Enteroliths in Horses: Causes and Prevention
Alicia Long, DVM, Dipl. ACVIM (LA), Dipl. ACVECC (LA)
May 24, 2025
What are enteroliths and what happens if your horse has one (or several)?
What are enteroliths and what happens if your horse has one (or several)?
Learn about 14 types of colic, or abdominal pain, in horses and their prognoses.
Researchers know diet, breed, high colonic pH levels, and water supply mineral content can impact enterolith formation, but how trace minerals affect the process is less well-understood.
While small in size, Minis have the same health needs and risks as other breeds, as well as a number of unique issues.
There are no easy answers when it comes to colic surgery, just as there are no easy decisions.
Miniature Horses are more susceptible to some health problems than their larger counterparts.
Digital radiography is up to 85% sensitive and 93% specific for diagnosing enterolithiasis in horses.
If your horse is at risk for intestinal stones or enteroliths (a common cause of obstruction-induced colic in horses), consider replacing an alfalfa-based diet with grass hay, said Diana M. Hassel, DVM, PhD, of Colorado State University.
Too much alfalfa, too little oat and grass hay, and limited access to pasture grazing are important factors that put horses at risk for developing enterolithiasis (intestinal stones that have the potential to cause colic).
One of the more exotic forms of colic is caused by enteroliths, or stone-like formations that form in a horse’s digestive tract.
Colic is an equine problem familiar to all people who work with horses. Many colics are simply gas colics and can resolve themselves quickly with little or no intervention. In some cases, the home remedy of walking the horse or loading the horse
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