My mid-teens large pony has been plagued with diarrhea for about a week now. At day 4 I took a temp (99) and checked for dehydration - she's very well hydrated and taking in ample water.

 I called the vet and he said "let's wait & see." I took her off pasture and she's getting only hay and her usual 1/4 lb of oats/grain per day.

 Day 6 and the diarrhea is getting worse, rather than better. Very loose, looser than cow manure, very soupy, but not like "dirty dishwater." Slightly projectile in that I have to wash her tail and legs and the stall walls daily.

Vet came out on day 6 and took a fecal sample (negative for parasites) and drew some blood. Still waiting for the results on an in-house panel. Still, he's not too worried.

My observations:

1)She's still bright-eyed, eating & drinking well, though a little less "independent" than usual. Usually she's the herd "gaurdian" always on the alert. Now, she's not so interested in what's going on around her. But not totally unaffected. She is complaining that she's been confined to a stall

 2)I am not her favorite person (she's my daughter's pony and adores her - me, she just tolerates) but her attitude toward me has changed, she doesn't appear to dislike me as much as usual....

3) She is about 14h and has always been an "air pony" in that she's too easy of a keeper. Big fat belly, really too fat. She has dropped at least 50 lbs since the middle of October. Through her barrel she looks good considering should could afford to lose that weight. But she's all caved-in in the flanks and through her hind quarters. I can palpate her point of hip and her upper pelvic bones (behind the loin) very easily. (Vet says don't worry, that's typical when their bowels are emptied of bulk like this) I am concerned that my vet is not concerned enough.

He isn't worried because there is no fever, she's well hydrated and the diarrhea isn't the consistency of water (but it's the consistency of a thick soup!) He didn't want me to give her yogurt (which I am told will help replace the good bacteria that is being washed aways with the diarrhea) because he says the lactose isn't good for her.

He hasn't suggested any kind of treatment. He's still in a "wait & see mode." He believes she simply ingested something in the pasture that "didn't agree" with her and it simply has to run its course.

My question: how long does it take to "run its course?" Am I being too worried? Can it take longer that a week? Should I not be overly concerned when there is no fever, she's still got a good appetite and looks alert?

He's supposed to call this afternoon with the blood test results. If the panel comes back normal, then what? 

Thanks for any insight or ideas...

Here is a link-

http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=2338

Give probiotics and some electrolytes.  And wait and see.

ps.  don't post when yer tired.

this is an instance where i wouldnt wait much longer...this horse needs a thorough blood work up.

they can dehydrate and get their electroylytes out of balance with prolonged diarrhea.

with the weight loss, something is obviously wrong.

Always be interested in what the bloodwork finds...but I'd place money on it all being within normal levels....I would bet your horse has lovely bout of gastroenteritis....which is pretty much a big word for a nasty upset GI tract....likely due to eating something out of the norm, but can also sometimes be caused by stress, and even sometimes it just "happens"...usually the bacterial flora in the gut (yes, good bacteria live in the gut and when they get out of wack...diarrhea is your result) gets out of order in some direction or another (too much, too little, the wrong kind) and the body uses diarrhea to try to flush it out....usually the easiest course of treatment is a round of antibiotics and a probiotic to get the good bacteria going again....usually with sick animals you "generally" dont really have to worry until THEY start to worry (stop eating, lethargic, etc)....a lot of times a case of gastroenteritis will clear itself without treatment...

you know when you usually eat boring baked chicken and bland things for a while...then decide to splurge on mexican food...then you have the resultant evening in the bathroom...but you are usually good within a day or so...same thing...only imagine all you've EVER eaten was baked chicken....your stay in the bathroom would be considerably longer....same thing....only I hope your horse isn't splurging on chili rellenos ...

Great information, thanks.

Her blood work (in-house routine panel) came back relatively normal. He said her white blood cells were slightly elevated but not enough to signal an infection. Her albumin level slightly skewed, he said due to the diarrhea (expected). Her electrolytes slightly low - (again expected).

He mentioned that there could be the presence of a cystic parasite (I am not sure of this terminology because we went through a lot of different things. ) He said this type of parasite doesn't always show up in a fecal test. He wants to treat her with Panacur 5-day Power Pak.

