post colic surgery advise please

[JJtheJetPlane]

have just got my mare home tonight, she has had two weeks at leahurst had colic surgery, £6k later with no insurance i have been able to bring her home...she is comfortable but has the occasional look at her tummy and is eating very small amounts...im just wondering how other people have got on when you have brought your horse home..how long till you could tell they were out of pain completley and back to normal? I know if anything serious happens ill be on the phone to my vet but just after a few experiences for ref thats all if anyone could give me any advise
i would have liked her to look more comfortable but funds wont allow me to keep her there any longer for them to observe her, whats needed now will have to be done at home...

 

[Box_Of_Frogs]

Did they tell you what to watch out for hun? I know when I had major abdominal surgery I still had odd little pains and ouchies long after everything was mended. Hopefully that's all it is but if in doubt, you could ring Leahurst and ask for reassurance x

 

[slingo1uk]

By the way when i say he was "IN" i meant his stable not Leahurst he was there for about 8 days

 

[Nash2]

My mare had colic surgery and it does take a long time for them to come around it is a very major thing. She'll be on box rest for at the very least the next 8 weeks I would have thought. Make sure her wound is kept really clean - is your normal vet coming out to take the stitches out? They will normally come out pretty soon after they are released - give them or/and the hospital a ring whenever you like. I think the fact that your mare is eating at all is a very positive sign - mine wouldn't at all for over a week and it became a big worry. She'll only be able to manage little bits so I would say that's fine. Like I say just watch her wound for infection. My mare was also allowed out in hand for a bit of grass starting from 5 mins a day and building up so see what they say. My mare had her surgery in the New Year and she wasn't allowed out properly until the April so it does take a long time. I would def call the vet and feel free to message me if you need to as I went through it all and it is obviously quite traumatic.

 

[_jetset_]

My mare underwent colic surgery in December 2007... She came home on 26th December following surgery on 16th December.

She initially was on 8 weeks of complete box rest with 10 minutes of walking and grass a few times a day. Following this period, most horses are turned out in a small paddock. Unfortunately, my mare was also undergoing treatment for a suspensory injury so with the consent of my vet (following some tests on the scar tissue) I started to walk her under saddle for 20 minutes a day as well as her 10 minutes at grass too.

My mares stitches came out before I brought her home so I was not to do anything with the scar at all and it healed incredibly quickly. She had one small problem of a stitch abscess so we took that one internal stitch out and it healed beautifully. You cannot even feel the scar now, the vets are absolutely amazed at how pliable it has healed.

My mare is a real fussy eater anyway... but Leahurst put her on Ready Mash which she did eat so I kept her on this for the whole time she was on box rest. She also had adlib hay and hardly any hard feed at all (she was a bit loony!)

My mare did not have any discomfort signs at all when she came home. In fact, other than a whacking great big scar, she was completely back to normal. However, she did not have any intestine removed though.

 

[Alibear]

I'm going back to the mid ninetees on this so things may have changed a bit but it was 8 weeks box rest, and she was on a soup.mash type feed for 3 months post op and then we slowly built up the consistency after then.
She still coliced occasionally post op and long term was better when kept on soup type hard feeds rather than the normal ones. Hot water breaks down pretty much any kind of feed , just leave it too cool a bit before giving it to her.
Good luck , she lucky to have such a caring mum.

 

[stroppymare153]

daughter's 10yr old eventer had colic surgery in March - right at the beginning of the season

- his was an impaction in his stomach so didn't need any gut cutting out.

He was in hospital for 1 week, on box rest for 4 weeks and then in a small paddock with in hand walking (or jogging!) for another 4 weeks - seemed totally happy in himself by this stage and had regained most of the weight he lost. He was back eventing (pre-novice) in mid June and hasn't looked back.

Did your mare have an infection post op or was she a particularly complicated case? Is she starting to put weight on? If you have any worries, give Leahurst a call - they always seem very happy to offer advice.

 

[Ninfapaola]

You also have to be aware of your horse developing a hernia, hence the box rest etc.

I did all the things advised by Leahurst when my horse had colic surgery but he still ended up with a hernia which resulted in further surgery for him. However, it is not as invasive as colic surgery but it was still a set back for him in terms of recovery.