Equine colic education faces a stubborn barrier: client misconceptions
Bottom line
Colic remains one of the most common and time-sensitive equine emergencies, but new research suggests many horse owners still hold misconceptions that can delay treatment or referral. A mixed-methods cross-sectional study in Equine Veterinary Journal found that UK horse owners were often reluctant to change their approach to colic, even after receiving evidence-based information on recognizing colic and on surgical survival and outcomes. That finding lands alongside fresh educational outreach from The Horse, which published “Equine Colic 101” on April 9, 2026, featuring equine surgeons Michael Fugaro and Bianca Ruspi, and longstanding clinical guidance underscoring that all colic cases require medical management to some degree. (madbarn.com)
Why it matters: For veterinary professionals, the message is less about new therapeutics and more about communication, triage, and preparedness. The evidence suggests that simply presenting facts may not be enough to shift pet parent decision-making in a colic emergency, especially when referral, surgery, cost, transport, and prognosis are in play. That reinforces the need for proactive client education before a crisis, clear referral conversations, and practical emergency planning that helps clients recognize subtle early signs, understand when a case is escalating, and act quickly. AAEP client resources and referral guidance echo that urgency, emphasizing early recognition, prompt veterinary contact, and clear communication around who can authorize and finance referral care. (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov)
What to watch: Expect more attention on how equine practices educate clients about colic before emergencies happen, especially around referral readiness, financial planning, and correcting persistent misconceptions. (madbarn.com)
Equine colic is familiar territory for veterinarians, but a new thread in the literature is sharpening the focus on the human side of the emergency: what horse owners believe, and whether those beliefs change when presented with evidence. A recent Equine Veterinary Journal study by Burrell, England, Burford, and Freeman found that misconceptions about colic are common among UK horse owners and that many remain reluctant to alter their treatment or referral decisions even after reviewing evidence-based information. At the same time, The Horse has renewed its educational push with “Equine Colic 101,” published April 9, 2026, an Ask TheHorse podcast sponsored by CareCredit that walks horse owners through causes, warning signs, veterinary management, and prevention. (madbarn.com)
The backdrop here is well established: colic is not a single disease, but a clinical sign of abdominal pain that can range from self-limiting gas distension to strangulating lesions requiring urgent surgery. Clinical management principles have been consistent for years. In a widely cited review, Nicola Menzies-Gow wrote that all equine colic cases require medical management to some degree, with goals that include pain relief, correction of hydration and electrolyte abnormalities, treatment of endotoxemia, and management of ileus. More recent educational coverage from The Horse similarly stresses that some horses show only subtle signs at first, while others deteriorate rapidly, making early recognition and prompt veterinary involvement critical. (vettimes.com)
What’s new is the growing evidence that owner decision-making is itself a clinical variable. The Burrell team’s newer work on critical colic decision-making, indexed in PubMed, describes the process as emotionally intense and shaped by “head,” “heart,” practical constraints, and long-term psychological impact. That helps explain why evidence alone may not reliably move behavior in the moment. In practice, reluctance around referral can reflect not just misunderstanding of prognosis, but also transport logistics, prior experiences, financial limits, uncertainty about surgery, and the stress of making a high-stakes decision under time pressure. (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov)
Industry and educational messaging is increasingly aligning around that reality. The Horse’s April 2026 “Equine Colic 101” feature frames colic education around practical recognition and response, noting that signs may include reduced appetite and lethargy as well as pawing, flank-watching, rolling, or repeatedly getting up and down. The article features Michael Fugaro, VMD, Dipl. ACVS, and Bianca Ruspi, DVM, a surgery resident at Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital, signaling a continued push to connect horse owners with specialist-informed guidance. AAEP client materials also emphasize prevention and preparedness, while referral guidance developed with multiple specialty colleges highlights the importance of identifying who is legally and financially responsible for the horse before an emergency unfolds. (thehorse.com)
Expert commentary in the trade press reinforces the same operational lesson: timing matters, and indecision can narrow options. In The Horse’s earlier colic coverage, University of Missouri internist Philip Johnson said that referral is warranted when gastric reflux persists rather than improving over a short monitoring window, while another The Horse report on referral decisions noted that time spent debating transport to an equine hospital can affect survival in some cases. AAEP’s referral resources likewise frame colic as an emergency that requires coordinated communication between the primary veterinarian, referral center, and client. (thehorse.com)
Why it matters: For equine veterinarians, this is a reminder that client education on colic can’t start at the farm gate during an emergency call. Practices may need to treat colic preparedness as a preventive care topic: reviewing early warning signs, explaining what referral actually involves, clarifying likely decision points, and discussing financial and transport contingencies ahead of time. The newer research suggests that correcting misconceptions is not simply a matter of distributing handouts. Communication strategies may need to account for emotion, previous experiences, and practical barriers, especially when surgery is a possibility. That has implications for ambulatory workflows, after-hours triage, consent discussions, and how practices build trust with horse-owning clients over time. (madbarn.com)
There’s also a broader professional takeaway in the language used around equine emergencies. While the supplied source set includes a consumer-facing educational piece and a classic treatment review, the most consequential development may be the convergence of clinical and behavioral evidence: good medicine can still be undermined if the client doesn’t recognize the problem, delays the call, or resists referral. In that sense, colic remains both a medical emergency and a communication challenge. (madbarn.com)
What to watch: Watch for more research on behavior change in equine emergency decision-making, and for practices, insurers, lenders, and referral hospitals to put more structure around pre-emergency planning for colic cases. (madbarn.com)