Stomach ulcers in horses.. so common, so painful, so problematic… They can be behind sudden changes in behaviour, as well as more gradual changes that slowly chip away at your confidence, or enjoyment of riding your horses. But the question is why are they so prevalent in our horses?
What does the research say?
As I mentioned in a previous blog post, horse’s need food little and often. This is because saliva is produced while chewing plays an important role in buffering the stomach acid. Infrequent, larger feeds, as well as restricted grazing are major contributing factors to the prevalence of ulcers in our competition horses.
However, WHAT and HOW the horse eats is also very important. Malkmvist and colleagues found a positive correlation between the amount of starch in the diet (e.g. from grains) and the incidence of ulcers in the non-glandular region of the stomach. This region is particularly vulnerable to ulcers, because it doesn’t have a lining to protect it from the corrosive effects of stomach acid.
Interestingly, the researchers in this study also found that the horses with severe ulcers did not show any external signs ‘typical’ of ulcers (i.e. low weight, poor coat etc). This observation fits with my experiences with ‘ulcers’ horses. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve met many horses with stomach ulcers that have been skinny and lack lustre. But, I have also encountered horses where the owners dismissed stomach ulcers as the reason behind poor performance, because the horse wasn’t ‘skinny’ or ‘off its food’. Interestingly, the researchers in this study found that the horses with ulcers actually ate more rapidly after a period of feed withdrawal, and were three times more likely to be seen pawing in anticipation of their feed than the control horses.
The moral of the story here is think carefully about what and how you feed your horse. Also, do not be fooled by the ‘good doer’ horses when considering if stomach ulcers could be behind a change in their behaviour.
Find out more about how you can use our Equine Digestion Bars or Equine Digestion Plus Bars in combination with our Digestive Support Elixir to support the digestive system of your horse TODAY!
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