Last night, she defecated and it was like a spigot. She stood as if she was going to urinate, and a stream of feces shot out about 2 -feet. Not completely liquid but close to it. Then a few minutes later she tried to urinate and the stream lasted less than 10 seconds...

I had a thought - I am wondering if something in her hay is doing this. I have been increasing hay as pasture is dying. I bought my hay from the same guy I have purchased it from for the past 4 years. It looks & smells fine.

But, this all came about when I started cutting back on pasture & increasing hay. She also has very loose stools everytime we travel (she gets hay in the trailer and hay at the show grounds, etc) - I always attributed the loose stools in the trailer to nerves. I took her off pasture completely with the onset of the diarrhea and put her on as much hay as she wanted - the diarrhea got worse....

None of the others horses are affected.

She now looks like a starvation case. He neck is thin, butt is atrophied.

My thought:  Take her off the hay, increase her grain ration to get some nutrients in her, add electrolytes and probiotic and give her hay stretcher or alfalfa cubes, or beet pulp. Some substitute for the hay - if she starts to improve then I will know it's something in the hay? I am going to bounce this course of action off my vet this morning and see what he thinks. Next course of action is to pack her up and bring her to another vet. My current vet is the only one in for 100 miles...

I am sick with worry. This is my daughter's horse. She has had to bury her elderly pony and then an elderly mare within the last five or so years. This is too much for a kid to withstand!

Ok, vet is not too encouraged by my hay theory, but he said go ahead and try, it won't hurt. Who knows.

Here's an article on the cystic parasites he was talking about....

http://www.horsetackreview.com/article-display/1342.html

 I am going to do the Panacur Power Pak starting today.

This morning, it's short watery squirts, like firing a water pistol. Brown water - no substance to it,  but only tiny amounts. She's bright, alert and eating, but mad about the no hay thing. I have to wait until the grain store opens to get the hay stretcher....

poor dear!

Go to the TSC or feed store and get Advance/arrest ( yellow and white packet)- non medicated eletrolyte and thickener. You should also get the animal form of peptobismol.

She need to have a gut rest. No hay OR grain for 24 hrs. just water and eletrolytes.Then add some feed back to her slowly. I wouldn't give her grain anymore until she firms up. I deal with sick calves all the time and this can work espcially if she isn't running  fever.

Sounds like she is dehydrating and once it really sets in, your in trouble. She'll likely need IV fluids at that point.

We have used the human pepto with great results.  It's the bismuth that is the active ingredient.  Of course like everyone has said you have to watch out for that dehydration.

JacciB

Human Pepto works quite well.  Cut the end off a large syringe and give it like deworming paste.

Probiotics and electolytes.

Also, take her temp twice daily.  Some will have fever at night but not in the morning or vice versa.

I hope she improves soon.  Please keep us posted.

The "wait and see" needs to end. This pony is clearly deteriorating! 100 miles is a walk in the park for peace of mind. Call the second opinion vet, detail the events, set an appoinment and go! I would take with me a day by day listing of occurrences, much like you have done on this sight. I worried for 6 weeks with a large pony mare and a vet diagnosed "urinary tract infection." After meds and no improvement, with low grade temp and blood still in urine, I transported her to an equine hospital. Within 60 minutes she was diagnosed with a tumor wrapped around her urethra. I could actually see it on the screen. We took her home, spent the afternoon together, and she was euthanized that evening. She would have suffered longer had I not been proactive.

Brenda

I suggested the animal version because its sold in gallon jugs, more for your money.And you might need to quanity.

Afternoon update - My vet is not supportive of adding electrolytes or probiotics yet. This is bothersome to me. Because the Need for these things are not the CAUSE of the diarrhea, they are result. He doesn't want to change too many things at once because it will be harder to determine the cause.

I am not sure I am in agreement here, I am equally concerned about treating the symptom (diarrhea) as discovering the cause of the symptom. However, the blood panel did reveal normal kidney function and he was not alarmed at the electrolyte levels.... so I am going to follow his advice to a point. BUT I am going to insist on another blood draw on Monday to make sure those levels are still ok.

