Colic Prevention in Boarding Barn - any tips?

[whoapony01]

I currently board in a barn that seems to have a high rate of colic instances. Overall, my opinion is that the horse and feed management is an issue at this barn (which is unfortunate since it has the nicest facilities in the area). Barn Owners are not interested in changing their feed management or daily routines.

BOs try to downplay it, saying that the horses that colic have pre-existing conditions (or that the horse was NOT colicky, even when the vets are treating it as such).

I am actively looking for a new barn and am waitlisted for a couple (difficult in this area and time of year), but does anyone have any suggestions, that I can do (BOs will not agree to major changes) in the meantime?

-Horse is turned out 24/7 (split between grass field and dry lot that is supposed to have free-choice hay)
-Water is available 24/7 (at least every time that I’m out there and check it)
-Salt/mineral blocks available
-Minimal grain (just a handful to feed SmartGut supplement in)
-Horse is in mild to moderate work and good body condition (although losing a big of weight, which is always concerning going into colder weather - BOs have been restricting the free choice hay because some pasture horses are getting “fat” - their opinion, not mine)
-Area is pretty sandy.
-De-wormed/vaccinated/dental work done routinely

Most of the colic cases have been stall boarded horses (that are on a lot of grain, minimal hay and minimal turnout), but at least 2 (out of ~10) pasture horses have colicked in the last year.

I’ve never had a colic scare with this horse (10+ years together), but I’ve never been in a barn where this has happened so frequently, either, and I want to do whatever I can to ensure horse stays healthy. Vet is coming out for routine work soon, so I’ll be discussing with them as well, but any suggestions would be appreciated.

[Scribbler]

I can’t see any big colic risks for a healthy horse in the management you describe for your own own horse. I would not think your horse shares the management risk factors of the stall boarded horses.

The only thing I would check is quality of hay, if horse is losing weight.

As far as losing weight, I’d want to see photos before and after before I’d even say that’s a problem. In many barns obesity is seen as normal, but actually it is the major health risk factor for most pet horses, leading to metabolic problems and founder. As far as needing to be fat going into winter, that might be true of the range mustang in colder areas. I don’t think it’s true of the riding horse. I see horses get fat over summer with pasture and then get fatter over the winter when they don’t get ridden as much due to the weather. Most horses in our barn put on weight over the winter, if anything.

How many individual horses colicked over the past year? How many horses are in the barn? If there are 20 horses and 10 colicked in a 12 month period, that’s pretty scary. However if there were multiple colic episodes for one horse, that is different. Also, what gets counted as colic in your barn? There are vet involved colics, there are colics managed without vet invtervention, and then there are all the NQR days when people think he might be colicking, but nothing really happens and the moment passes.

Anyhow if you don’t trust the management yes, you should move, and ASAP if you think it is a risk for your horse. However, have you checked the colic rate in the other barns you are considering?

[MissAriel]

How is the hay fed outside? Ideally it would be in a feeder or on mats since you are in a sandy area. If the hay is fed on sandy ground, sand colic is a real possibility. I would look into feeding psyllium or something like that. We feed about a pound (dry weight) of soaked beet pulp daily to reduce the risk of sand colic.

Changes in weather seem to bring on clusters of colics, too. When the weather changes, make sure your horse is actually drinking plenty of water. That is a bit harder to monitor in a 24/7 turnout situation. You can try offering plain water and a flavored water (with gatorade, alfalfa pellets, apple juice). Also making sure the water source is clean and not sitting in the sun getting hot will encourage horses to drink more.

Otherwise, it sounds like you have all the key risk factors covered.

[findeight]

As Scribbler said. Plus there are many reasons for colic and many levels of colic ranging from a belly ache and banimine to a trip to the clinic and surgery. What type colic were these? Impaction, gas, displaced gut, complication of other conditions? Was the vet out for all of them or did the barn identify and treat with a quick resolution ? Any hauled to the clinic? Resolve with just Banamine? Course these were not your horse so you may not know the age and health history or dx information… Maybe blaming the BOs for causing all of them is a little extreme.

