Colic in Horses – Checklist

Colic in horses is a very common disorder of their digestive system.
The term colic, the basic definition means “abdominal pain”, but in horses is used to define severe abdominal discomfort characterized with rolling, pawing, and seldom the inability to defecate.

• HEART RATE
  – mild: 40-60
  – moderate: 60-80
  – severe: over 80
• RESPIRATORY RATE
  – mild: 20-30
  – moderate: 30-40
  – severe: over 40
• TEMPERATURE
  – mild: 99-100.5 F
  – moderate: 99-100.5
  – severe: under 99/over 100.5
• GUM COLOR
  – mild: pale pink
  – moderate: pale pink
  – severe: bluish or purple
• CRT (Capillary refill time)
  – mild: 1-2 seconds
  – moderate: 2-4 seconds
  – severe: over 5 seconds
• GUT SOUNDS
  – mild: normal or increased
  – moderate: decreased frequency
  – severe: absent
• FECES
  – mild: normal
  – moderate: small balls of feces
  – severe: no feces/diarrhea
• GASES
  – mild: present
  – moderate: absent
  –severe: absent
• LVL OF PAIN
  – mild: looking at the belly, stretching, pawing, sweating, lifting the hind legs
  – moderate: looking at the belly, stretching, pawing, sweating, lifting the hind legs, trying to roll on the ground
  – severe: looking at the belly, stretching, pawing, sweating, lifting the hind legs, trying to roll on the ground, uncontrollable attempts to roll and thrash