Evidence-based strategies for preventing colic in horses and how management choices directly affect this major welfare threat.
Colic prevention is fundamentally a welfare issue because most colic episodes are preventable through management practices aligned with equine physiology, and because even mild colic causes significant pain. The domestic management of horses — stabling, grain-based feeding, limited exercise — creates conditions that directly contradict the digestive system evolution of these animals. The welfare-optimal approach provides horses with near-continuous access to appropriate forage, clean water, regular exercise or movement, and social contact. When management constraints require stabling, providing slow feeders that extend forage access time, maintaining consistent feeding schedules, and ensuring sufficient exercise are minimum welfare standards. The frequency of preventable colic in the domestic horse population is a measure of how far management practices often deviate from physiological needs.