SAND VS. PSYLLIUM
by C. Mike Tomlinson D.V.M.

COLIC
Colic is still the number one cause of death of horses today. It used to be that verminous colic (caused by worms and other parasites) was the primary type of colic, but now in many areas sand is the most commonly seen form of colic.

Sand colic is the result of the building up of sand in the intestinal tract of the horse. There can be as much as 150 pounds of sand lying in the bottom of the horse's belly.

The pain from sand is caused primarily by two methods. The sand presses on the bottom of the intestine, preventing blood from entering the area (Just like when you press on your fingernail, the pinkness (blood) goes away). This causes the long term, low grade pain that can cause a horse to eat poorly without ever really acting colicky. You know how it feels to not get enough blood to an area if you have ever tied a rubber band around a finger for very long.

Eventually the sand can build up to the point that it totally blocks a loop of intestine. At this point, the horse becomes very painful from the buildup of hay and water in front of the blockage. Once this pressure builds to
a certain point, it either pushes out the sand blockage or pops the intestine like an overfilled balloon. The intestinal rupture is always fatal.

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SAND COLIC IS PREVENTABLE
Sand colic is one of the most preventable diseases known. The buildup of sand is simply the amount of sand being eaten minus the amount of sand passing through. If the same amount is going out the back as is coming in the front, there can be no buildup.

Prevention of sand intake sounds simple, but often heroic efforts are fruitless. Horses eat sand whenever there is sand below where they eat. If they are fed in feeders that are not big enough for them to spread out the feed, they will pull the feed out and put it where it can be spread out, usually on the ground.

Horses lick their lips between nearly every bite of hay. If the horses eat off the ground, every time these wet lips touch the ground, the dirt will stick to the lips and be consumed with the next mouthful of hay. Some horses simply must vacuum up every last morsel of hay and in doing so, they also vacuum up quite a quantity of sand. Horses in pasture that pull up the grass, roots and all, get a mouthful of dirt with the roots.

Young horses all seem to go through a stage, as do people, dogs, and many other domesticated species, where they feel that they need to eat dirt, often by the handful. This behavior in young is normal and you cannot stop the desire until they outgrow it.

The overt eating of dirt in adult horses is not normal. It is often found that there is some form of deficiency in the adult's diet. The mose common is the lack of salt or other mineral deficiency. Stress and boredom can also drive an adult horse to eat dirt.

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MOVING SAND THROUGH
Sand is moved through the intestinal tract by the normal peristaltic movement of the tract. Regular exercise can be the most beneficial way to help the intestines move the sand out. Moving sand that is in a hard lump may be impossible, but shake it up with some good trotting and it will break up and move right through.

After exercise, feeds play the next major role in moving the sand out. Concentrates such as grains and vitamin supplements do nothing to remove sand. Roughages such as alfalfa, timothy, coastal, and other hays are the traditional source of fiber for horses. Hay alone can move through a small amount of sand just fine.

Bran (Red Flakey Wheat Chaff) can be added to the diet to help with the sand problem. Keep in mind that bran is high in Calcium and low in Phosphorus and as such must be used in moderation unless feeding alfalfa as the primary roughage. Bran has also been implicated in a few articles as increasing the incidence of the enteroliths (horse pearls, intestinal stones, rocks).

Psyllium is the best feed stuff known for the prevention of sand colic. Psyllium cannot cause enteroliths. It
is fed in such small amounts that your horse cannot gain weight from its use nor will it cause any nutritional imbalance when fed normally.

Many horse owners feed oil to their horses. Most do it for the nutritional benefit (increased weight, shinier coat, etc.). Some mistakenly belive that it will help move through sand. Plant oils (vegetable, corn, safflower, etc.) are digested and absorbed long before they get to the sand. They do not lubricate the digestive tract. Mineral oil (liquid paraffin) is not digested or absorbed. It tastes terrible to most horses. Horses will not voluntarily eat mineral oil. Mineral oil does help loosed up tightly bound sand, but it does not move it out as well as psyllium.

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SIGNS OF SAND COLIC
Sand takes months to build up in the average horse. Diarrhea is often the first sign of the disease. Sand is the number one cause of diarrhea in some areas. Once the sand builds up to the point that it blocks most of a loop of bowel, then the fibers of hay form a beaver dam over the sand. Only fluids and small pieces can get through the sieve.

