Wilbur and Global Warming

Show season has come to a close, and we have begun weatherizing our trailers and equipment for the coming cold months. Since my last post, we have only had one vet call for a minor gas colic. Almost without fail, when the season changes we see an occasional colic in our herds of horses and donkeys.

Wilbur

Wilbur is my daughter Haley's show horse. He is a large 16.2 hands tobiano paint. He is fairly well known in our area and has been shown mostly in western pleasure and trail classes, but has also been shown in hunter classes. He and Haley have done well in breed, region and 4-H shows with multiple high-point awards and belt buckles.

Now Haley is in college, and Wilbur has been added to my string of horses that need riding. Needless to say, he only gets out about once a week. Riding a well-trained pleasure horse is great fun.

Wilbur has some conformation problems that make him susceptible to quarter cracks. But other than this, he has been very healthy and vigorous. We will discuss his conformation issues in a future post.

Wilbur is also a cribber. Wow another future blog post topic.

Last Friday Wilbur came down with what turned out to be a mild gas colic.  For you newer horse owners who have not experienced a colic, allow me to describe what I normally see with a horse that is having a colic.

First, you will note that your horse has a depressed look. He will stand with his head down and appear to be gazing into space. You may note that the horse has not eaten his feed. Most horses lose their appetite when experiencing a colic.

As a pain spasm hits, most horses will lie down on their side. Some will roll. Some will look at or bite at their flanks. They may grunt and move, or may lie very still. When I see a horse down at unusual times, I always suspect a colic.

If you are not sure that it is a colic, get your horse up and walking and then let him be.  If he lies down again, then more likely then not he is experiencing belly pain - the literal definition of a colic.

If this is the horse's first time with symptoms of colic, or if you have not dealt with colic before, this is the time to call the vet.

For experienced horse owners who have horses that are prone to colic, or have managed colicky horses, a vet call is not always the first step.

• Experienced horse owners will check the pulse rate as an elevated pulse may indicate pain.
• Experienced horse owners may listen for gut sounds with a stethoscope.
• Experienced horse owners will take the horse's temperature and note the respiration rate.

After all this, experienced horse owners STILL call the vet to pass on the information and ask advice.

Depending on the history of the horse and the owner's desires, the vet will most likely come out. The problem with a colic is that, while most colics self-resolve without complication, some can turn deadly fast. 

By the time the vet arrived, Wilbur was looking much better. This is the case with many gas colics. The horse may be in complete agony one moment, and then (with a little addition to the world's greenhouse gases), feel and appear great.

Just to be sure, the veterinarian did treat the colic with fluids and mineral oil. We were instructed to monitor him and hold off feed until some fresh stool had passed - which it did - piles and piles.

Moonstone - Retired at last

This year, I have retired my reining horse, Moonstone Cody.

We have enjoyed working together and competing in NRHA events and California State Horseman Association over the past six years. He turned 20 this year, and is looking forward to helping me with ranch work and spending time in the pasture.

Moonstone is out of Topsail Cody and was born in 1991.