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shans mum
13 Apr 2010 21:48
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Does anybody elses horse do this? My 15 year old mare has started packing grass (or hay and hard feed) under her top lip. She rams it in so theres a lump of it about the size of a tennis ball. We have had two dentists check her, also the vet and have had biopsys of her gums and xrays taken but no underlying problems have been found. I clean the grass out twice a day (or more if I,m around) and wash her gums with hibiscrub but this grass packing is making her gums sore and I would love to get to the bottom of it.
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Horse Hero Guru
14 Apr 2010 00:01
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Hi Shans Mum
Packing grass in the mouth is a form of quidding and is nearly always caused by tooth problems. It is most common for horses to keep the balls of grass in their cheeks as the painful teeth are more often those at the back.
You have done everything that I would recommend in having her teeth checked by both a dentist and a vet, and then getting a second opinion. I presume that between them they have managed to eliminate the possibility of any sharp edges, loose teeth, abscesses and so on. You don’t say what, if any, problems they found or what treatment they gave, not how long ago treatment was given. It is possible that during treatment your mare’s mouth may have been injured so her mouth may still be sore so she is still quitting to avoid pain.
The fact that she is developing sores inside her lips means that her quidding is actually making matters worse, but I am not sure how you explain that to her!
The only other things that I can think of are:
• Has she changed paddocks/hay recently so that there is a possibility that she is eating something that is setting up an allergic reaction or irritation in her mouth (is she eating thistles or something in the hedge? Has the field been sprayed with any chemicals?)
• Have you tried keeping her in and seeing whether she has the same problem with soft hay, hard hay?
• Have you tried giving her antibiotics in case she has an undetected tooth abscess?
• Have you tried giving her bute to see if pain relief stops the problem?
• Is she losing condition? If so it might be worth putting her on a diet of soaked grass pellets, sugar beet etc the same as used for an elderly horse with no teeth, just to make sure she doesn’t lose too much weight while you sort out the problem. In fact, it may be worth trying her on that sort of diet for a week to see if any soreness in her mouth can heal itself.
• It may be worth using salt water to wash off her lips rather than hibiscrub – salt water is good on sores and may allow them to heal better.
• Is it possible that she has a throat problem that means that she is finding it difficult to swallow her feed?
I am sorry I cannot think of anything else to suggest, but can only repeat that you are doing exactly what I would do in your situation
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shans mum
15 Apr 2010 21:46
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Thank you for you comments. Just to give a few more details. My mare is very fit and otherwise well and competeing regularly. She started the grass packing about a year ago. Nothing had changed in her routine or turn out field. She has never had an injury to her mouth (I bred her) that we know about. I suspected an underlying cause which is why she had the exploritory treatments. Following her biopsys she was diagnosed with an infected gum, the vet was certain that this was caused by the grass packing rather than being the cause of it. She was put on a 6 week course of antibiotics which cleared up the infection. I will try the salt water as she really doesn't like the taste of hibiscrub! and if any body knows how to explain to a horse that shes not helping herself then please get in touch!
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shans mum
15 Apr 2010 21:49
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Sorry just remembered something else.
I have tried keeping her in but she packs hay and hard feed as well as grass.
She eats her feed well and shows no sign of any pain or soreness in her mouth.
I am almost convinced that this is just a habit now.
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