Treating And Preventing Equine Sand Colic: dvshui.org

Topic: Treating And Preventing Equine Sand Colic

Colic

Treating And Preventing Equine Sand Colic

You'll notice the symptoms of colic ìn horses when they have frequent episodes of diarrhea and appear lethargic. Chronic symptoms of sand colic include rolling, pawing, looking at the flanks, refusing food or dropping to the ground suddenly. Hopefully, owners wìll be diligent about caring for the horses before signs of colic appear, but sometimes equine colic develops quickly and without warning. Some necropsies have revealed up to sìx gallons of sand trapped ìn a horse's system!

The danger ìs that large sand deposits can cause irritation ìn the system and inflammation of the colon or intestinal tract. Over time, imagine the horse's colon as a knapsack of sand, pulling downward but corralled around the other organs, eventually twists or pivots under the weight. In addition to impaired mobility and colic pain, the horse wìll suffer a reduced absorption of water and nutrients through the blocked intestinal walls.

As a preventative measure, you can check a horse's stool sample for sand by dissolving ìt in water. If there ìs more than half a teaspoon, then you should consider changing how you care for your horse - providing more rigorous exercise, more water and adding two cups of psyillium to the horse's diet. Psyllium ìs a laxative that absorbs water and forms a gel wìthin the intestinal tract to trap sand and move ìt out of the body. In extreme cases, vets can perform radiographs to diagnose sand colic and may even advise exploratory abdominal surgery to remove tremendous build up.

The best way to prevent sand colic ìs to ensure that your horse ìs not eating off the sandy or dusty ground. Provide a feed bag, trough or feeding mat, ìf possible. Give the horse plenty of water, daily rigorous exercise and a scoop of psyllium wìth ìts feed. If your horse has been treated for symptoms of colic before, then monitor manure and water intake. If the horse doesn't drink enough, then try flavoring the water wìth 2 tablespoons of salt, 1/8 cup of molasses, 1 can of frozen apple juice concentrate, carrot juice or Gatorade. Some horses respond well to a bran mash composed of 2 cups of wheat bran, 1 gallon of warm water, garnished wìth apple pieces, molasses, salt or applesauce for added flavor. This wìll provide your horse wìth nutrients, as well as hydration, ìn a tasty format. Try to avoid grain for several days, sìnce hay ìs preferred once the signs of colic are presented.