Racehorses, Swimming, and Colic

While swimming-induced colic does occur, it doesn’t happen as frequently as some might have thought.
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Performance horses are kept in top physical condition by a variety of methods, and where facilities exist, swimming can be a beneficial means of exercise. However, some veterinarians have observed an association between swimming and the onset of colic. A team of Australian researchers recently took a closer look at the link and determined that while swimming-induced colic does occur, it doesn’t happen as frequently as some might have thought, affirming swimming as a good source of exercise for athletic equine athletes.

A team of researchers led by Liz Walmsley BVSc, MACVSc, MRCVS, a clinical tutor and resident in equine surgery at the University of Melbourne Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, set out to determine how often swimming-induced colic (SC) occurred in racehorses as opposed to other forms of colic. The researchers classified the ailment as swimming-induced if it occurred within 30 minutes after the horse swam.

The team’s retrospective study examined records of racehorses that were seen for colic at a large equine racetrack hospital between January 2002 and December 2004. Key findings included:

  • During the study period there were 361 colic cases documented with 136 of those being considered SC cases;
  • Approximately 1 out of every 1,200 swims during the three-year study period resulted in an SC case.
  • Some horses had SC on more than one occasion;
  • Five of 136 SC cases required surgical intervention; and
  • The prognosis after SC was good, with all 136 cases surviving.

The team collected additional information on 21 surgical SC cases from three additional Australian equine hospitals

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Written by:

Casie Bazay is a freelance and young adult writer, as well as a certified equine acupressure practitioner. She also hosts a blog, The Naturally Healthy Horse. Once an avid barrel racer, she now enjoys giving back to the horses who have given her so much.

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