On the hay, I really wanted to pull her hay from her, and the vet was fine with that (but didn't really think the hay was the culprit). But on the other hand, again, any abrupt changes in diet will only exacerbate the present situation. So I am not so sure I want to do that. I did buy a bag of Dengie - which is more digestable than hay. I will very slowly wean her off the hay and onto the dengie to see if that helps.

Two more observations: last night she tried to urinate but only evacuated about 1/2 c, - just a few seconds. Overnight there were ample wet spots in the stall, so I am thinking that the diarrhea is causing inflammation and she "feels" like she has to go when she doesn't maybe?

Also, she is doing little squirts of clear liquid now and again from her rectum. She raises her tail either to pass gas or to move the bowels, but a brief & light squirt of clearish liquid is all that comes out.

I am considering taking her to another vet, but we are expecting some foul weather tomorrow, driving rain with gusts up to 40 mph. I am not too keen on driving in those conditions...it may have to wait until Monday. Just as long as she doesn't go down hill any more....

On the plus side: this morning there were only two or three ummm-piles (for lack of a better word - maybe "puddles"?) Cleaned up the soup, washed down the walls and the butt. When I checked on her at 1PM there was only one more puddle. So I am seeing less frequent evacuation. Could that indicate something positive is happening, or is she just running out of ammunition?

notfromtexas - I am in 100% agreement with you. It doesn't make sense to not put back what is being depleted. I am going to call him again tonight and discuss this. I have electrolytes on hand - the probiotics will be a problem as my local tack/feed store doesn't carry anything like that. I will have to order via the internet.

I was going to give her yogurt, another vet prescribed that once several years ago. Current vet said, don't give yogurt as they can't digest the lactose...  so what else can I give to replace the good bacteria while I wait for the UPS guy?

They may or may not.  It depends on the horse. Just like people. Some people get diharia and some don't when going out to eat.

I would still feed her hay. Just from a different supplier. Wife has given Kaopectate before to a horse with this problem. Just make sure you get a couple of bottles. Vet is right, something has got her dig. system all out of whack. I wouldn't due to much either. Hay and water with some electrolytes. Hope your horse gets better. I worry too if one of mine isn't feeling or acting right.

Saturday morning update:

Essentially no change but she is slightly dehydrated, skin stays "pinched" for a few seconds, gums are paler than normal. She has a lot of tarter, what's up with that?
 
She did not drink anything last night, but it could be because she pooped on her water bucket - I didn't see anything in the water, but the smell of the feces on her bucket may have been enough to dissuade her from drinking.
 
I think perhaps the frequency has lessened slightly. This morning there were three puddles in stall. But when I put her out in the paddock for a stretch she did a short "deposit", because she was stressed that she couldn't be with the others in the pasture. She took a brief drink from the tub and then continued pacing the fence.

 Then I put her back in her stall and she had another deposit there, again, I think stress related because she wants to be with the others - which is a good sign. She's still lively and alert, bright-eyed. She was not interested in eating her hay or dengie, though. She did eat a small amount of Endurance (1/4 lb or so)
 

The vet said his "best guess" is bloodworms, because of the symptoms - diarrhea and sudden weight loss. I am thinking she is slightly colicky, (which is also another symptom of bloodworms) because she lays down frequently. I am not worried about it because she gets up immediately when I come into the barn and she most certainly has gut sounds (She sounds like the plumbing system in an old apartment building - gurgle gurgle gurgle.)

Vet says if I want to test for Salmonella, it will have to wait until Monday, so he can send a fresh sample out to the lab (he doesn't have the equipment to do the test himself)

The vet's assistant told me that when I start treating with the Panacur, I should see some kind of improvement before the end of the 5-day treatment.
 
This is just so hard to watch and pretty much do nothing.

 Electrolytes
He still says no to the electrolytes. He says orally administered electrolytes do nothing and contain other ingredients that can cause more gastric disturbance (i.e. sugars, sucralose).

 Probiotics
He still says no to the probiotics, for essentially the same thing. He maintains that pre-packaged probiotics (ie Fast Track) don't do anything because the bacteria is past-prime. 
 
