Significance

• Colic is no cause for concern in an otherwise healthy baby. Horse colic, on the other hand, is a serious health concern.
  
  

Time Frame

• The Mayo Clinic (2009) defines human colic as crying for at least three times per day, three times per week, three times per month. Horse colic is not defined by a time frame.
  
  

Causes

• The cause of human colic remains unknown, but the causes of horse colic include sudden changes in diet or weather, moldy food, poor eating habits and internal parasites.
  
  

Symptoms

• Symptoms of human colic include intense, regular crying fits; symptoms of horse colic include hoofing the ground, restlessness and rolling on its back.
  
  

Action

• Contact your doctor if your baby's crying worries you or cries of fussiness become cries of pain. With horses, contact your veterinarian, who will suggest a treatment plan.
  
  

Prevention

• Because its cause is unknown, human colic has no known prevention. You can prevent horse colic, however, by establishing regular feeding schedules, inspecting stalls for foreign objects and putting horses on a deworming program.