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  Discussion on Mares in Heat and Colic
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Member:
Annknigh

Posted on Tuesday, Apr 19, 2005 - 1:58 am:

Does anyone know of an association of mares being in heat and colic? I've had my mare for 3 years now and just had the second episode of her having a gas colic around her being in heat.

The last time was in October and it seemed like it occurred just after she was showing signs of winking. She was observed to be a bit hyper the night before in her stall and urinating alot. The next day she had some gas pains that resolved quickly after antacids and banamine and release of gas through the nasal tube.

She colicked again yesterday (Sunday). I observed her winking today, so I knew she is now in heat. She was a bit over excitable starting on Friday. This time, her gastric sounds were increased, heart rate around 36. The vet diagnosed it as gas colic based in the increased gut sounds and her other symptoms. She was a bit lethargic for a short period and she stopped eating during the lunch feeding, she ate most of her grain and none of her hay. I found her standing looking depressed. I called the vet and stayed with her until he got there.

She passed alot of gas that was associated with loud gut rumblings and began to feel better and wanted to eat again before the vet arrived. I let her go out into a paddock so she could walk around a bit and she bolted away from me and bucked and farted on the way out.

She had two bowel movements (well formed and almost normal quantity) while we were waiting on the vet and with both. She showed depression for about a minute before and 3 minutes after having the bowel movement. Then she would perk up again. The vet gave her banamine wbut even before he gave it to her, she was feeling alot better.

Except when she was having the bowel movements, she seemed fairly normal. She was aleady perking up alot before he got there. She had no fever. After about the third bowel movement, she for the most part quit having the depression before and after.

We withheld food until the next morning (today) and she was very mad last night about being passed up by the food cart. Today, she seemed mostly back to normal, but she wasnt drinking much water. She also held her tail up slightly. I let her go outside and she was happy to have a little grass and when the other horses came out, she went crazy showing off for them. That is when I first noticed the winking. I caught her as soon as I could, but she is definitely in heat and acting like it. She did not get hot and I walked her until she calmed down.

She seems about 90-95% back to normal. We havent started grain back, but most likely will tomorrow. The gut sounds sound better, but the right side is still kind of loud and not quite back to her normal sounds. She was scratching her belly alot, but also she was also scratching her legs as well. I think there were tiny gnats out, as I would ocassionally feel them too.

Her stools are not quit the usual volume per time, but she isnt getting depressed before and after.


Are the gas colics just coincidentally related to the heat or is there a connection.

One other common thing is that with both times, some of the other horses from the barn had left to go to a show. She wasnt the only one left, and both times, there were other horses that she could see, either across the isle or out the window.

In October, the colic happened the day after the horses left and this time it was 4 days after they left. I didnt think that it could be connected to that, but it was a common thing with both times.

She does get upset if she thinks she has to be loaded onto a trailer and kind of panics when she sees the shipping boots come out, which she would have seen those when the other horses left for the shows.

Any ideas?
Thank you
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Wednesday, Apr 20, 2005 - 7:25 am:

There are folks who report colic associated with heat Ann but cannot guess if this might be the case with your horse but looking at your description above I don't think it is directly related because you seem to have lots of signs of GI upset. Is your horse on rapidly growing grass pasture? For more on possible causes see, Equine Diseases » Colic and GI Diseases » Colic in Horses » An Overview of Colic.
DrO
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