How many horses do you actually know with ulcers?

[piebald potato]

So ulcers is a pretty common suggestion if you look at any questions about unwanted horsey behaviour...but i was just wondering how many of those horses actually do have ulcers. Is it as common as the internet would have you believe? The last statistics I saw were about 90% of racehorses and 60% of competition horses suffer from ulcers.

However I have only known one horse that has had ulcers, which was my friends ex racer so 'typical' ulcer type.

My vet says cobs dont get ulcers but I have heard of one cob definitely having ulcers but I didn't know the horse personally.

So how many horses do you know that have had ulcers? And were they all 'ulcer' type or have you seen cob types with ulcers too?

Just curious

 

[dixie]

My horse. He was a IDxTB 17hh
Typical signs in snapping at me when girthing up but otherwise no other signs at all. As is known him all his life I knew something was wrong
He wasn't a competition horse as he was never sound enough but that is probably why he got the ulcers i.e. Due to underlying pain
On looking back I had a horse years ago who was a classic ulcer case but we didn't know about it then.

 

[doodle]

I have had one horse with ulcers. He was an ex racer so perhaps they were underlying but his seemed to be caused by a change in yard. No classic aigns apart from massive weight and then muscle loss. Vets did a lot of investigation and that was all to be found. Treated and moved back to old yard. He was improving a lot when I lost him to a field accident.

 

[be positive]

I have never had one diagnosed, the one livery horse we thought may have them scoped clear despite having many symptoms, my own horse did have a course of GG when after an extremely stressful set of circumstances he started cribbing one morning, I was on the phone to the vet and he was on the GG within a couple of hours, the cribbing stopped and he has never shown signs again.

I have an exracehorse here who we did train and run in p2p's but being very aware of ulcers I ensured he was given an ulcer friendly diet with ad lib haylage available at all times even traveling to race he had it in front of him as he would just pick a little, he has never shown signs of having them and is now retired to an easier life living out as much as possible.

I am sure over the years I probably have had horses with them, one in hindsight was a classic case, cribbed, went wrong on his off hind when worked beyond low level but this was before they were known about so despite investigations we never found out why he was not sound, he retired to the field and was 100% sound for the rest of his days but continued to crib.

 

[Ali27]

My 14.2 good doer Irish Cob (although more Welsh D build) suffers from ulcers! I know exactly what triggers her ulcers and have got her management down to a tee! I can spot an ulcer prone horse easily but sadly so many owners are still not aware of the issue!

 

[SEL]

Mine is french draft x Appy and she was scoped with grade 2 ulcers and an inflamed stomach 12 months ago. She suffers severe food anxiety and if she thinks she's food deprived (she's a very, very good doer!) then she gets stressed and her stomach starts to play up. She wasn't your typical ulcer case. She was fat, not in a lot of work and was turned out.

Like Ali I can spot an ulcer prone horse and if I could magic up a free scope then I'd have my friends little wind sucking cob done as well as an ex polo pony who collapses if she's girthed too quickly.

 

[dozzie]

My 14.2 good doer Irish Cob (although more Welsh D build) suffers from ulcers! I know exactly what triggers her ulcers and have got her management down to a tee! I can spot an ulcer prone horse easily but sadly so many owners are still not aware of the issue!

How do you spot an ulcer prone horse? My young horse nips when I do up the girth. Saddle checked, back checked, tried regumate etc. Osteopath suggested it might be ulcers but she lives out, eats grass, not loads of short feed unless she needs it. But she is quite sharp generally. I haven't pursued the ulcers route yet so interested to know more.

 

[dixie]

How do you spot an ulcer prone horse? My young horse nips when I do up the girth. Saddle checked, back checked, tried regumate etc. Osteopath suggested it might be ulcers but she lives out, eats grass, not loads of short feed unless she needs it. But she is quite sharp generally. I haven't pursued the ulcers route yet so interested to know more.

This is a good watch. Just because she lives out doesn't mean she can't have ulcers
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Fr05hMmLCY4

 

[Llee94]

I have 2! But both got them for different reasons. One was pain - she is a 15 year old event horse with big feet who is starting to feel her years but is naughty because she just kept going without showing any symptoms until it got to much. She is also a cob! The other is a TB who is just a bit of a worrier.

 

[ponies4ever]

We have had all on yard (eventing yard) tested and only one out of about 20 had ulcers and some were ex racers and despite showing some symptoms didn't have them. The one that had was a thoroughbreddy type and was out a lot but was just a very stress horse

 

[Fiona]

I don't know any officially diagnosed, but three who were/are likely to have them.

