Does colic kill horses

Answer 1

Colic is a symptom of intestinal disease, and actually only means "abdominal pain". There are many different causes of colic, with varying degrees of severity and lethality.

One of the simplest versions of colic is gas colic, in which a large bubble of intestinal gas builds up and causes pressure in the intestines. With conservative medical treatment (hand walking, mineral oil infusion, laxative administration), most horses will pass the gas bubble and be fine.

In contrast, a very severe form of colic is strangulation colic, in which the intestines have tied themselves into a pretzel. This cuts off blood flow, causes nerve damage and completely blocks all movement through the intestines. As the gas pressure builds up from intestinal microbe digestion, the pressure becomes extremely intense and the intestines can rupture from the strain. Once this happens, the horse is pretty much dead - the toxins from the bacteria in the intestines get into the blood stream and the horse dies from toxemia in over 90% of the cases.

Horse owners, particularly those without a medical background, tend to view colic as a lethal disease. This is generally good advice, because an untrained person cannot tell the difference between "probably going to be OK with some treatment" and "need to load up for referral for surgery immediately". In all cases of colic in horses, the best advice is to call your veterinarian immediately.

Answer 2

Colic can kill horses. Especially if it doesn't get treated, or the vet doesn't come out. Horses are expensive, and so are vet bills. Usually, horses colic from eating sand, or have a compaction. If it is compaction, there will be mucus tags in their droppings. So you grab a glove, and see what is is like! Gross, but a must! Call the vet! Tell him/her what you know so far. They may give a prescription, or suggest a digestion supplement.

Answer 3

It can kill horses but if found quickly enough it can be treated usually with sugery