Sand in my horses is ridiculous help please!?

Question

What is the best know way that you get the sand out of your horses? I have heard walmart brand metamucil but i dont know how much to feed... my horses have bellys full of sand and its time to come out please help. i want a home made supplement please i have seen people use store bought products and their horses would still sand colic once a month!

Answer 1

You need to talk to your vet.

Answer 2

Any horse living on a sandy based soil is prone to Sand Colic.  If your horse is showing symptoms of colic, then time to call your vet out, because he will have to oil out the impaction.  THEN you can follow it up with psycillim (pronounced cee lee um) in a hot bran mash (Red flakey wheat bran) twice a week.

Do your horse a favor if your horse is showing symptoms of colic, CALL YOUR VET and have him out to oil up your horse.

Answer 3

I have seen a supplement in the SmarkPak catalog that is supposed to help clear sand although I can't remember what it was called just now. You could look at that stuff, and it should have label directions for use.  

Answer 4

then look for a different vet! this isnt something you should try to solve yourself.also look for the sorce of the sand!

Answer 5

There are maintenance measures that you can take:

#1. Keep your grass long enough that the horse won’t pull it out by the roots and eat the sand.

#2. Consider feeding psyllium one week or once a month to prevent sand colic.

#3. Be aware of any subtle changes in your horse’s attitude and condition

Emergency measures:

#1. Any colic can be serious, so don’t hesitate to call the vet. Early treatment can be a lifesaver and also may avoid surgery. Don't give any pain meds (unless your vet tells you to) as it will mask symptoms that may make a big difference in how severe the situation appears to your vet.

Answer 6

Hello,

My input:

We used Metamucil for YEARS!!!  

But, only as a monthly PREVENTATIVE treatment!  THIS is NOT an emergency treatment for colic!  INFACT you can make matters worse and cause MORE problems, REPEAT< DO NOT give them pshyillum while they are colicing, UNLESS your vet has told you to do it!  

YOUR vet will need to help you clear the sand if it is built up that much!  They will usually tube them and give them gallons of mineral oil, pain killers, sedation and water....  BUT, we only had this happen 2 times in 7 years!  AND with different horses!!!!  THIS IS NOT what you should do your self!!!  WE had the VET out and this is what he did!

CALL a different vet out!

If your horses are that colicy, I would NEVER feed on the ground, and put LARGE rubber mats under the feeders to help reduce sand intake.

CONSIDER your feed, are you certain this is sand colic?

When living in a sandy area, you should be doing physillum (metamucil) treatments 3-5 days a row EVERY single month!  

YOU should NOT give physiillum if your horse is impacted!  YOU NEED TO CALL a different vet out!  If the intestine is displacing YOU need medical intervention!!!!

EDIT>>>>  Glad your vet oiled him!  Wow, you know it seems that I know of some horses that are just way prone to colic!  My friend had to resort to colic surgery, and now has to have her mare on a special diet and ulcer meds...

I suggest the psyllium treatments to hopefully help prevent build up...  I would probably do this in your case and depending on the size and weight of the horse...  BUT, do NOT start it until the colic and displaced intestine are back to normal!!!

EVERY single month:

3-5 days in a row

1/2 to 1 cup (depending on the horses size) of metimucil

put this on one handful of sweetfeed....

JUST make certain they have fresh clean water and feed their feed as usual too....

HOPE your horse feels better, that is stressful not only on him but you too....

Answer 7

Deff. Call you Vet!!!!!! You dont want to try something and it just hurt your horse even more!

Answer 8

feed them vitamin e and selenium, it comes together and it wil help them dispose of the sand, it's easy to fine i have buckets and buckets of it laying aruone here.

also try to aviod feeding them over sandy surfaces, this will help lower amount of sand being ingested