Weight loss is also commonly seen with sand in the intestinal tract. Sand, when not bounced around, can form a hard lump almost like a form-fitted piece of cement in the bottom of the intestines. This sand covers a portion of the intestinal wall preventing nutrient absorption in that area. The pain from the weight of the sand (and also from frequent plugging up) will often cause the horse to be less interested in eating. Such horses can lose weight rapidly.

Sand can sometimes be heard by listening to the very lowest part of the belly. The sound it makes is much like the sound you hear when underwater at the beach. Sand whooshing through the intestine is unmistakable once you hear it. Keep in mind that if it is whooshing throuhg, that is fine, it is the sand that is not moving that is dangerous.

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MASON JAR TEST
The mason jar test is another method of assessing if your horse is passing sand. Put six fecal balls or their equivalent into a glass jar. Fill half full with water and shake well. Let settle for fifteen minutes and then check if there is any sand lining the bottom of the jar.

If there is much sand at the bottom of the jar, it means that your horse is moving a lot of sand through (or you used manure that had touched dirt). This is good in that at least it is coming out. Prevention of ingestion must be increased.

If there is no sand at the bottom, it means either your horse is not eating any sand or that your horse is not passing the sand it has eaten. In either case, repeat the test several times. If it is negative every time, use psyllium every day for a week, testing daily. If still no sand, then your horse probably is not eating sand.

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TREATMENT
If you believe that your hose has sand colic, first rule out other possibilities, such as hay fever, injury, or other causes of colic. If you horse will eat and looks bright and alert, then there is hope of getting him over this without the aid of a veterinarian.

Exercise is the best way to loosen a sand-induced impaction. Walk your horse and jog a few steps every now and then to really shake up the intestines. Do not let the horse become exhausted.

Be certain to offer water every few minutes. Water is the key to flushing out sand. It is nearly impossible to get sand of a severly dehydrated horse.

Bran is a good first aid for sand colic. Besides being a good source of fiber, bran is a great way to get more water in the horse. Make up a bran mash as wet as it can be ("bran soup").

It is impossible to overfeed bran when the horse is colicking. Getting the horse over the acute stages of sand colic is much more important than the small nutritional aberration from eating forty pounds of bran. If your
horse will not eat or if he looks painful and a few minutes of walking does not bring relief, then you should call the veterinarian immediately. Do as your veterinarian instructs you until he or she arrives. If no instructions are given, attempt to walk if possible, but not to exhaustion. Offer all the clean water you can get your horse to drink. Try to make the bran soup appear appetizing by adding chopped carrots and/or syrup of any type. Once your horse is back to normal, if it is certain that it was sand colic, your horse still has pounds of sand inside. To rid your horse of this residual sand, psyllium should be given daily for one to two months.

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PREVENTION
Sand colic is preventable. Reducing the intake of sand is primary. Where the horse eats is the first place to start. Horses will spread out their feed. It is their nature to eat the good parts first. With no other horses coming into their stall and no predator chasing them away, they eventually do eat every last morsel, but not until the tastiest parts are eaten.

The salivary and respiratory tracts of the horse are designed for feed to be eaten with the head down. The chance of choke, colic, and respiratory diseases is increased when horses eat out of feeders above ground level.

Horses need to have a feeder that allows the spreading and shaking of feed without spilling onto the dirt. The ideal is some sort of enclosure at ground level large enough (at least 3 ft.) to spread feed out and with high enough sides (measure from the ground to the base of the neck with head down) to prevenet feed from coming out. This type of feeder also makes feeding easier in that even people with poor aim can throw a flake into such a large target.

A salt block is a necessity in many parts of the country. Salt blocks come in many formulations (colors). Generally, a white or brown block is best. Consult your veterinarian for the best type of salt block for your area. The larger salt blocks tend to be the most economical as long as they are kept out of the moisture. Often horses that are bored learn how fun it is top chew up the smaller salt blocks. It appears they get bored with trying to eat the entire large block and go on to some other toy.

Boredom alone can lead to eating of dirt. Place as many safe toys in your horse's area as practical. Tires, rubber road cones, milk jugs tied to a rafter (with a few rocks as rattles) and similar items can greatly relieve the boredom of sitting in a stall all day.

Moving sand out once it is ingested can be accomplished by two things: vigorous exercise and feeding psyllium. The exercise shakes up the intestinal contents mixing it with the psyllium that keeps it from
settling back to the bottom and thereby moves out with everything else.

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