A cautionary tale

[icspots]

Just thought I should post this so you all can be aware of this very bizarre issue. My little stallion has been in and out of the animal clinic since January, couldn't keep weight on, did the wierd stretching thing etc. He was treated for impaction, and then for ulcers several rounds worth. He died suddenly a week ago, we took him to the university for an autopsy and the results were pretty awful. He had a stone that was 6 inches in diameter in his colon which eventually ruptured the colon and he bled out internally. The strange part is this, the vet said this starts with them ingesting a grain of sand, which lodges somewhere and grows. The biggest she'd ever heard of was 7 1/2 inches and that was in a warmblood, my little guy was only 30" tall! I do not live in a sandy region, but my show horses are on drylot, so I thought it might be good to start using sand clear or something on my show horses to try to prevent this from happening again. It is very sad around here these days, but if someone can take this and prevent heartache of their own at least it has done something.

 

[targetsmom]

I am so sorry you lost your little stallion this way!!! But thank you so much for sharing your story so we can learn from this. I think I will start back up with Sand Clear....

 

[lildrummer]

I am so sorry.

thank you for sharing.

LILDRUMMER

 

[disneyhorse]

Well, from what you are describing, sounds like "entroliths" to me. So not too "bizarre." I suppose they COULD start with "a grain of sand" but I don't think that being on a dry lot or ingesting sand is necessarily what causes the entroliths to form.

I suggest doing a Google search on entroliths, but here's the basics that I understand...

The pH in the horses' guts can help provide an environment for entroliths. Also, the mineral intake of horses can affect formation as well... horses getting alfalfa and grain are often horses with entrolith formations in the gut.

Because I live in southern CA, where the water is hard and we can get alfalfa cheaply and easily, well our vets see entroliths A LOT. Sometimes I've seen the smooth, white stones passed in the piles of manure.

Some vets will suggest feeding apple cider vinegar, to alter the pH level in your horses' guts, as a preventative for these stones.

Also have noticed, horses that colic often may have stones and are reacting to their movement inside of them. Other times, not. Sometimes they pass the smaller stones and sometimes they just build and build on the minerals, like a rocky jawbreaker.

Sorry your little guy had a stone.

Andrea

 

[luv2ridesaddleseat]

I'm so sorry for you.

My horses are on dry lot, I guess I should look into "sandclear".

I'm so sad for you....

 

[disneyhorse]

Although SandClear and other Psyllium products won't help with these entrolith stones, it WILL help prevent the buildup of sand in the stomach. Sand can irritate the lining of the gut as well as create colic, so YES add psyllium if you live in a sandy area!

Andrea

 

[REO]

I'm so very sorry you lost your stallion

{{{{{{Hugs}}}}}}

Thank you for posting this to help others.

 

[Genie]

Sorry to hear of the sad event.

There are always things to be watchful for and I thank you for educating me further.

 

[Mona]

I am so sorry for your loss. I remember a few years back, Dona (Kickapoo Acres) had a stallion that had an entrolith and it too was started from a small stone.

 

[HGFarm]

I am SO sorry for the loss of your little horse. My neighbors pregnant mare had surgery for an entrolith that was pretty big. She survived and so did the foal she was carrying! This was several years ago, with no further problems.

Entroliths can be caused by anything, not just dirt or sand. And a horses' gut has to have SOME sand in it, from what I understand. It is when it gets too much that causes the problems.

It's too bad your vets didnt catch it sooner when the symptoms didnt subside. I'm so sorry!

 

[ShashwatAcres]

So sorry to hear of the loss of your stallion

 

[shelly]

OH HOW AWFUL for that poor stallion and for you!!

:No-Sad Thank you for posting about this as I'm sure that this information will help someone else in the future! I'm very sorry you lost him...{{{HUGS}}}

 

[disneyhorse]

I was PM'd by someone about how much apple cider vinegar to feed a horse for this condition.

First of all, if at all possible, reduce the amount of alfalfa fed.

I used to give my BIG horse (Arabian) 2-3 cups of Apple Cider Vinegar per day, so I'd cut that in 1/4 for a mini. We used to mix it in his grain and O&M (oat hay chaff molasses). Start off slowly, it's pretty pungent.

I'd do a Google search and research more about it, to make an educated decision. There could be other, varying amounts that you might try.

And always... ASK A VET.

Andrea

 

[miniwhinny]

I'm SO sorry for your loss but I also thank you for sharing...gonna be feeding psyllium for breakfast tomorrow.

 

[wildoak]

So sorry for your loss... We lost our old QH mare last fall to enteroliths. She was 30 and had been on alfalfa & Ultium to hold her weight. We didn't do a necropsy but I had found a few stones in her field - and after she died I looked more closely & found close to a dozen! All sizes, from a walnut size to almost orange size.

I know of another stallion who swallowed a tooth and had an enterolith build around it, so can happen essentially with anything they ingest.

Jan

 

[Echo Acres]

icspots- I am so sorry to hear you lost the long battle with your precious stallion! I did not know, thought he was doing better. It is never easy to loose a horse. I am glad you found out what caused it since I know his condition was a bit puzzling to you. Thanks for sharing and hopefully it will help others. Again I am very sorry to hear about your little man.

 

[vickie gee]

So very sorry to hear about your loss. I will be sure and study up more on the signs that a horse may have an entrolith. I viewed several of those in the showcase at A & M University while getting my little foal admitted for her leg problem. Some of those things are huge! One massive one on display was from one of Lyle Lovett's animals. Not sure if it was equine or bovine.

 

[icspots]

I did go do some researching and a couple of things of interest, first it is very prevalent on the west coast due to the nature of the soil, not so much where I live which is probably why it wasn't caught. It is also most prevalent with arabians, no explanation on that one. Two preventatives that came up often were to have a higher grain ratio than alfalfa (within safety margins) and apple cider vinegar which evidently counteracts the alteration of the PH caused by feeding grain and alfalfa. I'm having trouble finding out HOW MUCH to give. Most of the information is for big horses and ranges from 1/2 cup to 1 cup per day, so I think I'm just going to give my minis 10 to 20 cc's per feeding and hope I never have to go through this again!

 

[Matt73]

So sorry

 

[Irish Hills Farm]

Sorry for your loss.