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COLIC IN HORSES:WHAT IS IT, WHEN TO CALL THE VET, HOW TO PREVENT ITColic is simply a term that means pain in the abdomen of the horse. The source of this pain can be any structure within the abdominal cavity. Most of the time the pain is related to the intestinal tract. The pain that the horse feels from the intestinal tract is usually due to stretch receptors in the wall of the stomach or intestine signaling the brain that there is an abnormality present. The clinical signs of pain in the horse are looking or biting at their sides, rolling, lying down and getting up repeatedly, curling their upper lip, stretching as if to urinate, restlessness, off-feed, and/or grinding their teeth. Generally the higher (or closer to the beginning of the gastro-intestinal tract) the problem is the greater the intensity of pain and the quicker it develops. In other words, an impaction of food in the stomach is much more painful and occurs much more quickly after a meal than an impaction of fecal material in the large intestine. In addition to impactions of food or fecal material, horse colic from sand impactions. Sand is a very common problem in the Southwest and surprisingly it is a problem here in Alaska as well. During the late summer and fall when there is very little vegetation left and the leaves are falling from the trees, horses here are often seen eating what is left of the vegetation and leaves directly off of the ground and end up ingesting a significant amount of sandy material. This sand can cause a blockage in the intestinal tract as well as being very irritating to the lining of the intestine and even cause diarrhea. Other colic cases develop from excess gas production that may occur from a sudden feed change or exposure to poor quality feed, they may have diarrhea and cramping from feed changes or infections, they may experience blockages of the intestinal tract from foreign materials (non-feedstuffs) or enteroliths (concretions of mineral formed in the intestinal tract usually around a nidus of a foreign body such as metal or rubber) Fig.1, they may have a blockage of the intestinal tract from a displacement or torsion of a portion of the intestine or from strangulation of the intestine from a pedunculated lipoma, for instance. In other areas of the abdomen a horse may experience colic pain from a blockage in the urinary bladder from a bladder stone or possible blockage of the bile ducts of the liver from biliary stones. Kidney infection or stones could cause colic pain as well.
Figure 1 If you think your horse has colic it is helpful to your veterinarian to obtain some simple information about the horses condition prior to calling. In some cases the horse is too painful and violent to be able to obtain any information and assistance should be obtained as soon as possible. Always stay safe in those situations. If you are able to check a few things out prior to calling the vet you should minimally check for gut sounds, obtain the heart rate, check the rectal temperature, and check the color of the gums and the capillary refill. Gut sounds are obtained by listening at the horses flank on both the left and right sides, high and low on each side.Fig.2 You should be familiar with what is normal for your horse so you can describe the abnormal findings. The intestines are generally louder and more active sounding on the horses right side than his left. Intestinal sounds should be progressive, that is to say they should sound like they are going somewhere. If there are no sounds or too much activity or there is jus a hollow gassy sound, these findings are all abnormal. During and for a short time after exercise a horses gut sounds will be diminished normally. There is considerable shunt of blood flow to the muscles when a horse is exercising and his intestinal activity slows down during that time. If you have been walking the horse during colic, his gut activity may actually be compromised by walking too much.
Figure 2 The horse normal pulse rate or heart rate is 30-40 beats per minute. You can obtain the horses heart rate by listening to his heart with a stethoscope placed under his left elbow and counting the number of beats in a minute (or 15 seconds and multiplying by 4). Remember, if you have been walking the horse to keep him from lying down or rolling, his heart rate will be elevated from walking. It is best to try to let the horse rest for a moment and let his heart rate slow down before counting. You can also obtain the horses pulse rate by checking the pulse on the branch of the facial artery that comes across the horses lower jaw on the flat portion of his face. There is also an artery on the side of the fetlock that you can check the pulse. Figures 3,4,5,6.
Fig. 3 Fig. 4 Fig. 5 Fig. 6 It is a good idea to know what normal gum color and moisture is so that during an episode of colic you will know whether the horse is normal or not. We like to know what color the gums are (hopefully pale pink), whether or not they are moist (hopefully glistening) and what the capillary refill time is (less than 2 seconds is normal). To obtain the capillary refill time, press your finger against the gum and count the time it takes for color to return to the area you pressed. Figures 7,8,9.