Hydration
His only concern right now is to make sure she's hydrated. I am to call back in a couple hours to report if she's has had something to drink. If not, he will come out and see her and likely give her some IV electrolytes and fluids. If she has consumed a reasonable amount of water, he is not going to do anything.

Weight -
I am going to start taping her to monitor the weight loss. My eye says she hasn't lost any more weight since Wednesday. If you saw her you'd say, yes, she's a little underweight - but not emaciated. I am more alarmed because she was SO fat before. I will post befores and afters...

I know it sounds crazy, but I am going to trust my vet. Unless she goes more downhill. She's looks and acts healthy except for the diarrhea. I am able to monitor hydration, temperature, frequency of deposits.

Other people I have talked to have said, yes, this is an unusually long bout of diarrhea, but not unheard of.

A friend had a mare that had chronic diarrhea for MONTHS. They'd treat her, she'd respond for a while but  it would come back - ultimately they put the mare down and discovered non-cancerous growths in her intestine. She could have lived longer with the diarrhea, but the growths would have eventually caused a painful and fatal colic.

Of course I am not at this stage, but the point is, the horse, with proper management, did not die from the diarrhea. I am not planning to wait months with this, but I will at least wait to see if the Panacur does the trick.

In the meantime, I am going to swap out her hay for hay stretcher pellets or hay from another source. That shouldn't aggrevate the situation and may even help.
 
I so much appreciate everyone's thoughts and suggestions. It appears there are more people on this board who really know what they're talking about, than on other boards. THANKS!

If the vet doesn't want you to administer electrolytes, then why is that a option for him????

Another sign of dehydration can be the lack of stool. Nothing left. The skin test is a concern as that is a sign of dehydration. Keep a close watch on the eyes- if they appear to look sunk in ( compare it to your other horses) then she is in need of IV.

I am not going to second guess your vet. I am not a vet but have had lots of experience raising calves. One the biggest problems with calves is scours ( diarrhea) and the resulting dehydration and death. I have found the faster you start clear liquids( water), eletrolytes and something to thicken the mixture ( such as over the counter medications and or pepto) the better the survival rates of the calf. I usually keep a calve on this for three feedings then start back with milk ( otherwise they can starve to death since the mixture has no nutritional value) I like to keep them outside, with fresh air and exercise. keep in mind we are speaking of baby calves that weigh alot less than a horse so they also go downhill much faster. However, I am concerned since once dehydration sets in, you don't have lots of time to play with even in a grown, mature horse.

Good luck

Because he can $$$CHARGE$$$ for it.

Phooey that electrolytes do nothing in oral form.  Does he thing pedialyte is a farce, too?  I'm starting to wonder about this fella....

Good luck with your horse.

She started with loose stools about 12 days ago. Then the really bad stuff started about 6 days ago. (last wednesday).

The vet came out to see her Wednesday and again on Saturday. He does not feel she is dehydrated, which is his biggest concern. Her skin was a little less elastic, but he said her gums were good, mouth was good and moist. He did finally relent and let me put her on electrolytes and kayo-pec. I've been able to get about 40 -50 ozs in her over the course of a 24 hour period. Not sure if I should keep going.  How long until I see any results from that?

She's drinking well again. It was a little scary for a day or two as she wouldn't drink. But I think it was because I bleached out her water buckets and they smelled funny. I took her out to the big water trough and she drank from there. So I rinsed her buckets out thoroughly and she's now drinking normally.

The frequency is much less now. Two bowel movements overnight -

The vet assured me that she's stable, and he is still betting on the the encysted blood worms. Which I will be able to start treating today or tomorrow - the Panacur is arriving by UPS as no tack stores or grain stores had it around here.

I asked him if it he felt we could afford to wait the five days to wait and see if it's the bloodworms (that's how long the treatment will take) - he assured me that she's in good enough condition to endure that.  In the meantime he is going to send a fresh sample of feces out for samonella testing. He will draw blood again on Wednesday and run another panel to monitor those levels.

He said the next step would be to ship her out to a clinic. He said that the clinic would be able to put her on IV fluids if they felt it necessary, but they would probably do exploratory surgery or biopsy.  I would like to leave that to a last resort.

