Colic & Reflux

Horses are prone to health conditions like colic, a broad term that means a horse has a stomach ache.

Colic is a catch-all term applied to digestive disruptions in horses. Colic is caused by trapped gas or physical blockages and happens partially because horses are not capable of reflux or regurgitation. Colic usually requires veterinary treatment and can prove fatal in some cases.

The Facts and Causes

Colic occurs when a horse's digestive system stops working as it should. Because a horse is physically incapable of regurgitation, any digestive trouble becomes immediately more complicated than it would be in other animals. Symptoms of colic include a horse pacing or laying down and thrashing, staring at its stomach and refusing both food and water.

Types

Colic generally falls into one of three categories. Gas colic is nothing more than air becoming trapped in a horse's gut, and it is easily treated. Sand colic occurs when a horse swallows sand and gets a blockage in its stomach or gut. Impaction colic occurs when food or manure becomes "stuck" in a horse's intestine and causes a blockage in the forward movement of manure. These latter two types of colic are more serious and require more intense treatment.

Medications

When a vet treats colic, he or she does so by first injecting the horse with one of several medications. Pain killers, laxatives, sedatives and muscle relaxants relieve the horse's pain, subdue it and work to both relax the cramping muscles and ease the impaction through the gut.

Mineral Oil

When a horse is impacted or sick, the only physical choice is for the problem to pass through the digestive system and be excreted as waste. Any colic treatment seeks to expedite this process. Mineral oil is another step in this treatment. Vets pass a tube through the horse's nose and into its stomach, and then they siphon mineral oil into the horse's system. The mineral oil adds lubrication to ease any impaction through the horse's intestines more quickly.

Considerations

Even with immediate veterinary care, colic can turn serious. A horse's intestines can become looped or knotted, in which case medication will not help. Serious cases of colic are only treatable through surgery and can sometimes be fatal.

References

• OSU Extension: Preventing and Treating Colic in Your Horse
• Alpha Horse: Addressing Horse Colic
• The Ultimate Horse Site: Colic