Basically colic is a stomach ache. It doesn't sound to bad yet does it? But it gets worse. Like I mentioned in one of my first posts, horses cannot vomit, so they can't get whatever bad thing they ate out of their system. The stomach ache gets worse and worse and soon the horse is in a lot of pain. So what does it do? It rolls. This is a horses way of trying to relieve the pain of the stomach ache, but really it just makes things worse. If the horse rolls too much, it can twist its intestines, and this is where the lethal part comes in. If this happens and a vet cannot attend to the horse in time, it can die.
So how do we know if a horse has colic? These are all the signs that can tell us (thanks, wiki!) The underlined ones are the most obvious signs and the ones that you should generally watch out for.
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| A horse's digestive system, pic from http://www.stophorsecolic.com/ |
- Pawing and/or scraping
- Stretching
- Frequent attempts to urinate
- Flank watching: turning of the head to watch the stomach and/or hind quarters
- Biting/nipping/kicking the stomach
- Pacing
- Repeated flehmen response
- Repeated lying down and rising
- Rolling
- Groaning
- Bruxism
- Excess salivation and sweat
- Loss of appetite
- Decreased fecal output
- Increased pulse rate
- Dark mucous membranes
What should you do if your horse has colic? Don't panic- if your horse really does have colic, you need to be calm for both yourself and the horse. Don't give yourself a scare if your horse is rolling- horses normally roll once and a while- it's just violent rolling you have to watch out for.
If you are sure or even if you're just half sure your horse has colic, call the vet. Even if your horse doesn't end up having colic, what would you rather? A dead horse or a vet bill?
DONT let your horse roll. Either tie him up tightly, walk him around to keep him moving and on his feet or let him lie down but not roll while you wait for the vet. Once the vet comes they can handle the rest but its important you call them as soon as possible otherwise it is much more difficult to take care of. Sometimes colic goes away by itself but call the vet just in case.
I've known horses that've had colic and its a scary experience. None of them had a serious case and twisted their intestines but it was frightening all the same- it's lethal, after all. However, if you remember the things in bold and watch out for all the symptoms then you and your horses should all be fine :)