I will try to upload pictures of her so that you can see her condition... I have not had a lot of time, as you can well imagine.

in reply to a previous post...oral electrolytes go thru the digestive tract which is already upset and guess this vet thinks the high sugar content could upset it more.

when administered IV, it is directly into the bloodstream, therefore bypasses the GI tract, and is where it ultimately needs to be.....in the blood.

   September, 07

   November 3, 2007

Understood.  Many medications are best administered to the opposite end from my mouth, but it's the ease of use that comes into consideration....

Is Jugg full of sugars?

I certainly hope it is not salmonella, as it can make you and everything else sick!!!  Whatever it turns out to be, I would steam wash the barn down after everything is taken care of.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed that she's better tomorrow.

ps....you must be out in the boonies!  Can't believe you had to wait for the power pac, all the feed stores here sell them. 

Wednesday AM Update - She's still holding her own. No better, no worse. Staying hydrated.  She passed the "skin pinch" test last night, better than expected, that's a good sign.

She is slightly less anorexic now that we are doing the Kayo-pec. She will eat a couple of pounds of hay pellets over the course of the day. And last night she ate most of a flake of hay. That's a big improvement.

She's taking in good amounts of water.

Today will be day 3 of the Panacur PowerPack. I spoke to a vet at Intervet (makers of Panacur) who agreed that this is a logical place to start, given the symptoms and since so far, she's holding up, despite the diarrhea. He said not to look for results for at least a week AFTER we finish the Panacur (which will be on Friday)

I was headed to the Equine Affaire in Massachusetts with a bunch of riding buddies - supposed to head out tomorrow - that's not going to happen. Double disappointment - but I would never even consider leaving this horse is someone else's care - there's always next year.

We are in week 3 and there is nothing new to report, except that she's developed a new symptom as of this past Saturday. She's beginning to lose hair around her muzzle. It's very itchy and she's rubbing the skin raw in a few places. The skin is dry and scaly.

She is also scratching her tail. I am keeping her vulva and between her udder clean, so I do not know what that's all about. Typically, that indicates pinworms, but she just went through that 5-day wormer. I have not yet consulted the vet about this latest development, I will speak to him today.

We finished the Panacur on Friday. I will have to wait until this coming Friday or even longer, to see if that worked. She's still not eating much. I stopped the Kayo-pec as it didn't seem to be making much of a difference. She will eat her grain, so I am giving her small amounts (about 1/4 lb) 3-4 times daily. She will still pick through her hay, and occasionally nibble on hay pellets. She will graze on the lawn, but she's not very interested in what's left in the pasture....

I am fortunate that she's maintaining weight, drinking water. The diarrhea is not as frequent as in the beginning, but the consistency has not changed at all.

She still lays down frequently, but is not thrashing or rolling, she's got good belly sounds.

I just hope that it was the encysted strongyles. I am not sure what the next step is going to be or if I want to put this horse through surgery.

She needs to be evaluated at an equine hospital. Only 50% of colic cases that arrive at the Marion M. Dupont Center Equine hospital in Leesburg, VA require surgery. While she is not a colic case, I bring this up because she may not need surgery. But, she does need an evaluation. You may reach a point where she is not able to be transported. Just my 2 cents and 50 plus years of horse ownership.

Brenda

I had a glelding that came up with the squirting diarrhea...had lots of advice and suggestions from here (thanks!)  But the best advice was PROBIOTIC.  I truly believe that saved Duke's life.  He had gotten dehydrated, even though he was eating and drinking.  I think the neighbors had been giving him carrots and apples off the tree and this caused the problem.  Duke lost so much wieght, that I was embarassed to take him anywhere, but today he is healthy - although just to be on the safe side, no treats.  \ I am going to side with those here and say GET ANOTHER OPINION!  This has gone on too long......

Good luck and I pray for your horse's recovery.

Morgan

Ok, I am giving it until Saturday and if things are not significantly improved, I am going to bring her to an equine clinic. Here are my reasons for waiting until then: She's holding her own.

 She is eating more hay than ever now. That's a huge improvement.