1. ISH owned by a friend, persistent cough plus poor doer, has recovered completely with course of omeprazole..

2. Childs pony who objects strongly to having girth done up v quickly plus tendency to loose poos. . Came to us on loan with a course of omeprazole if needed, but she hasn't yet.

3. Hubby's old TB ex race turned evented who cribbed .. Nothing diagnosed as too long ago.

Fiona

 

[Ali27]

Mine primarily has issues with hind gut ulcers! She gets extra spooky, less forward going, sloppy poos, girthy, goes disunited on right rein when jumping! The key to keeping her happy is Equishure and adlib forage!

 

[Goldenstar]

My TB J had when I got him as did my manically stessy driving horse who now hunts
I would not suprised if he still had ulcers particularly as he's in plaster in a stall ATM .
C has had lot of treatment for ulcers he had weeks on pepizole after his KS op and weeks more after breaking his rib I have never had him scoped as I think no it's an unpleasant experiance and he's had enough of those.

 

[Ebenezer_Scrooge]

Welsh x, severe ulcers in lower stomach area around entrance to small intestine. Has always been grumpy & antisocial but he kept getting repeated infections & anaemia (diagnosed with blood tests) & became very affectionate & lost his ye-ha episodes out riding. Had intermittent colic episodes in his earlier years due to resistant small redworm infestation when I got him. None of the typical signs in fact the total opposite....scoped as part of an elimination investigation & severe bleeding ulcers found (pictures are horrendous) which totally shocked the vets let alone me!! A long course of peptizole & supplement followed by a scope 8 weeks later & they healed really rapidly which is another surprise as the type he had are difficult to treat. Anaemia gone & grumpy boy is back with lots of ye-ha!!

 

[JDee]

I've become more aware of ulcers after our vet here suggested I treat our cob for them when she was being really cranky - I wouldn't have thought it because she's never without grass or hay, even when on a restricted diet I use a small hole hay net. She'd also not been on any NSAID's but she does get very stressed out when she's not the one getting first attention so I think that must be what causes them.
Even fast work on a stomach that hasn't had enough fibre in it can cause them

 

[rara007]

Plenty.... of all sorts, from natives living out to typical stressy highly bred things.

 

[Kat]

We have had some few with ulcers on our yard, some confirmed some suspected but all types including small natives, cobs, wb, arab x native, IDXTB etc

 

[dozzie]

This is a good watch. Just because she lives out doesn't mean she can't have ulcers
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Fr05hMmLCY4

Thanks. I have watched this and the part when the horse starts kicking out is really similar to what mine does when in season. She is not trying to hurt me but is expressing discomfort. When not in season she is just girthy. She has a really sweet temperament generally so it doesn't really make sense.

 

[Tarte Au Citron]

Mine is a tbx, her only real signs are girthiness and the fact shes a cribber. Flip side though shes a good doer, not stressy, very easy going, no ridden quirks. So not quite typical ulcer horse to look at. But she got diagnosed with grade 2 ulcers in both parts of her stomach after a couple of colic bouts made us want to investigate. Unfortunately a months worth of treatment did absolutely nothing. We've always been quite careful with feed but now im very careful, a few added supplements has also helped and shes better than ever at the minute.

Also known another diagnosed horse at my yard - a cob thats mainly a hacker - she had grade 1 or 2 i believe, investigated and treated mainly because her ridden quirks were quite bad, but not a typical ulcer horse really at all. Its worked very well for her and shes now doing super!

These two show though that you can have completely different symptoms and still have ulcers! I know of a few horses i'd love to have investigated as believe they probably have ulcers, only one is typical in that hes an exracer.

 

[Apercrumbie]

I don't know any actually. However looking back, I wouldn't be surprised if one or more of my horses had at least low-grade ulcers.

 

[BBP]

Having had mine diagnosed I now look around and see plenty that I think would have then if their owners had them scoped. Mine was fat, shiny, lived out on plenty of hay but still scoped as having pyloric ulcers. He was fidgety to groom, fine to tack up, never tried to bite or kick, would flinch ever so marginally when I would touch his chest (so little I thought I imagined it each time), yawned a lot, would grind his teeth, was a bit quiet and down and was resentful of being asked to trot and canter schooling (fine out hacking so many might think this was a discipline issue). He would ear pin a lot when ridden and was very spooky.

After treatment he was bright, happy, stopped yawning and flinching, goes forwards beautifully ridden. As soon as I see even a hint of those signs now I think ulcers and hind gut and take action straight away.