How can you prevent colic?

There are no absolute guarantees that you can totally prevent colic but there are many ways to help try to prevent it. Many horse owners manage to successully avoid it. Sometimes, it just depends on the individual horse.

Here's what you can do to GREATLY LIMIT the chances that your horse will colic:

1. Always make sure your feed and hay are fresh. Do the visual and sniff test and throw out any feed or hay that smells sour or moldy.
2. Never overfeed.
3. Keep poisons out of reach.
4. Always lock up feeding bins or buildings where feed is stored. Horses will gorge themselves if given the chance. They will actually eat themselves to death.
5. Don't allow the horse to graze on very rich green grass for extended periods of time. (Keep them away from grass clippings and never allow the horse to have freshly cut grass or someone dump the clippings from a lawn mower. This not only can cause colic, wet grass clippings can actually be fatal to a horse)
6. Avoid an irregular feeding schedule. Two small feedings a day, morning and evening if possible, (about 10-12 hrs apart) are better than one large feeding.
7. Don't ride immediately after feeding.
8. Always keep fresh water available at all times, especially after feeding. Impaction colic is vey common and can often be prevented just by keeping water available.
9. If you change feed, do it slowly, over 1 1/2 to 2 weeks. Quick changes in feeding can cause colic.
10. Don't put hay or feed on the ground. Feed from a bowl, dish or other container. Put your horses hay in a hay rack or hay net. Dirt and sand buildup in the gut causes what's known as sand colic.
11. Stay on a regular worming schedule. (At least every 3 months or every time the seasons change) Worm infestations can cause blockages and colic.
12. Give your horse regular vet checkups.
13. Be aware of plants that are poisonous to horses and get them out of the pasture or out of your horses reach.
14. NEVER let a hot horse drink cool water. Always cool your horse first.
15. GET RID OF SUGAR! Sugar not only can cause colic but is the leading cause of laminitis and founder! Be careful in the amounts of sweet treats you give your horse and please consider switching from a rich, sugar-loaded feed to a more natural hay substitute or quality whole grain. (For example, Hay pellets, hay cubes, whole oats, etc.)

What causes colic?

I guess this is just about the most common question asked, probably because colic is the #1 killer of horses and the most common fear of horse owners (and rightly so).

Colic is actually just a symptom, not a condition itself. It's a symptom of pain in the abdomen, which can be caused by dozens of things. Some of the things that can cause colic are: too much feed or too rich of a feed, spoiled or moldy feed, changing to a new or different feed too suddenly, not enough water to drink, a hot horse drinking cold water, fear, anxiety and stress, eating a poisonous plant, tetanus, as well as diseases of the internal organs such as the stomach, liver or kidneys. Those are just a few causes of colic. Only a veterinarian can tell you what probably caused the colic.

Horses have extremely sensitive and delicate digestive systems that are designed to live on almost constant grazing of varying types of grasses, and a lot of dry grasses. Pastures of rich, green grass and sweetened commercial horse feeds contain way too much sugar for the horses digestive system. Domesticated horses are so much more at risk of getting foods that are too rich for them to handle, whether we give it to them or they break into the feed bin.

Colic is an emergency. If your horse shows signs of colic, you should call the veterinarian immediately. Do not allow the horse to lie down or roll.

(*Side Note: a lot of people ask why you can't let a horse roll. Don't you hate it when people tell you to do something or not to do something and don't tell you why? So do I! So, I'll tell you why: The reason you can't let a colicky horse roll is because an average sized horses intestines are about 100 feet long and they are not attached to anything inside the stomach cavity, (they are basically "free floating"), so when a horse is in pain, they often thrash and roll violently and roll often. The rolling over and over part can cause their intestines to actually fold over on themselves or get twisted and twisted intestines are almost always fatal. That's why you should never allow a colicking horse to roll. Interesting, huh?)

So...if your horse colics, call the vet, make sure you stay calm, (which will help the horse to stay calmer), keep a halter on them, keep them on their feet and walk them at their own pace until the vet arrives.

Beginnings:A horse resource

Horses are a passion of mine and a large part of my life. It seems to be a personal quest of mine to learn everything I can about them. I've spent a lot of time helping others with their horse issues, answering questions and giving advice both in person and online. One day, someone said, "Wow. You really know a lot about horses. Your answers are great!" and pointed out that there really aren't a lot of websites on the internet where you can just get some quick (and reliable) answers to your horse questions. So, here I am, diving into blogging, a world that I am totally unfamiliar with.

I really don't know where this blog is going to end up but I have a few good general ideas of where I want it to go. It is my hope that I can create a place where people of all ages can quickly find some good answers to a lot of general questions on horse care, behavior and training, as well as helpful and informative links to other great sites and resources.

I have a lot of information to share so it will take a little while to get it all online. I hope you stop back by and keep in touch.

All the best,
Melanie