My 15 year old mare colicked today. She was given Banamine and walked. She passed 5 loads of manure, large to small. She still doesn't look well. I am worried because she fully rolled before I could get a halter on her to walk her and give her Banamine. Can her intestine be twisted even though she did pass manure?
Posted 2010-12-18 12:17 PM (#128167 - in reply to #128166) Subject: RE: Colic
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 447 Location: cedar rapids iowa
If her intestine were twisted more tahn likely she would be showing more signs of pain. They usually lay down and raelly do not want to get up. I would call a vet to be on the safe side though and have her checked over. She may benefit from tubing.
Posted 2010-12-18 4:56 PM (#128171 - in reply to #128166) Subject: RE: Colic
Veteran
Posts: 186
A horse I boarded years back coliced this time of year. We gave him banamine, called the vet, vet tubed him, walked him, he kept trying to go down, he pooped two normal and one half poo. In the poop that he pased while colicing were the long white strongiles. He died about 15 hours after I noticed 24 hours prior horse looked fine -ate his normal breakfast. The vet said it was a -very high block?-as I said it was a long time ago. I don't take in boarders very often and have always wormed every horse coming into my pasture, but the owner said she had wormed him on a regular schedule, he was thin but his teeth were really bad and the pasture he came from was nothing so I wasn't concerned about his weight (we had his teeth done shortly after he got here and he was picking up weight). I have always wondered if having his teeth done and getting good groceries in him gave the worms a jump?? Keep an eye on your mare he never did look good even after the banimine and stuff the vet gave him.
Posted 2010-12-19 7:32 AM (#128177 - in reply to #128166) Subject: RE: Colic
Elite Veteran
Posts: 1069 Location: MI.
Been checking on her and she is drinking plenty of water and passing everything normal. Yesterday when she was being walked, the first two passes of manure were really hard and she curled her lip just to get them passed. The rest of her manure she passed was getting more moist with a better color. Last night she was doing ok and today she seems calm, walking and behaving normal. Colic scares me.
Posted 2010-12-19 1:12 PM (#128181 - in reply to #128166) Subject: RE: Colic
Regular
Posts: 99 Location: New Mexico
I haven't had to use it but have seen the Youtube video and other friends comments on this product. Its called We Stop Colic, they have a web site with the video of a horse in distress with colic, giving the bottle, and taping the whole episode. Its a little pricey but if it can provide relief until a vet can get there it might be worth it. Around me if the one local vet it unavailable you have at least an hour drive to the next one.
Posted 2010-12-19 10:45 PM (#128198 - in reply to #128166) Subject: RE: Colic
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 373 Location: Texas
I'm rather jumpy on colic with my horses, and get them to the vet ASAP. I only give enough banamine to make them feel comfortable for the trip to vet, and have the vet tell my how much to give. You mask the pain too much, and you may not know how bad it is, until the horse is past the point of fixing without serious vet procedures. I'd rather pay a vet bill for them to check the horse out, tube, or give fluids, than wait too long where the vet bill will be huge, or you have a bill for a backhoe instead. And, I will add, that getting them there early may not keep that vet bill down, as you will see below, but it is usually more likely to have less procedures needed if they see the vet as soon as possible.
My horse had a series of a few colics in 2008 where I hauled him the hour to the good horse vet each time. The first colic was noticed because he refused to eat a handful of grain I offered him. That was it. But I knew if he refused a handful of feed, he did not feel well. They gave IV fluids and a few other things, he came home, had another about 8 days later, back to vet, "fixed" again, home, and back again about 8 days after that.
We finally did surgery, as the vet knew that something inside was going to keep causing him to colic. They found He had his intestines sort of jumbled up, and kinked, but not completely shut down. He indeed, was not gonna fix himself, and all the tubing oil and banamine and fluids were not gonna work.
One needs to decide if their horse is a surgery candidate BEFORE you are asked that question by your vet. Cost is usually the first consideration, then likelihood of horse to survive, and then the condition the horse will be afterwords. But think about it NOW, while your horses are not sick and doing poorly when we often think with emotions, and not always thinking 'straight'.
My horse did well, and was back on the trail 90 after surgery, and went on to win the highest honor in NATRC doing competitive trail riding that season after his surgery. Traveling 15,000 miles in a trailer to 9 states, riding about 50 miles each weekend. This year he finished Tevis, the 100 mile endurance ride again. So my choice to do surgery was a good one for him. But he was in great condition, and I had been having the vet look at him from the very first mild signs of the first colic 3 weeks ahead of the needed surgery.
Colic can go downhill REALLY fast. And I think it is an area many horse folks try the wait and see. I know I used to, but not any more
Posted 2010-12-24 11:32 AM (#128274 - in reply to #128166) Subject: RE: Colic
Expert
Posts: 2828 Location: Southern New Mexico
When my mare coliced a couple of years ago the sugeron said rolling isn't the problem. Its the violence in which they throw themselves down that does the damage. If she layed down carefully and didn't throw herself to the ground I wouldn't worry.
Posted 2010-12-25 10:30 PM (#128282 - in reply to #128166) Subject: RE: Colic
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 376 Location: Missouri
In none of the conversations on this post have I heard evidence to determine conclusively that this horse coliced. Without close examination colic and tie up can look exactly the same. The horse turns it's head towards it's stomach and wants to roll.
Fortunately the initial treatment is the same for either, BUT, after that, it's very important to determine which ailment is present. If it's colic you want to keep them up and moving. If it's tie up, you want to keep them motionless and lying down to rest is preferred. Both require treatment within a few hours or less to prevent permanent damage.
AND, don't be surprised if a vet, or two or three or more don't mis-diagnose. We need to be aware of the differences and start out in the right direction from the first on set of the condition.
Colic
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