Newsdate: Thursday December 15, 2022, 11:00 am
Location: GILROY, California

Winter is the season of drastic temperature changes in most areas. Unfortunately, horses aren’t great with change. The resulting changes to a horse’s routine and diet can increase the risk of colic and are often overlooked as a potential cause.

Owner lunging horse in snow-covered field

Horses experiencing changes in their environment as weather grows colder are at high risk of intestinal dysfunction so it is important to pay special attention to horses during seasonal changes.
© 2020 by Anon New window.

However, 80% of colic cases can be prevented with proper management strategies. Do your part for your horses this winter by learning ways to prevent colic. It is important to be consistent in all areas of horse health. Since horses are grazers, with relatively small stomachs and long stretches of intestine they are meant to eat small amounts throughout the day.

Horses that have spent their days grazing in pastures are especially subject to digestive problems when fed larger amounts of forage one or two times a day. Keep this in mind as you care for your horses and schedule feeding times and amounts accordingly.

Follow these 10 tips to help keep your horse free from colic:

1. Establish a daily routine – include feeding and exercise schedules – and stick to it.
2. Use slow feeder haybags, feed free choice or use other means to allow your horse a consistent supply of hay or forage material that can be eaten 24/7 and feed a high quality diet comprised primarily of roughage
3. Avoid putting feed on the ground, especially in sandy soils where horses might ingest colic-causing sand..
4. Provide exercise and/or turnout on a daily basis. Change the intensity and duration of an exercise regimen gradually, and be consistent in the amount of exercise time and intensity.
5. .Maintain proper parasite control and routine dental maintenance to decrease incidences of colic.
6. Provide access to clean, fresh water at all times since horses require large amounts of water to move feed material through their gut.
7. In cold areas, warm your horse's water with a heater. According to research, horses prefer water that ranges between 45 and 65 degrees Fahrenheit, and will drink more water if it is in the proper temperature range.
8. Add salt and trace minerals to the diet as the weather to keep water intake consistent and help to reduce colic.
9. Check hay, bedding, pasture, and environment for potentially toxic substances, such as blister beetles, noxious weeds, and other ingestible foreign matter.
10. Reduce stress. Horses experiencing changes in environment or workloads are at high risk of intestinal dysfunction. Pay special attention to horses when transporting them or changing their surroundings, such as at shows.

According to the AAEP, colic remains the number one killer of horses. As scary as that statistic is, colic is not impossible to prevent or treat. With a good preventative plan in place, you can minimize the chance for digestive distress in your horse.