dry feed - colic

Question
hello ma'am. why do horses get colic when are provided dry feed?

Answer
Hello Rohit,

Colic is something of a general term used to refer to digestive disturbances.  There are 3 types of colic and each type has different causes.    

Impaction colic occurs when there is an obstruction in the large colon and digesta stops moving through the digestive system.  Impaction colic can result from dehydration, an excess of undigestible feed in the diet or from the hindgut failing to properly ferment feeds.  


Gas colic occurs when gas builds in the horse's cecum. The gas can come from the fermentation of starch in the cecum (usually because there is too much cereal grain in the diet, or there is too much starch fed per meal) or from the improper fermentation of forages.  

Torsion colic is the result of really bad luck, when the horse's large colon twists on itself.  

The act of feeding dry feed alone with not necessarily cause colic, but could be a contributing factor when other issues (such as inadequate water intake) exist.

Corlena