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What are horse ulcers?
Horse ulcers are non-healing sores. These sores can develop outside the body in skin and inside the body in the lining of the stomach and intestines (colon). Ulcers in horses mostly occur in the stomach (gastric ulcers).
The horse stomach is different from the human stomach. The horse stomach has two sections: an upper section lined with squamous cells that does not have a thick mucous coat, and a lower glandular-secreting section that is lined by mucus. Most gastric ulcers occur in the upper non-glandular section because it is not protected by mucus. Mucus is such a good barrier that the lower glandular section of the stomach where hydrochloric acid is produced is well protected. Some horses also have ulcers in the intestine, especially in the first section of the intestine (duodenum) that accepts food directly from the stomach. A few horses have ulcers throughout the intestines (colonic ulcers).
Ulcers affect horses by causing pain and poor performance. Ulcers can be an irritating illness-or they can be fatal if they erode through the stomach or colon and cause bleeding and peritonitis.
Key facts about ulcers in horses
- Between 60-90% of foals and stalled weanlings have ulcers.
- Over 90% of racehorses have ulcers.
- Over 60% of performance horses have ulcers.
Which horses develop ulcers?
According to Dr. Michael Murray in the Equine Veterinary Journal, about 60% of foals and 60% of performance horses have ulcers. Other equine veterinarians believe the number of foals with ulcers reaches 90%. Performance horses include event and dressage horses, and horses transported to trials or shows. Veterinarians who examined the stomachs of racehorses and weanlings confirmed that over 90% of racehorses and over 90% of stalled weanlings have ulcers. Stallions kept in the vicinity of females, including colts kept in the vicinity of their mothers, develop ulcers. Horses housed at home but undergoing training are also prone to ulcers.
It takes about five days for stressed horses to develop ulcers. This includes horses hauled to shows, horses housed in stalls they are unfamiliar with, and horses fed twice a day rather than allowed to graze throughout the day.
4 Key causes of horse ulcers
Several factors contribute to the development of ulcers, including stress, high carbohydrate diets, being fed twice a day instead of grazing, and physical activity:
1. Stress
2. High carbohydrate diets
3. Being fed twice a day rather than grazing
4. Physical activity
Diagnosis of horse ulcers
There is only one way to confirm ulcers and that is to put an endoscope into the stomach and look for them. Most equine veterinarians have 3-6 foot endoscopes to look at the back of a horse's throat (pharynx). Observing the pharynx allows veterinarians to diagnose roaring, displaced soft palate, and bleeding following exercise (exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage). However, an unusually long endoscope-one that extends 6-9 feet-is needed to see into an adult horse's stomach, so not all veterinarians can scope for ulcers. With foals, it's possible to see gastric ulcers with a scope that is only three feet long. If the endoscope is connected to a video, you can see the lining of the stomach just as your veterinarian does.
While some fecal blood tests may suggest ulcers, fecal blood tests can be misleading. For example, horses with worms, such as strongyles, can have blood in the feces but not have ulcers. This is called a false positive test. Horses that have a negative fecal blood test may have ulcers, but the blood leaking from the ulcers may have been digested by bacteria within the gut. This is called a false negative test. Because fecal blood tests can have false positive and false negative results, endoscopy-not fecal blood tests-remains the best way to diagnose horse ulcers.
If ulcers appear to be a problem for several horses in the barn, have the manure cultured for salmonella bacteria. Salmonella can cause ulcers throughout the colon, and horses with salmonella infections need special handling because salmonella bacteria infect people as well as horses and other animals. Many veterinarians recommend probiotics and fluids for horses with salmonella. Antibiotics are ineffective and are not generally used because they can further disrupt the intestinal environment.
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