Fig. 7 Fig. 8 Fig. 9 You can also do a sand test on the horses manure on a regular basis to see how much sand he is actually ingesting. To begin take the equivalent of one horse apple of manure from the top of a pile of manure and place it in a clear glass jar with water. Float off all of the food material and visualize the sand in the bottom of the jar. If there is more than 1/4 of a teaspoon of sand in the bottom of the jar, the horse is ingesting too much sand and is at risk for sand colic. Figures 10,11,12,13,14.
Fig. 10 Fig. 11 Fig. 12
Fig. 13 Fig. 14 It is also very helpful to have as much recent history about the horse as possible. Has there been a feed change? What does the horse normally eat? Did the horse finish his last feeding? Has water consumption been normal? Have their been any changes in activity? Has the horse been transported recently? Has the horse been on any medications recently? Is there access to weeds or poisonous plants? Has the horse fallen recently? There are almost an endless number of questions that could be asked regarding the overall management and health of the horse that may be relevant in a case of colic. Treatment of colic depends on the nature of the problem. Most of the time colic can be remedied with medical treatment. There are some colic situations that require surgical intervention. Your veterinarian will keep you advised as the condition progresses about the best course of action. Colic is still a major cause of death in horses and as such requires that we give serious attention to prevention. Horses have a relatively sensitive digestive system and it is important that all feed changes be made gradually. A horse should be fed at frequent and regular intervals and he should be given ample amounts of roughage. Most importantly, horses should have constant access to a fresh, unfrozen source of water. It has been shown that horses will willingly drink more warm water than cold, so it is a good idea in the winter to keep water heated. Horses do not get adequate hydration from eating snow. Horses should be regularly dewormed. Horses should not be fed large amounts of food immediately before hard exercise, nor immediately after. Horses do require good quality feed, free of mold and dirt. Horses should not be fed on sandy surfaces. Here in Alaska we recommend that horses be given psyllium products in the fall and early winter to try to help eliminate sand from their intestinal tract if they have been exposed to it. It is always important to feed horses according to their stage in life, the climate, and their exercise level, adjusting their feed intake daily if necessary. Dental examinations should take place at least yearly and floating and/or other dental procedures undertaken by your veterinarian as needed. Older horses should have regular geriatric health examinations and laboratory work performed to remain apprised of any developing health conditions. Performance animals should be monitored for signs of stress and evaluated by videoendoscopy for evidence of stomach ulcers if indicated. In general, good animal husbandry and good horsemanship go a long way to maintaining healthy colic free horses. Winter ColicWinter in Alaska brings special challenges in caring for our horse friends. We always see more cases of colic in the winter months. Many of these are due to inadequate intake of water. Horses often need more water in the winter months because of an increased consumption of roughage or hay. Increasing the amount of hay fed is helpful to keep horses warm but it does require the consumption of more water. Horses tend to drink less water if the water is cold so it is important to maintain a constant supply of warm water and to keep track of how much your horse is drinking. If his water consumption decreases it may be helpful to put a small amount of loose salt on his feed and/or supply a nice bran mash (See Recipe) or watered feed. Always check your water supply to be sure there is no electrical short resulting in a shock to the horse. Horses are very sensitive to electricity and a small shock will definitely put a horse off his water source. Another risk in fall and winter is the consumption of sand or gravel. We have seen some cases of colic from horses eating the sand or gravel put down in their pens to improve the footing. These can be difficult cases to deal with; you can imagine the amount of inflammation that occurs in the lining of the gastro-intestinal tract from sand or gravel moving through. With the icy winter we are having, this has become a very real risk. Ordinarily, horses would not eat the sand or gravel, but boredom and a craving for minerals will occasional cause horses to do just that. Feeding psyllium products does help to carry small amounts of sand out of the GI tract. If you do have to put down sand or gravel in your pens to maintain the footing be sure to feed the horses in a different area and monitor their manure for the presence of sand (see Sand Test). Occasionally horses just get cold and develop a stress colic. Often just a few blankets and a bucket of warm water with a little extra feed will ward off this problem.
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