Pets – breeding, nutrition, health

Colic is the most important horse illness in terms of: – It is the most frequent cause of pre-mature death of horses – It is the most common cause of serious illness, with at least 1 in 10 horses getting it each year – It is the bigest single cause of large veterinary bills (into thousands of dollars. It sometimes results in other serious illnesses (e.g. laminitis or founder).

The primary causes have been identified by research which has spaned thousands of colic cases. Following is a list of what one should do to avoid these primary causes and thereby minimise the risk of horse colic.

1) Feed Frequently. Horses have evolved as foragers, eating throughout the day. The more often your horse eats, the healthier its digestive system will be. Try to replace a few large meals by more but smaller meals.

2) Grass or Hay. The horse’s digestive system is designed for high-volume and high-fiber foods. High-energy foods such as grain or musli do not meet these requirements. Although one can feed grain, the majority of the horse’s food should ideally be grass or failing that hay. Furthermore, when feeding both hay and grain, the hay should be fed first to aid digestion and reduce bolting.

3) Soak Pelleted Food. Unsoaked pellets (e.g. hay pellets) are more likely to be bolted and more likely to cause choke than soaked pellets. More relevantly, unsoaked pellets expand when they come into contact with stomach liquids and can thereby result in bloat and subsequently colic.

4) Lock Feedroom Door. Horses which get into a feedroom can stuff themselves, especially on grain, which can result in colic (it can also cause laminitis). A lock or horse-proof latch is adviseable.

5) Bolting. If your horse bolts (swallows before chewing) its food, discuss options with your veterinarian. You may need to change its feed or feeding regime (e.g. soak pellets, feed hay before grain, feed more often) to correct this habit. Also check if there are dental issues which require corrective work.

6) Dirt and Sand. Horses that ingest large amounts of dirt or sand are likely to develop impaction colic, especially if they have a low-fiber diet. Do not feed your horse on a sandy or dirty surface. Avoid putting them on over-grazed pastures, as they will ingest earth on such pastures.

6) Water. Ensure that the horse has access to water at all times. During winter, horses will often not drink enough if the water is too cold so one may need to warm the water. After exercise, limit the amount of water the horse drinks before it cools down.

7) Worming. Horses which are wormed regularly (3-4 times/year) are less likely to develop colic. All the horses on a given pasture should be wormed at the same time to prevent cross-reinfection. Horses which have not been wormed for a long time can get colic when wormed due to an excessive worm population, so they should be given a laxative a few days before to first reduce the quantity of worms.

8) Exercise. Horses which are regularly exercised or that have natural exercise through pasture access are less likely to have colic. When starting an exercise regime or sport, changes should be made gradually as a rapid increase in the amount or intensity of exercise may cause colic.

9) Bedding. Horses will often eat straw bedding. If your horse eats excessive amounts of bedding, especially indigestable bedding types (e.g. wood shavings), change to a bedding type which they will not eat.

10) Cold. Most horses can tolerate cold well, especially if they are young and healthy. However, if a horse becomes chilled (drop in body temperature) there is a good chance they will have colic. This is most likely when a period of mild weather is followed by sudden cold weather. It is also likely to occur when cold weather is combined with wet and windy weather.

Allowing your horse to grow a long winter coat and protecting it with a rug during the coldest weather is adviseable. Special care needs to be taken with old, sick or weak horses which are less able to maintain body temperature.

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