February 2004

Be Alert For Urinary Problems In Older Horses

Some urinary problems develop over time with no symptoms until the horse is aged. Others cause intense pain and colic.

Your horse needs an adequate intake of salt to ensure he drinks enough water.

Horses normally have microscopic calcium crystals, even “sludge,” in their urine. Urine is normally alkaline (high pH), and these mineral crystals precipitate out at that pH, making the urine cloudy or milky at times. Urinary stones are formed predominantly by this same normal material, which has become concentrated in low urine volumes.

No one can truly explain why some horses form stones and some don’t, although they’re the most common urinary problem in horses. Age is a factor simply because it takes a stone a significant amount of time to become large enough to cause a problem. Stones are more common in geldings and stallions than mares because the male urethra,…