But, also, don’t know what you can do if you no longer trust them other then move. BOs run their business their way and will not change for one boarder, often they can’t afford the change unless they raise the board. for everybody.

If you think your horse is dropping some weight, get some alfalfa cubes and keep them in your car or garage. Wet them before you ride then feed after he’s cooled out. Add 30 mins to your visit. This has not been a good year for hay anywhere and prices are sky high. Might have something to do with them cutting back on hay.

How long have you been in this particular barn? How many total horses are on the property stalled or field boarded? Will the barns you are waitlisted for reveal how many times they had colic in their barn year to year? How about your past barns, you aren’t there 24/7 so how can you know if there was any colic with somebody else’s horse that wasn’t shared with you?

Just need to be very careful with assumptions about other horses in your boarding barn. Maybe the place is bad news, maybe you are assuming. Just remember the grass is always greener from a distance in other barns.

[ToTheNines]

What kind of hay does the barn feed? Are they impaction colics from coastal bermuda hay? I just went through this at my own farm and feel horrible about it. It was beautiful coastal bermuda, but some horses don’t handle it well. If so, I would pay extra to get more alfalfa in your horse and less coastal.

[whoapony01]

To answer the questions (sorry if I missed any):

-Hay is usually fed in a round bale feeder and with a slow-feeder net (which I do appreciate). If they are out of the large or round bales, they throw loose hay over the fence so it is on the ground then.

-Hay is a grass/alfalfa mix.

-In the past year, there have been 8 vet-treated cases of colic (that I am aware of), all 8 were different horses. Four of those did not make it (and this was with multiple vets…not a case of one vet with an apparently poor record of treating colic). This is in a barn of ~30 horses. I believe the majority were gas colic? It’s difficult to say because the BOs disagree with the vet diagnosis on several. I may be a little sensitive to this because I lost one of my horses to gas colic in this barn last year (in the same living situation as my remaining horse).

-I’ve been in this barn for several years and overall am pretty happy with it as far as other boarders and facilities (and the ability for my horse to be out on grass in the summer); however, it was brand new when I moved in and care has been declining a bit. I do appreciate that the pasture horses are checked a couple times a day and they will blanket if asked when I can’t make it out. They have raised board to keep up with rising maintenance and feed costs (which I have no problem with) but it does then annoy me when they restrict the hay (without any notice to boarders - communication shouldn’t be so hard :)). I’m not super concerned about the minimal weight loss I’ve seen so far, but my experience has been that it is difficult to build it back up (and last winter was unusually harsh and long for us…so again, maybe I’m over-sensitive to it).

-One barn I’m waitlisted for stated that they can’t remember the last time a horse colicked in their barn - and I’ve known that BO, Barn Manager and multiple boarders out there for a long time - and they all say the same thing so I tend to believe it.

Stalled horses were getting beet pulp, but I haven’t paid attention to whether or not that has changed. I’ll have to check into that and the alfalfa cubes for mine - thanks!

[betsyk]

What are the demographics of the horses at the barn? of the horses that colicked, and didn’t survive? If the horses tend to be older, with pre existing health problems, then it’s not as surprising to learn the rate of colic is high. Another factor could be differences in owner attentiveness with stabled vs rough boarded horses. I know my stalled horse has colicked mildly and I got three phone calls from other boarders; my rough board horse is out of view and could potentially go for hours without anyone even seeing her at all. I’d also wonder about the general stress level on the property and if that’s a contributing factor. Are you near a construction site, busy road, something agricultural that might be stressful (I don’t know - a factory chicken farm? massive swine facility?)

[Posting_Trot]

With that high of a rate of colic, I’d be somewhat concerned as well. It’s especially concerning that the BO seems to be in denial about a few of the colic cases. That suggests (to me anyway) that they might not be fully aware of what colic symptoms are or what they look like in real life, or that they’re so deeply in denial that they refuse to really see what’s going on.

