# Signs that colic is going away?



## tlkng1 (Dec 14, 2011)

The best sign is the passing of manure..it at least tells you there isn't an impaction though there could still be a partial impaction. What you want to do though is listen for gut sounds. If you have never seen it done, put your ear on the horse just in front of the flank; you should hear gurgling sounds. Do this on both sides as there can be sounds on one side and nothing on the other...it is pretty loud actually. You want sounds on both sides. While I have only had a single case of very mild colic, (horse got past it in under 15 mins but the vet thinks it was heat related), I have always used a pre and probiotic supplement after that.


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## Endiku (Dec 6, 2010)

I think its fairly safe to say that the horse is improving when you hear gut sounds, and out of imminent danger once you see it poop. We keep ours walking until it poops, then let it rest, check on it 30 minutes later, then 2 hours later. If no more signs of distress are seen, we then leave the horse alone but come back out frequently to check it.

Peeing is not necessarily a sign of colic going away. Our yearling coliced the night that we got her and was peeing fine, but didn't stop having stomach pain until she passed some manure that was hard and blocking her.

ETA - guess I didn't type fast enough! lol


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## goneriding (Jun 6, 2011)

Colic can reoccur a day + later. Passing manure and the consistency of the manure along with the horses physical signs are some of the signs you should look for. Also, try to determine why your horse had colic, dehydration, sand, stress etc. Walking is good but do not wear them out, banamine helps....


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## Delfina (Feb 12, 2010)

Passing manure, gut sounds and wanting to eat. When piggy horses don't touch their grain/hay and refrain from attempting to snatch a bite of food in your hand... it's a bad thing.


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## BarrelRace4Life (Aug 15, 2010)

tlkng1 said:


> The best sign is the passing of manure..it at least tells you there isn't an impaction though there could still be a partial impaction. What you want to do though is listen for gut sounds. If you have never seen it done, put your ear on the horse just in front of the flank; you should hear gurgling sounds. Do this on both sides as there can be sounds on one side and nothing on the other...it is pretty loud actually. You want sounds on both sides. While I have only had a single case of very mild colic, (horse got past it in under 15 mins but the vet thinks it was heat related), I have always used a pre and probiotic supplement after that.


Yes I have a stethoscope and listened to her gut on both sides and they sounded good after she'd pooed and been walked around and rested for a little while. 



> Colic can reoccur a day + later. Passing manure and the consistency of the manure along with the horses physical signs are some of the signs you should look for. Also, try to determine why your horse had colic, dehydration, sand, stress etc. Walking is good but do not wear them out, banamine helps....


I did go out and check her again today to make sure she was still feeling ok. She seemed fine and happy!


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## farmpony84 (Apr 21, 2008)

First of all, that may or may not have been colic. It could have been heat related depending on what the weather is like where you are at. Colic is a very scary thing, it can come on slowly and go away quickly, it can linger, it can hit hard and sudden, it can even come and go depending on the cause....

If your horse has good gut sounds, temp is ok and is passing poop and gas then hopefully she is on the rode to recovery....

I'm not sure peeing is a sign of the end of a colic though....


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## countercanter (May 18, 2011)

While pooping is a good sign, it isn't a tell-tale sign the colic is passing or gone. My gelding coliced severely on Halloween last year, bad enough we sent him for surgery. His colic had nothing to do with an impaction, and he did actually poop twice while we were trying to do what we could for him at the farm. He suffered from a distended colon. It was one of the scariest things I have ever been through. My farrier was doing his feet and all of a sudden he started shaking and trying to throw himself on the ground. Luckily our vet was at the farm for another horse and was able to immediately give him banamine and tube him. After about 30 minutes of no change we decided to take him to the clinic. After he got there they put him on fluids and observation. He got a little better but still kept trying to lay down. We then made the decision to send him in for surgery. I got to watch the whole thing (even though I will admit getting to watch the surgery was pretty cool...it would probably have been a little cooler if it wasn't my horse cut open on the table). Luckily there was no impaction and no part of his intestine had to be removed. He had his colon tacked to his body wall to prevent it from happening again (much like a pexi surgery they give to large dogs). It was a very scary ordeal and a long recovery process.









After waking up from surgery









Day after the surgery









His incision site









The day before he got to go home


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## BarrelRace4Life (Aug 15, 2010)

countercanter that is so scary!! Thank gosh it wasn't as bad as that when Dolly coliced! Farmpony84, I'm pretty sure it was colic. She NEVER just randomly tries to role or even lay down in areas other than her field. I think it was just a little tummy ache. it didn't seem very serious, but you never know, and I was taking precaution in case! She coliced a few years ago and it was very bad, but thankfully she didn't need to go into surgery or anything. Still so scary though!


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