he looked in Rockys mouth he asked if had problems with colic. Obviously I said he had. Apparently the old lad had a loose tooth which had probably caused the impaction.

At the time of the colic I told the vet his breath was really stinky, not something I had noticed before, she didn't think it was relevant.

Just wondered whether anyone else was aware that loose teeth can cause colic in oldies. If I had known I might have suspected something rather than discover the cause by sheer luck.

The dentist says he often hears of oldies dying of colic and thinks to himself that poor teeth likely killed them.

Just thought it was worth passing on, I hadn't heard of it before.
 
One of my ponies has a diastema and food gets stuck in it, although we try to keep it flushed out. He's not too bad at the moment, but he did go through a phase of having very stinky breath (before we started trying to address the diastema issue). My EDT said that it can lead to (bad) bacteria in the gut which can then lead to colic. We've had him 12 years and he's always had a sensitive tum and always had ropey teeth. They could well be linked. I have the pony on charcoal now (Happy Tummy) which helps reduce toxins in the gut. It may be something worth looking at, although realistically as Rocky is such a good age things will start to go wrong whatever you do. I have a 35 year old who I've had for 30 years (not the pony with the diastema) so I know what it's like. xx

ETA - I'm really pleased for you that he got through the colic, I followed your previous posts. x
 
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Thank you :D

He got through the colic but I still didn't think he was 100%. Since the dentist removed the tooth he has really been attacking his feed.

The other day he raced the warmblood up the field for tea, only just got beaten but chased her away from the gate anyway :D :D He's a short legged cob so probably wouldn't have done much better when he was young.

Wouldn't have believed it really, he's acting like a 2 year old again. His stable is much dirtier though, he must be eating and drinking a lot more.
 
It's great to hear he's feeling so well!! My old girl charges round the field as well. She looks old (lots of grey hairs) but still healthy and she still likes to put a few spooks in every now and then. My friend who has been riding her for years still has a gentle 30 mins lesson on her once a week from my other friend who looks after her. It's the only work she does now, but it keeps her ticking over. It's complicated, but I didn't move her when we relocated, but still visit her every so often and pay her livery bill every month. :rolleyes:
 
I love to hear about oldies still full of life :D

I forgot to mention the tooth. When the dentist removed the disgusting article, he left it on the tack box. I was set to throw it away.

Unfortunately Rachael, who rides the stressy warmblood for me, had different ideas. She put it in a bag and told me I cant throw it away as its part of the old lad.

Any ideas of what exactly I am supposed to do with a old tooth :D
 
rockysmum said:
I love to hear about oldies still full of life :D

I forgot to mention the tooth. When the dentist removed the disgusting article, he left it on the tack box. I was set to throw it away.

Unfortunately Rachael, who rides the stressy warmblood for me, had different ideas. She put it in a bag and told me I cant throw it away as its part of the old lad.

Any ideas of what exactly I am supposed to do with a old tooth :D
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Ok, off the top of my head here..... you find out when Rachael's birthday is. Then you find one of those deep photo frames, stick in a picture of Rocky, add the tooth, and voila - the perfect gift!!!! :D:p

ETA my old girl is on the right of my sig - that was her at 34 with my son on board.
 
nikicb said:
Ok, off the top of my head here..... you find out when Rachael's birthday is. Then you find one of those deep photo frames, stick in a picture of Rocky, add the tooth, and voila - the perfect gift!!!! :D:p

ETA my old girl is on the right of my sig - that was her at 34 with my son on board.
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Wow she is looking great for her age.

Great idea about the present, will look for a frame tomorrow :D :D She can have pics of stressy warmblood and her wolf tooth as well :D

Just realised the tooth in bag is in my handbag. Glad work were not doing searches today, dont know how I would have explained that one.
 
I would just like to say how pleased I am for you and how Rocky has recovered so well. Really felt for you that night. Sounds like he has that Spring feeling :D
 
rockysmum said:
Wow she is looking great for her age.

Great idea about the present, will look for a frame tomorrow :D :D She can have pics of stressy warmblood and her wolf tooth as well :D

Just realised the tooth in bag is in my handbag. Glad work were not doing searches today, dont know how I would have explained that one.
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That reminds me of my friend. She was born in the US even though she had British parents and was brought up in in the UK. But she had a US passport. Anyway, she had to go to the US embassy to have it renewed. She forgot when she went through the xray machine at the entrance that she had confiscated her 4 year old son's toy pistol at a family birthday party and stuffed it in the pocket of her handbag. I'm sure you can imagine the scenario!
 
cambrica said:
I would just like to say how pleased I am for you and how Rocky has recovered so well. Really felt for you that night. Sounds like he has that Spring feeling :D
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Thank you, it was a dreadful night, but I'm over it now :D

nikicb said:
That reminds me of my friend. She was born in the US even though she had British parents and was brought up in in the UK. But she had a US passport. Anyway, she had to go to the US embassy to have it renewed. She forgot when she went through the xray machine at the entrance that she had confiscated her 4 year old son's toy pistol at a family birthday party and stuffed it in the pocket of her handbag. I'm sure you can imagine the scenario!
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Oh god, poor woman, did they arrest her. Even if they didn't it must have been very embarrasing.
 
I don't know anything about the toxin reason behind the colic but the reduction in fibre intake will often be a cause of colic. I have an older horse with fairly dodgy teeth and I'm very aware of potential issues caused through lack of fibre intake with her. She is also a cob and even at 25 is actually a fairly good doer so long as she takes in enough food. Keeping an eye on her body weight would not be an accurate method of monitoring her intake. I weigh her hay (she does get adlib) and weigh what is left if any, and if there is any significant change, I know to have things checked. I always have her on some high fibre nuts and speedibeet and if there is a drop in her hay intake, I up the weight of fibre nuts and speedibeet to make sure she has a minimum of 1% bodyweight fibre intake.

Word of warning about the tooth in the bag - it will most likely STINK!!!! I have a tooth from my mare but I had to soak it in bleach overnight to get rid of the vile stench!!!
 
Thanks for that. I do try to monitor his haylage, but unfortunately he likes to soak it himself. He pulls it out of his nets and dunks it in the water tub I have provided (to keep his automatic waterer clean) The result is a dreadful soggy mess which he then spread around the stable. It would be impossible to work out what he had eaten, although I do know when he has wasted more than normal.

I have had him on a high fibre diet fed in sloppy mashes since he had colic 18 months ago, so I dont think that was a cause this time.

Thanks for the warning about the tooth, its in a sealed bag, I dont actually want to do anything with it. Rachael has just made me feel guilty about chucking it away :D :D

Its interesting to hear that colic in oldies is caused for different reasons than is often the case in younger horses.
 
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