Did any of the horses that died have necropsies done to determine the cause of the colic? The differences between sand colic, gas colic, impaction colic, or colic caused by a growth in the digestive tract would raise different types of concerns over management.

I don’t really have any specific suggestions for you, though, especially since you’re actively looking for an alternative barn. I’d just try to get out to see the horse as often as possible, just to make sure that all is okay.

Good luck.

[beowulf]

Horses colic for so many reasons.

That being said, my own anecdotal experience has been there is a disproportionately higher rate of colic in stalled horses versus horses on full turnout.

However, I honestly can’t tell you if that is because there is less movement, or less hay/consumption/food in the stalled contingent. Maybe its a mixture of both.

Just as a barn manager, the things that tend to cause colic tend to be individual, meaning some horses will always have a higher risk - particularly with “gas colickers”, who in my experience, tend to be “barometically sensitive” and colic during major temperature drops.

Generally, full 24/7 access to quality hay… not coastal/bermuda… goes a very long way in ensuring gastrointestinal health – I think major colic cases stem from poor gastrointestinal health.

Don’t fall for the buzzwords “free choice hay in a stall” – this is usually a really dishonest way of saying “they get 2-4 flakes at 6pm when they come in for the night to tide them over until 7 am when they’re turned out again”… Good way to get ulcers… which circles back to my earlier point about many colics being triggered by gastrointestinal upset.

Restriction of turnout time seems to be related to increase colic episodes. This is a big one - horses in solitary confinement, horses on layup, horses that cannot be horses or interact with others… These horses tend to always have ulcers.

Lack of water access… a duh one… but… especially in the winter, when horses are prone to drink less – in extra cold areas or cold snaps, mashes with their regular grain should be made.

Horses fed “bran mash” on a Sunday. Totally disruptive to their gastrointestinal tract, and not a practice I like to see continued.

Horses with untreated ulcers or “ideopathic” colitis – which is just a code-word for, horse with hind-gut ulcers that has not been investigated…

Horses fed copious amounts of grain and very little hay.

Horses in chronic pain - laminitis, kissing spine, geriatrics… in that same vein, horses with subtle lameness that are worked fall in this category.

Horses of advanced age. Harder to bounce back from a colic upset…

From your post it sounds as if you are no longer confident in their care. Time to get out - regardless if they are incompetent or not… the second a boarder is no longer comfortable with the quality of care, it is time for them to vote with their feet!

[candyappy]

That is a high rate of colics and the fact that 4 died is upsetting.

Otherwise I agree with the poster who said that the management you describe doesn’t have me thinking it alone contributes to the colic episodes.

Horses can colic when you do everything right and under the most competent care. Then you get horses who never colic and the care is lacking on every level.

It really is something you can’t predict. All you can do is try to eliminate the causes as best you can and hope for the best.

[Jumper_Princess1988]

My guy is (hopefully) getting discharged from the hospital tomorrow following colic surgery (cecum stopped working following stall rest and antibiotics). My 20-something year old TB passed away last year from a ruptured stomach (never made it to the table). To say I’ve been second guessing my choices in horse care over the last few days is an understatement.

I asked the surgeon this afternoon if there was anything we could have done to prevent both cases - he said there wasn’t. Quality hay, lots of turnout, preventative vet care, consistent exercise, etc are the best we can do but sometimes $&@# happens. He knows my boarding facility and trainer well - he said if there was an issue, he’d tell me to move. And we aren’t moving.

that said, I will never board at a barn that doesn’t offer night checks - my trainer saved my boy last week when she noticed something was not right (he showed very mild symptoms, even leading up to the exam at the hospital).

[Frivian]

Ok, 8 colics in 1 year in a barn of 30 horses? I would move. That seems really high to me. I’ve been in a lot of barns and even the ones with sub par care and somewhat more frequent colic episodes never had that many deaths. That’s really concerning.