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[RC] Mystery Gassy colics - rides2farI know I'm dominating the list right now, but don't count the webcast against me. Got a real *Help me ridecamp* problem. Thought we'd have a nice relaxing drive home, went through a few small towns and drove over the mountains, then Josie started calling at 8:30...Cade was colicing (never before, almost never happens here). Was on the phone with her off and on till we got home at 2 AM. Took till 4:00 AM before his guts started moving...stayed up till 5. Guess it's good I wasn't up *all* night Sat. >sigh< The thing is, on Memorial Day Gunner coliced. I probably haven't dealt with 8 colics in 35 years and now 2 in 2 weeks? Nothing has changed. We're down to the last of last year's hay but it's not bottom bales. Doesn't smell as much like fresh cut grass as sometimes but it's definitely not moldy or dusty. They both had fresh water in front of them. I was worried maybe they're chewing on some weird plant in the field (I have lots of unidentified weeds) but Gunner coliced in the evening when he'd been in the stall away from flies all day. It looks like they have the life of Riley. Just come in in the morning to clean stalls, hay & water in front of them and fans all day, then turned out in the evening. Cade isn't confined, he has the shed and can come and go as he pleases during the day. They do get Tifton 44 Coastal, but that's what they always get. When I checked on Cade for the last time at 5 AM there was a *huge* raccoon in the barn, first I've ever seen. (remembered posts last week about lepto or whatever). I'm just at a loss for what caused it. Gotta admit I was scared. NO discernable gut sounds, and he was in a lot more discomfort than Gunner had been. Josie thought later that it may have started before she left for church at 7:00 because she had noticed he was muddy from rolling all the way on top of his back. When she saw him acting strange lay down, get up, lay down she gave him paste banamine and walked him at 8:30 and he improved and started picking grass. She went back out at 12:30 to check on him and he was laying down and soon started wanting to roll again. He started acting pretty uncomfortable by 1:30 but she held off on the 2nd dose till I got home since we were almost here and just walked him. When I got here he was very uncomfortable, sort of panting but the heart rate was 36 or so. If you made him get up he'd just almost buckle on all four legs. Temp was normal, almost cool. I couldn't hear any gut sounds anywhere. Bill & I did belly lifts on him, gave him the bute, took him up & down a steep hill and then we'd let him lay down and listen to the gut again for a while. Woke Otis up at 2:30 to ask at what point we should load him up for a 2 hour haul to UT. He said give him a couple of hours but not to wait till morning. We just kept doing what we were doing and *slowly* started *thinking* I heard a gut sound, then *maybe* another (right, lower quadrant first) then finally the big gassy sound, then eventually the better sloshy ones. Finally around 4:00 he just hopped up and within 10 minutes was trying to eat wheat thins and eating grass. Does that officially count as a gassy colic...or could that have been close to an obstruction? Scared me silly. She loves this horse a little too much...the way that scares you because you know how bad it would be if something happened. He's been wormed within the past 2 weeks. Very little pasture, mostly dried up. Just the same grain (which has been cut back some due to little riding) and all the hay he'll eat put out twice a day. Advice? Angie Angie McGhee http://www.lightersideofendurance.com =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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