78 THE CANADIAN HOESE 



COLIC. 



Colic is usually known as bellyache, gripes, batts, &c. 

 It is a very common disease in our inferior breeds of horses, 

 arising from long and fast driving, irregular feeding, injudi- 

 cious watering, and improper care. It is usually distin- 

 guished as spasmodic and ilatulent, or windy colic. We 

 will, however, treat of them under the one head. 



Colic is generally found to occur from a sudden change 

 of feed, very often during summer, wheu running at pas- 

 ture, if taken up for a day, and a feed of oats or dry food 

 given; peas, when not accustomed to them, are apt to 

 cause "gripes ;" drinking freely of cold water, when heated, 

 will often give rise to violent spasm of the bowels ; worms 

 and other intestinal irritants may induce it ; costiveness 

 or constipation often causes it ; over-loading the stomach, 

 or being put to work on a full stomach, will give rise to it. 



Symptoms. — The animal is suddenly seized with pain in 

 the bowels, becoming restless and uneasy, crouching, kick- 

 ing at his belly with his hind-feet, looking round to his 

 flanks. He gets down after several apparent efforts, rolls 

 about, sometimes on bis back, sometimes quite over; per- 

 spiration breaks over him. This paroxysm passes ofiF, and 

 he gets up, shakes himself, and begins feeding. During the 

 interval, the pulse is unaltered, the legs and ears are natural. 

 The bowels are constipated, though a few glazy purls may 

 be forcibly passed during the gripe. After an interval of 

 longer or shorter duration, it returns, perhaps with increased 

 violence, when he gathers himself together, and lets himself 

 fall down with a groan, and rolls about as before, dashes 

 wildly about. If flatulent, the belly is distended and hard, 

 and wind is freely expelled. If it terminates favourably, the 

 gripes becomes less severe, and recur at longer intervals ; if 

 the contrary, they are increased in frequency, and augmented 



