Island Life Magazine Ltd December 2011/January 2012 | Page 93

EQUESTRIAN

equine veterinary diary
complicating the problem. To prevent
them from injuring themselves and to
avoid having to deal with a cast colicky
horse it is best to either walk them
gently or stand with them in the field.
However, if the horse is lying down
quietly or getting up and down in a
fairly controlled way, it can be left in
the stable until the arrival of the vet.
Old wives tales
• “If the horse is not passing droppings
the colic is serious”. A lack of
droppings is always more concerning
than when a horse is passing faeces,
however, the horse’s intestine is very
long and can still produce faeces when
the diseased portion of gut is closer
to the stomach than the rectum. So
lack of productive motions is not
something that can rule out or rule in
a serious underlying condition.
•“Giving a small quantity of liquid
paraffin (human dose) and /or a bran
mash may help”. Although in most
cases this will be harmless, it will also
be useless. In the case of constipation
(which cannot be diagnosed based on
external symptoms alone) the average
horse will need at least 2 litres of
liquid paraffin and large quantities of
warm water to have some effect on the
blockage.

Approach to a wound:
• Cleaning: if sterile saline is available
this