She is drinking about 10 gallons of water per day.

She is still alert, mobile, and very interested in what's going around her.

 I have seen a slight change in her stools. On a scale of 0 to 10 with 0 being the worst day of watery, explosive diarrhea and 10 being "perfect poop" - I rate her at a "1" - there is some substance now. It still is plopping like very wet cow manure, but it's not propelling out of her like a fire hose....

I spoke with another vet at Intervet who concurred with the other Intervet vet and with my own vet: if the worms were the problem, it could take at least a week to see an improvement in her stool. It takes that long and sometimes longer for her digestive system to get back to normal.

The hair loss mystery is solved in that we have determined it is not falling out on its own. She's rubbing it off. My daughter and I were tending to her the other night and my daughter saw her rub the inside of her lip across the stall door, as if itching it. I opened her mouth and saw that her lips and gums are red and irritated, bilaterally, top & bottom. Jeez louise, I thought - ulcers. My vet came and looked at her again. He concluded that she's rubbing the hair off her face because she's itching. She's also rubbing her tail as with pinworms, but that can be because she's tested negative for parasites. (remember, the encysted stronglyes do not show up on a fecal test). And her gums and lips are itchy as well, but being chafed worse by her rubbing them on the stall door.

 He was not sure what was causing the reaction so he went back to the office to research. Was it the Panacur, the KayoPec, the oral electrolytes? Something else?

In the meantime I called Intervet and talked to a vet there. She told me that has not been a reported case of the Panacur causing an allergic reaction, but that the die off of millions of larvae could definitely cause a reaction due to the toxins they are emmitting. My own vet called me later and came up with the same theory.

He has crossed a number of things off the list because she "doesn't fit the profile." Salmonella - no; Giardia? no; Blister beetle poisoning? no; He thinks very strongly that she's reacting to the die off of the larvae.

So, with both vets saying the same thing AND both saying that if she's not better by this weekend, we need to re-think the whole thing, I am willing to give it until Saturday.

In the meantime, if she is suffering from some "unknown" disease, I have to be realistic about how much I can afford to have this horse diagnosed and treated. Let's face it: it could be in the thousands - perhaps 10's of thousands.... I have to be honest with myself and my daughter. I don't have that kind of money. How much debt to I put myself in for a backyard pony. It's tough to admit this and have to make a monetary decision, but common sense does have to prevail.

So, saturday is the day of decision...

My mare is still holding on. We have determined that it is NOT encysted bloodworms as more than 10 days after the last dose of Panacur, she is not improving.

On Friday night, Nov.16 I really thought I was going to lose her. The next morning I packed her up and drove 3.5 hours to another clinic. They gave her 2 bags of electrolytes, drew more blood, did another rectal exam, another fecal exam. Administered probiotics, B-Vitamins and started Naxcel (antibiotic).

Four hours later, they sent us home, with more antibiotic and probiotic, and instructions to get her to eat. Easier said than done. We tried soaked beet pulp with molasses, apples, carrots, dengie, new hay, - nothing.

Yesterday Nov. 19 was another UP and Down day. The 2nd vet said put her out with the herd, she's not contagious, or everyone would be sick by now. So out she went. She follows the other 3 around the pasture, when they settle on a place to graze, she lays down. When they move, she gets up and moves with them, then lays back down again.

Last night, I offered her Quiessence, a magnesium chromium supplement I give the cresty, founder-prone mini. She LOVED it. I contacted the makers and they said I could give her up to 6 ozs daily for a week with no bad side effects. Some friends brought her a special mash last night too, with alfalfa pellets, senior feed and something else. She did eat a few nibbles of that as well.  I will continue to  give her probiotics, if I can get them into her (if not I will be giving some more yogurt with the turkey baster. More electrolytes.

If the antibiotic is working, it should be evident by today. If not, he's going to try steroids as anti-immflamatory. The 2nd vet's in-house blood panel revealed nothing. Two vials were sent to Cornell for analysis, I will have the results Wednesday.

The vet also thinks that the facial and mouth allergy was caused by the Panacur, but that's just his opinion. I wouldn't go slamming the stuff yet. More later.

