Equine Health Information

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COLIC IN HORSES

Colic in horses is defined as abdominal pain, but it is a clinical sign rather than a diagnosis. The term colic can encompass all forms of gastrointestinal conditions which cause pain as well as other causes of abdominal pain not involving the gastrointestinal tract. The most common forms of colic are gastrointestinal in nature and are most often related to colonic disturbance. There are a variety of different causes of colic, some of which can prove fatal without surgical intervention. Colic surgery is usually an expensive procedure as it is major abdominal surgery, often with intensive aftercare. Among domesticated horses, colic is the leading cause of premature death. The incidence of colic in the general horse population has been estimated between 10 and 11 percent on an annual basis. It is important that any person who owns or works with horses be able to recognize the signs of colic and determine whether or not a veterinarian should be called

Pelvic flexure impaction

This is caused by an impaction of food material (Water, Grass, Hay, Grain) at a part of the large bowel known as the pelvic flexure of the left colon where the intestine takes a 180 degree turn and narrows. Impaction generally responds well to medical treatment, but more severe cases may not recover without surgery. If left untreated, severe impaction colic can be fatal. The most common cause is when the horse is on box rest and/or consumes large volumes of straw, or the horse has dental disease and is unable to masticate properly. This condition could be diagnosed on rectal examination by a veterinarian

Spasmodic colic

Spasmodic colic is the result of increased peristaltic contractions in the horse’s gastrointestinal tract. It can be the result of a mild gas buildup within the horse’s digestive tract. The signs of colic are generally mild and respond well to spasmolytic and analgesic medication

SAND IMPACTION

This is most likely to occur in horses that graze sandy or heavily grazed pastures leaving only dirt to ingest. The term sand also encompasses dirt. The ingested sand or dirt accumulates in the pelvic flexure, right dorsal colon and the cecum of the large intestines. As the sand or dirt irritates the lining of the bowel it can cause diarrhea. The weight and abrasion of the sand or dirt causes the bowel wall to become inflamed and can cause a reduction in colonic motility and in severe cases even peritonitis. Historically medical treatment of the problem is with laxatives such as liquid paraffin or oil and psyllium husk. More recently doctors are treating cases with specific synbiotic (pro and prebiotic) and psyllium combinations. Some cases may need surgery. Horses with sand or dirt impaction are predisposed to Salmonella infection. Horses should not be fed from the ground in areas where sand, dirt and silt are prevalent although small amounts of sand or dirt will still be ingested by grazing. Management to reduce sand intake and prophylactic treatments with sand removal products are recommended by most veterinarians

Following a few guidelines will help to keep your horse’s digestive system in proper working order:

1. Feed Often: A horse’s digestive system is designed for all day grazing and so feeding the horse as frequently as possible is the best situation. Horses should be let out to pasture as often as possible. Those that are kept mostly in a stall should be fed three times a day if possible. Two times a day is the absolute minimum of times a horse should be fed a day.
2. Feed high quality hay: Horses need to eat a diet that consists mostly of hay, which stimulates the horse’s stomach, reducing the chance of colic. Horses should not be fed on the ground so that they don’t ingest too much dirt of sand, helping to prevent sand colic. Hay also needs to be of good quality and clear of all molds.
3. Provide plenty of water: Keeping your horse well hydrated is another way to help prevent colic. Although you cannot force a horse to drink it is important to be sure that they have a constant supply of fresh clean water. In the winter this means making sure the water hasn’t frozen over. In the summer it is important to be sure the horse has cool enough water because horses will refuse to drink water that is too warm. If the horse does become dehydrated it is important to give them electrolytes. These can be given in paste form or mixed in with their grain.
4. Provide plenty of exercise: horses need to be given some form of exercise because it helps to move things through their digestive systems. This is particularly important for horses that are stabled and not given enough time out in the pasture. Even if the horse gets only a simple thirty minute walk around the farm that will be helpful to their digestive system. Another important part of exercising your horse is making sure that the horse has a proper warm-up and cool down.
5. Proper dental care: Horses that don’t have properly cared for teeth often develop points on their teeth that prevent them from chewing their food well enough before they swallow. Food that is not properly chewed can easily result in impaction colic. Impaction colic is very dangerous for the horse and can result in the necessity for surgery. Horse’s teeth should be checked twice a year to make sure that points are filed down.

Read more at Suite101: Colic Prevention: Steps to Keep Colic Away http://www.suite101.com/content/colic-prevention-a109417#ixzz1GzBlPo3G

The Diagnosis of Lameness in the Horse

Lameness is defined as “a deviation from the normal gait or posture due to pain or mechanical dysfunction”. We recognize lameness because there is a change in the way our horse stands, walks, trots, or canters. Usually lameness is the result of pain, but not always. Mechanical factors and abnormal nerve function causes several well-defined problems with the horse’s gait. The steps necessary to arrive at a firm diagnosis for the cause of a lameneess are:

1. Identifying a clear symptom of lameness.
2. Localizing those symptoms to the diseased leg or legs.
3. Localizing the area of the leg that is diseased.
4. Identifying the nature of the disease

Only when these steps are followed carefully is it possible to arrive at a correct diagnosis. Sometimes the steps are as easy as:

Steps 1 and 2: the horse will not bear weight on the right leg.

Step 3: The foot is as hot as a iron.

Step 4: Examination of the foot with hoof testers finds a sore spot that when pared into exudes puss.

But often the symptoms are such that they don’t immediately lend themselves to identifying which leg is involved or even whether it is pain in the leg or foot responsible for the problem. This article takes each of the steps of diagnosing lameness and explains them so that you can recognize the changes associated with lameness, how to determine which leg is lame, how to localize the lameness in the leg, and then how identify the cause. Links to specific causes of lameness are then provided.