A few hours at most till signs of a problem can start to show...
If this happens a phone call to your vet ASAP or emergent is needed...
A explanation of what happened, last time you know the horse WAS NOT in that feed gorging and current vitals and added pulse points, heat in feet and such will be asked about.
A pretty good estimate of how much was gobbled up also is needed...
I would be spending the $$ for the vet to come and check my horse out, do anything possible to stop the destruction that could happen...
And a bottle of Aspirin for me as this is going to be a looong day, night and next few days till out of danger is achieved.
I hope this did not just happen to you...:frown_color:
:runninghorse2:...
jmo...

 

For a grain binge like you are using hypothetically (horse breaks into the feed bin). You don't wait for symptoms. You call your vet especially if your horse is at a higher risk. The sooner you call the sooner corrective action can be taken before there is significant tissue damage. That said. Look at how much your horse potentially consumed. If this is a horse that doesn't have other risk factors and is used to getting grain and in a safe quantity then if they ate not much more than that just don't feed for the rest of the day and keep an eye on things. If you can't determine the amount - you call. If it is significantly more than they would consume in a normal feeding - you call. If it is a feed they don't eat (for another horse) - you call.

 

I have found and read many articles on what to do when one "knows" about the break in.

But what I was asking was, "without the owners knowledge or discovery", what would be the minimum possible time for lameness to present itself?

There is a reason why I'm asking this question which I won't go into at this time.

 

So far, I only found one article that actually says how long. 12 to 18 hours for symptoms to show up

https://www.barrelhorsenews.com/articles/horse-health/4385-a-leg-up-on-laminitis

 

Since I've got 2 mares who are at risk for laminitis, I'll say what I found though it didn't involve grain, just grass. 12 hrs minimum. And in a horse who is already sore from laminitis, I wouldn't wait on a call to the vet. I'd also put that sucker into 2 buckets filled with cold water, one for each front hoof and I'd give a shot of Banamine.

 

I'd also advise someone wire the grain bin shut, with a scrap of barbed wire if I had to. Trigger is notorious for breaking into the feed buggy/cattle feed. At the worst, so far, we've only had to shovel up feed by the bucketfull. He's not gotten into it and us not known immediately.

It's wired shut with a length of barbed wire now. (He can get the regular stuff untwisted. Barbed wire is problematic)

 

With Hondo you'd better treat the grain bin like Fort Knox!

@LoriF Thanks, that is exactly what I was looking for. "If not treated early, symptoms of founder will occur 12 to 18 hours after eating too much grain."

And thanks for all the other replies also!

 

4-12+ hours for colic. 12-24 or even a bit longer for laminitis/founder according to my vet. He says you're not 'in the clear' for at least three days. Up to five if the horse is founder-prone, because even if he shows no signs right away, a cumulative effect of additional grain or high-sugar grass, etc. can tip him over the edge.

 

@SilverMaple Thanks, that pretty much confirms the article that @LoriF posted.

I sort of figured there would be a lot of variables that could extend the maximum time but at the earliest that sounds like a confirmation.

I had no idea if the minimum was 3 hours or 3 days. Read a lot of articles but didn't find.

 

Okay I have a question. What if the horse gets into alfalfa pellets or hay pellets rather than grain? Would there still be an issue?

 

Good question 4horses. I know alfalfa cubes aren't a problem because I sometimes spread out a couple bags, never a problem, in fact they stopped eating when they had enough, treated it just like hay which is pretty much available at all times in haynets. However my horses are not laminitic.

 

Alfalfa pellet and cubes have the same analysis as hay. Grain is very high in NSC that does not get digested in the foregut as it normally would in small quantities. When it passes undigested into the hind gut it causes and acid condition called acidosis. That begins breaking down the hind gut walls allowing bad stuff into the blood stream that causes lots of problems one of which in laminitis.

Alfalfa can eventually cause laminitis in some horses, particularly if they don't get enough exercise. But just like getting fat, it takes a while.

 

The one horse I know who did the grain thing (not mine) eventually died from it even with vet care as soon as it was discovered. Not founder and it's been LONG ago so I don't know exact facts but I remember they said his blood near death was like thick sludge.

 

Any sudden change of diet can lead to laminitis if the horse is susceptible.

Grain, alfalfa, new green pasture; it can all cause it.

It starts out with colic, however subtle.

In grain overload, the massive amount of grain changes the pH of the gut. (The gut become more acidic) The pH change causes gram negative bacteria (which are normal flora in the gut) to have a massive die off. Dying gram negative bacteria release endotoxins. Endotoxins damage circulation, especially to the feet.

Many years ago, I had two very fat horses break into the barn and eat 50 pounds of feed between them. I gave them banamine. I gave them mineral oil to help the feed pass through quickly. I also gave them each half a bottle of Maalox Plus. (generic)
The antacid helps neutralizes the acid. The simethicone helps with gas.

My horses did fine. I did worry like crazy.

Please call your veterinarian if this ever happens because it can be life and death. (I am a veterinarian. Sometimes it would be easier to just call one than to have all the responsibility of the life of your best friend in your hands.)

The above mentioned treatment is what I did with client horses back when I worked on client horses. (The medications were given via naso-gastric tube, except the banamine which was IV)

If they didn't respond pretty quickly, they were referred to the university hospital.