Boy, Barstow, this is a tough one. I'm wondering, do horses get colitis?  i have a friend who developed it and her symptons were diarhea and an occasional mild fever.  She had to get a certain antibiotic to get rid of it...some antibiotics actually make it worse. If the antibiotics your mare is on don't help she may need to try a different one.

As far as the Panacur causing the allergy, the good it can do will far outweigh any risk, so hopefully people won't slam it for that.

As always you are in my thoughts and prayers.

She continues to rub her face, the vet said this will get worse before it gets better. IF we do treat with steroids, it will help her with the itching. In the meantime I am applying aloe vera/vitamin D & E ointment. It seems to help.

i don't know a bunch about it other than what she went through...certain anitbiotics can actually cause it and others get rid of it.  Was the mare on any antibiotics for anything in the time before she got sick?  I also was thinking that you might contact some good vet schools for a alternate diagnosis...maybe email some with the description of symptoms and see if any of them have any ideas.  Is there a "Dr. House" for horses that anyone knows of?

If it can't be figured out, it isn't for the lack of your care.  Don't beat yourself up for it. 

Searching the web..found some intersting stuff on "right dorsal colitis" for horses.  Also found something on "ulcerative colitis" in humans..that one caught my eye because one of the symptoms is skin lesions.  But I couldn't find anything on it for horses.  The RDC can be caused by daily bute..was she on bute before this?  The treatment seems to be steroids for many types of colitis to reduce the inflammation.  Steroids can also help if it is an enterolith (sp) or sand in the intestines.  Also have you tried psyllium? If is is sand (which i believe has already been a suggestion) then psyllium for a week may help.

Barstow

You might try diaper rash ointment....as you probably know the main ingredient is zinc oxide....and it is so thick and gooey it stays on the skin.  Also sending you a pm.

Also, if you can, spend some time just softly talking to the horse;  softly massaging her head around the base of the ears....sort of a relaxation therapy....I like to play classical music in the barn too.  You are in my prayers.

You did the right thing.......I have been with a total of 8 over the last 40 years as they drew their last breaths...it is never easy. Be kind to yourself over the next few weeks. Grief is the hardest work you will ever do.

Take Care,

Brenda

Barstow,

So sorry! My heart hurts for you. You tried your best and that is all that you could do. You will be in my prayers!

Jo

hello my name is Pam and my pony has the clear runs he first started passing piles of sand 3wks ago then he was trying to ly down and roll i have had to take him to the vet and they said he has about 30 to 40 lbs of sand in him. He probably did have that much, they did not see what i did. so they oiled him and said probios and electros and said change his feed to orchard grass , i did he still has the clear runs .  What is magic earth? maybe this is the remedy sounds like barstows ponies story.

Barstow,

I am so sorry for your loss.. You did what you could...God Bless you and your family. 

Leslie

    Pam, I've had loads of trouble with sand since moving to NM and after getting fusterated with the local vet I called my old vet.  He told me to buy the generic metamucil and give my mare a pound a day for 5 days and then half a pound a day for a week or until I quit finding sand in her manure.  It has worked for 2 of my horses and now they all get a daily dose of the metamucil.  I use a medicine cup that came with some pepto to measure the daily dose, 2 scoops a day.  Our place is so sandy that it is the only way to keep them clean. 

    The oil your vet gave will loosen the sand but will not do much to remove it.  My old vet said sand colic is the worst because the weight of the sand can twist a gut so you have to get it out of there.

The pound a day is for a full size horse though, not a pony.

But whats funny Terri lives 10 or so miles north of me and I, luckly, don't have as severe of a problem with the sand colic.  Our place doesn't have the amount of sand that she has.  I'm also taking care of someone elses horses and they have a severe prob with sand, and every time I drive up there I wonder if I'm going to have to try my skill and give IV Banamine.  So far so good, no prob.  I too feed the generic Metamucil but I only give it once a week.  If I had a dump truck I'd come and get some of that sand an build up my arena and raise up that low spot. 

http://s698.photobucket.com/albums/vv345/ceranchnm/?action=view&current=Filly021.jpg 

This link will give you an example of what the land looks like.  Our place is mostly hard pack caliche.