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Colic is a general term for abdominal pain in horses and can range from a mild, temporary problem to a life-threatening emergency. Because some serious forms of colic may initially cause only subtle signs, it is important to recognize changes in your horse’s normal behavior and contact your veterinarian promptly when you have concerns.
Common Signs of Colic
A horse experiencing colic may show one or more of the following signs:
When Is Colic an Emergency?
Any horse showing signs of colic should be taken seriously. Call your veterinarian promptly if your horse is showing signs of abdominal pain, especially if the signs are persistent, worsening, or severe.
Seek immediate emergency veterinary care if your horse:
Do not wait for colic signs to become severe before calling. Some horses with serious intestinal problems may appear relatively comfortable early in the course of disease.
What Should You Do While Waiting for Your Veterinarian?
If you suspect colic:
You know your horse better than anyone. If something seems different, don’t ignore it. Changes in behavior, appetite, manure production, movement, or overall attitude can be early signs of illness.
When in doubt, call your veterinarian. It is always better to have a horse evaluated early than to wait and risk a potentially serious condition becoming more difficult to treat.
What you need: A digital rectal thermometer.
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Normal adult resting temperature: approximately 99–101°F (37.2–38.3°C).
Safety: Never stand directly behind a horse when taking their temperature. If your horse is kicking, frightened, or difficult to handle, have an experienced person assist you.
A temperature that is significantly higher or lower than your horse’s normal temperature should be discussed with your veterinarian.
What you need: A stethoscope and a watch or phone timer.
Normal adult resting heart rate: approximately 28–44 beats per minute.
A persistently elevated heart rate, particularly when accompanied by signs of pain, can be an important indicator of an emergency such as colic.
Tip: If you don’t have a stethoscope, you can sometimes feel the pulse along the facial artery underneath the horse’s jaw.
A horse’s respiratory rate is the number of breaths they take in one minute. It is best measured when your horse is calm and standing quietly.
How to check it:
What is normal?
A normal resting respiratory rate for an adult horse is generally 8–16 breaths per minute.
Keep in mind that respiratory rate can temporarily increase after exercise, during hot weather, or when a horse is excited or stressed. Allow the horse to settle before taking a resting measurement.
When is it concerning?
Contact your veterinarian if your horse has:
Capillary refill time helps provide information about circulation and hydration.
Normal: The color should return in approximately 1–2 seconds.
A refill time that is significantly prolonged, very rapid, or accompanied by dark red, pale, white, blue, or purple gums can indicate a problem and warrants veterinary attention.
Gut sounds provide information about the movement of the digestive tract and can be particularly useful when monitoring a horse with suspected colic.
You can listen to four areas, one on each side of the horse’s abdomen.
Right side:
Place your ear or, preferably, a stethoscope over the flank area—approximately midway between the last rib and the point of the hip.
Left side:
Listen in the corresponding area on the left flank.
You can also listen higher and lower on each side to get a more complete assessment.
Listen for:
Gut sounds can vary normally, so one quiet area does not necessarily mean something is wrong. What is more concerning is markedly decreased or absent sounds, especially when combined with signs of abdominal pain.
When monitoring a horse with colic, record whether sounds are normal, decreased, increased, or absent, and note any changes over time.