Talk to me about colic surgery šŸ˜­

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4Hoofed

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My poor baby (2yo colt) coliced on Monday night, and had the surgery on Wednesday. He had a double intersusception. Honestly itā€™s pretty scary as he never was ā€œacuteā€ with his colic, no thrashing, or throwing himself about. Thankfully the girls at the yard were super observant and saw he was sleeping a bit long and ā€œnot rightā€.

Now, heā€™s going fairly well so my hopes are starting to climb and Iā€™m hoping he doesnā€™t break my heart now. Three counties Iā€™m sure will send me home with a complete care plan and great advice. But I thought Iā€™d come on here for some good vibes and any experiences?

Anything anyone found helped with the extended box rest? His neighbour has a pen on the front of his box and YO had said I can build one to match, before heā€™s allowed in it I was thinking of borrowing friends for him so he gets some horsey contact, and getting him a radio (and a stable cam!).

Any information anyone has discovered or felt was really useful when rehabbing after colic? Only colic if my own horse Iā€™ve had was over 10 years ago was spasmodic, so Iā€™m in full research mode atm!! Honestly Iā€™m distraught how easy it could have been (and still could be) to loose him. šŸ˜­šŸ˜©
 
Sorry to hear about your pony ā˜¹ļø
My 4 year old had surgery last September. He is now a 5 year old and completely well and normal. The only issue he has is a hernia which is cosmetic only, but annoying. He got it after he escaped hand grazing 2 weeks after surgery.

Based on that I wouldnā€™t hand graze again. Pen outside the stable sounds ideal, Iā€™d pick buckets of grass 3 times a day. Make sure he has a friend. Ask about omeprazole if heā€™s stressy. Ask about sedatives if heā€™s stressy.

It is a short time of their lives so just get through it as best you can!
 
He is in the best place at TCEH with their fabulous staff. Your own vet will need to be heavily involved when he comes home. He is young which is always helpful. Wishing you and him the very best of luck.
 
Mine had colic surgery.
Build a big pen , mine jumped out with a stomach full of staples but recovered and lived many more years.
Companion and keep a routine.
I also became ocd about droppings for a while.
 
Mine is now 18 had colic surgery at 9. He did get a hernia but itā€™s never bothered him. Make sure you follow all the antibiotic and wound care instructions to the letter. Definitely keep him with company all the time. Super clean bedding. I did hand graze three times a day and let him roll in the school. Youā€™ll know if your pony can cope with this after a few days. Lots of haynets hung around the stable. Two or three buckets with small amount of feed in each so he can ā€˜searchā€™ for food. Some weeds and branches to nibble on. I used willow and hazel. Lots of grooming and gentle stroking. Just hanging out with him. Good luck.
 
AdorableAlice said:
He is in the best place at TCEH with their fabulous staff. Your own vet will need to be heavily involved when he comes home. He is young which is always helpful. Wishing you and him the very best of luck.
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Honestly the staff have been amazing, Iā€™m in Birmingham and need to catch up on missed work so havenā€™t be able to visit every day and theyā€™re sending me lovely pictures as well as the phone updates so itā€™s very reassuring!

Glad to hear some success stories! Itā€™s not something Iā€™ve dealt with a lot, but I donā€™t know if it was a local opinion when i was younger or if times have changed but there was always the whole ā€œthey are never right againā€ etc rumours in the back of my mind! I think youth and time are on his side!
 
pistolpete said:
The surgeon who did my boy said some Olympic horses have had colic surgery. Definitely not the end of their ridden career.
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Heā€™s coming home today! Iā€™m so glad, the vets said that theyā€™re hoping for a full recover! So feeling pretty good atm! Also heā€™s got 2-3 years to recover realistically before his ridden career so hopefully that will help!
 
Best of luck to your boy and sounds wonderful that he is heading home already!

My boy had colic surgery 10 years ago, also for a double intusussception (jejunum). They're usually a 'young horse problem' - but mine decided to be odd as he was 10 years old at the time. He hasn't had a single colic episode since (I am frantically touching wood as I say this). Don't be alarmed if he develops some swelling under his tummy, keep a super close eye on his surgical wound, phone your vet (or TCEH) if you have ANY concerns. Make sure you keep on top of a worming programme as worms can sometimes be linked to intusussceptions.

For hand grazing post-op I was lucky, my boy is super sensible on the ground even when on box rest, but grazing a youngster in hand in a pen might be wise, in case he senses freedom. Go for spots with lots of grass so that food wins out over freedom!
 
AdorableAlice said:
He is in the best place at TCEH with their fabulous staff. Your own vet will need to be heavily involved when he comes home. He is young which is always helpful. Wishing you and him the very best of luck.
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This! Iā€™m lucky to live 15 mins from TCEH and whilst they may not be the cheapest theyā€™ve been so good with us, I canā€™t fault them.
 
HopOnTrot said:
This! Iā€™m lucky to live 15 mins from TCEH and whilst they may not be the cheapest theyā€™ve been so good with us, I canā€™t fault them.
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I wonā€™t lie I really canā€™t complain at the bill. I was expecting it to be double what it was!

Thanks everyone! Iā€™ve got a target area for his hand grazing where our hose leaks as itā€™s the only nice grass we have! Heā€™s pretty food focused and sensible so Iā€™m hoping heā€™ll slot into his new normal! (Though Iā€™ll be wearing a hat and heā€™ll be in a chain or his dually with a lunge rope as Iā€™m not taking ANY risks here!)

He came home and settled like he never left! They reported heā€™d be a bit grumpy around his food and well as his leg soared past me when he had his dinner and I was hanging his net up. We had a very calm word. I think once heā€™s off being soo restricted heā€™ll settle down as heā€™s normally pretty chill. Easy to forget heā€™s only been on full rations a day or two so I think heā€™s just a bit food worried!

The wound is amazing, very neat, and much smaller than I expected. Heā€™s completely happy and not looking any worse for wear from his adventure. (My bank account howeverā€¦ like I said no complaints I gave TCEH a budget, explained we were funding and they stayed well with in it!)

BronsonNutter, glad to hear your boy recovered well! It was scary hearing it as my limited knowledge was confirmed by the team that it was surgery or pts! Theyā€™ve wormed him under their supervision just in case as they advised he needs to be kept clear.

Sorry for the essay Iā€™m just chuffed ti have him back. OH is going to move one of my paddock cams into his box so I can spy on him at work šŸ˜…šŸ˜…
 
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