Could Your Horse Have Ulcers?

Image credit mikebaird

It’s a beautiful day for a ride. The winter has been long and cold, but today it definitely feels like Spring. So what is a horse lover to do but leave work a little early and head off to the barn!

Animals Are Solar Powered

When you get there you realize that the horses are in for the night already even though the weather is nice; you make a mental note to talk to the manager about that, because you know that your horse, Sunny, just loves being outside.

In fact, when he is inside too much he destroys the stall with his cribbing. So you quicken your pace to get to your horse’s stall.

What Is One More Hour?

You lovingly stroke Sunny’s neck, tack him up and head out to the arena for an afternoon ride. Your horse hasn’t eaten since 6 AM, and it is now about 11 hours later.

You, though, have worked all day to afford his keep, so he will have to wait just a little longer for his second and final meal of the day.

After all, you are only asking for about an hour of his time.

As you head out to warm up with a walk, everything seems normal. As soon as you ask for the trot, though, your horse stiffens, tosses his head, and is overall very resistant to going forward any faster.

You realize quickly that this is not going to be the enjoyable ride you were looking for after all.

This is not the first time that this has happened, and in fact it seems as if your horse Sunny is becoming lazier and grouchier by the day.

Better call the vet tomorrow. If he cannot find anything wrong, then it will be back to the trainer for Sunny Boy. After all, you would like to get him (and you) in shape for some trail rides this season.

Image credit slopjop

Your Ungrateful Horse

That reminds you, this horse has had all winter off! What the heck does he have to complain about?

He was tucked away in his nice cozy stall all these wintry months, eating up expensive hay and supplements, while you slaved away at your job five days a week to afford his care.

The ingrate!

Whoa, you tell yourself, just wait and see what Doc has to say first. So you put Sunny back in his stall with an extra measure of grain, feeling a little guilty about the negative thoughts you just had, and head off to call your veterinarian.

Doc, You’re Giving Me Ulcers

When Doc comes out to see Sunny, he gives him a thorough examination and can find nothing wrong on the surface.

However, he has been reading up on the latest news and research into Equine Gastric Ulcer Syndrome, and he has the nagging suspicion that this is what is plaguing your horse.

He mentions this to you as well as suggesting the need for a confirming scope.

Ulcers?! Why, your horse isn’t under any stress! In fact, the cost of this darned vet call and possible scoping is going to give you an ulcer!

However, you acquiesce and agree to go through with the scoping, just to be sure.

The results come back: yup, your horse has ulcers. But how could this have happened?

Doc explains that ulcers are becoming known as very common among horses nowadays, due primarily to how we feed them, keep them, and the stresses we put them under.

Magnifying The Problem

When you were a child, did you ever perform the “fire making” experiment with a magnifying glass and paper?

The magnifying glass concentrates the sun’s energy onto the paper and burns a hole within minutes.

An empty equine stomach is like a magnifying glass on the lining of your horse’s stomach. Add to that the various stressors that a horse deals with day in and day out and ulcers become a very real issue very quickly.

In fact, horses can develop an ulcer in just five days.

Studies consistently show numbers in the range of 50-90% of horses studied having gastric ulcers.

These horses are not just racehorses and other high performance horses, although they end up with the highest percentages in the studies and are at the greatest risk.

Other horses shown to be at risk in these studies include pleasure horses and broodmares at pasture.

That doesn’t leave out many horses.

A lot of the data on equine ulcers and how to prevent them has been around for years, but it seems as if they are just now getting the press that they deserve.

Image credit raindog

Do you remember the anti-drug egg commercial? Maybe someone should re-make it for equine gastric ulcer syndrome: “This is your horse’s empty stomach (egg). This is your horse’s empty stomach on stress (plop egg in hot frying pan).”

Feed your horse often and reduce his stress level; these two very basic things will go a long way in preventing the fried egg scenario or magnifying a burnt hole in his stomach.

Be sure to visit Eleanor’s blog to learn more about how to combat stress in your horse.

Equine Ulcer Signs and Symptoms

• Change in attitude
• Change in eating behavior
• Sensitive around the belly
• Frequent colic episodes
• Diarrhea
• Rough and/or dull hair coat

Equine Ulcer Quick Facts

• Horses developed as grazers over millions of years
• Grazing increases the flow of saliva which acts as a pH buffer
• Studies have shown that stomach pH drops just 6 hours after feeding
• Many horses in boarding stables are fed just twice a day
• Horses continually secrete acid – even when they have no food to eat
• Horses can develop a stomach ulcer in just 5 days

Resources For More Information

I have listed a number of informative articles, from various sources, on my website, and I frequently add new ones as I find them.

However, most of these I found on TheHorse.com; just plug the word “ulcer” into the search engine.

There are also a number of equine and animal health journals to search if you want a more scientific perspective.