It is a gorgeous, sunny day.  Perfect weather to go riding.  You head over to the barn and straight towards your horse's stall.  As you approach the stall, you sense something is wrong.  Your friend and partner is not looking over his stall door and nickering at your arrival.  You look into his stall and he is just standing there with his head hung down low, with no interest in his surroundings.  He is not even interested in eating his hay.  Alarms are going off in your head.  You enter his stall and check his vitals and listen to his gut.  There are no gut sounds and his vitals are abnormal.  OH, NO!!!!  It can't be!!  Is it possible that he has .........

This is the scenario that horse owner's dread.  The horse is totally disinterested in his surroundings and has absolutely no interest in food, which is very unusual for a horse.  (A horse eats and grazes for most of the day.)  The animal will start to sweat and keep looking at his belly.  From time to time, he may start kicking at his belly.  His breathing is labored, pulse has increased and his temperature is rising.  You listen to the gut and there are no sounds at all or too many sounds.  He may want to go down and roll.  All these are signs of .... COLIC. 

Colic is basically a tummy ache for a horse, but it can be fatal.  Now, you may ask, why?  The horse has a very sensitive digestive system and a small stomach.  Horses are unable to throw up.  What goes in one end, must come out the other.  If anything gets stuck in between, immediate action must be taken.

Once you have determined that your horse has colic, CALL THE VETERINARIAN IMMEDIATELY!!!!!  The sooner he gets medical attention, the better.  If you wait too long, it may be fatal.  If your horse wants to go down and roll, DO NOT let him.  Doing so (rolling) may twist his gut and surgery will be a must and he may not make it through.  Instead, walk him around and try to keep him calm and as comfortable as possible.  If he wants to just lay down, allow him to, so that he can rest.  But, keep a constant eye on him.  Do not offer him food.  (Would you want to eat when your tummy hurts?)  You may try to offer some water, but that is it.  Once the vet arrives, he will determine the type of colic your horse has and will treat him for it.  After treatment, if surgery is not required, keep a close eye on him for the next 24 hours.  Eventually he should start munching on his hay and drinking water.  Under no circumstances feed him grain until you are sure he is out of the woods.

Many of us who own horses have gone through this at least once.  No horse owner wants to go through this, knowing what may happen down the line if not caught in time.  It doesn't mean that the horse has not been well cared for.  There are many reasons why a horse may colic.  The best thing we can do is catch it in it's early stages and call for medical help the minute you suspect it.  It is better to be safe than sorry.