Horsekeeping Blunder

I hesitated to blog about this for two reasons: 1. It has nothing to do with our Endurance/Limited Distance ride which is foremost on our minds and 2. I was pretty sure I didn't want ANYone to know. But it's part of my experience so here goes.
  Last Wednesday morning I went out as usual to feed Mister & Willow their hay and breakfast. When I went to open the the freezer holding their breakfast I found it was NOT chained. We spent a lot of time talking about whether or not to have the freezer inside the barn. Hubby chained it shut so they couldn't open the lid and then he chained it to the wall so they couldn't tip it over. But I left it open by mistake.
GULP! Heart beating super fast now as I turn to look at them. They hadn't crowded each other when I came into the paddock and were quietly munching their hay I'd just tossed them after carefully smelling it to make sure it wasn't moldy. I open the freezer to find their dishes empty, feed bag shredded and top knocked off the vitamins. Some Flax and Soy beans tossed about.
  I lock the freezer and I'm shaking. I look at them again as I walk towards the house, "HUN!!" I yell in an unmistakable tone to hubby holding the dog. "Put Lilly inside & come help me please!" I say to him. He knows the tone well and just does it without asking.
I tell him, we look again at the freezer and I tell him we have to move it. He sees I'm trying not to cry and we just do it. Move a bunch of hay out of the hay building and drag that freezer to the new spot. He says they'll be fine, they hardly got any - they probably couldn't keep the lid open to eat much.
  I canNOT stop thinking that I may well have killed both my horse and my daughter's horse. He leaves me alone, wise hubby.
  I go back over to Mister & Willow and take their hay away and I lock the pasture gate so they're stuck with only an appetizer portion of grass that's hardly worth the effort. I'm frantically going over colic symptoms while trying to stay calm. I look for fresh manure and can't find any. I have no idea when they were eating out of that freezer. I listen for gut sounds and when I don't hear any I listen with the stethoscope and think I hear some. They don't feel warm anywhere, I run my hands over their legs and they feel fine. Feet do not feel hot. Breathing is same as always. They look Ok, but definitely look "full" and lazy. Lethargic. Lethargy! Ohmygosh! They DO look lethargic! Thing is, they always look lethargic after breakfast. Really, they're potatoes after breakfast.
  I'm looking at them looking at me. There is no obvious sign to call a vet, or Gary. What to do? Coffee and internet to investigate colic. I look at them out the window and they're looking more lethargic every second.
  I can't stand to stay in and wait so I go back out and move them. Grab a stick & say "Walk!" - Willow goes right away and Mister just looks annoyed. I move them for five minutes and step back. Nothing - they just look at me. I pick the paddock so I can see right away any fresh manure. I'm keeping busy, that's all. I move them again for another five minutes. Mister gets a drink and Willow deposits a neat little pile of manure that looks perfectly normal. She is aghast at the profuse praise she receives for this small act. I listen again for gut sounds and think I hear some. For Mister, I can hear plenty, but no manure and he's still looks "off" to me. I tell him what a good boy he is for taking a drink.
  I leave them alone for twenty minutes and come back to do the same thing. Still no manure from Mister but both are drinking water and looking for bits of hay from this morning. I move them two more times before he gives me manure. Whew! I start to calm down. Maybe I didn't kill them after all. Maybe. They doze more than usual throughout the day but otherwise seem fine.
  All day I watch them and they get no supper, just hay. They are annoyed but I tell them that's what they get for stealing. Normal manure and normal attitudes the next day.
Perfect. I didn't kill them. And they didn't kill me. But it sure felt close.