Burping horse?

[lplotkina]

Hello all,
My 12 year old American Hanoverian has been burping. Not that he hasn't before, but I have never really seen if anyone else has had this experience before. Worried he may have ulcers, we used to give him a syringe full of Maalox before every ride, at the recommendation of my former trainer. That was when he and I were still showing and riding every day--he was a pretty exciteable sort of horse and the Maalox seemed to make him more comfortable.
However, a few years ago, he sustained an injury to his stifle and isn't rideable anymore. Since then he has been pasture boarded, fed 12%/beetpulp mix and coastal bermuda(we are originally from the south) and now oats and alfalfa mix (we JUST moved to western NY-Rochester area). He eats (well, like a horse!) and has free choice hay all day. He drinks plenty and is always pleasant, friendly, and bright. Never funny about his tummy and the manure looks normal. I don't know if he still has ulcers or what, or if he ever had them at all, but he's burping like crazy! It's a little burping noise that he makes every once in a while, I'd say every ten minutes or so.

Any experience with this? Is there anything I can do, or if he seems to be unbothered should I even do anything? I don't have the money to pay for expensive diagnostic procedures...

Thanks so much!

[Kiwayu]

My friends horse does this when he is sick and has reflux. Anytimes he hears that burping noise we call the vet and he gets tubed. Usually always has plenty of reflux and then is fine. The horse is also 37.

[Gry2Yng]

Mine does it when he's bored, (like standing in a clinic waiting for his turn) but as soon as you entertain him, he stops. Couple of times a year at most.

[buck22]

my senior citizen will make a rather rude belching sound when he is hanging around bored. Anyone that hears him will turn around shocked "did he just burp?!" lol! I think he's stretching out his jaw and tongue actually, and just makes this odd gutteral sound at the back of his pallet.

Same horse does/did have ulcers from an extended period of time on high doses of bute, but he's belched way before the bute days. His ulcer 'tell' is yawning.

[Zu Zu]

No burping with mine - but I do hava hackney, Zip, who gets the hiccups frequently.

[sublimequine]

This is a bit gross, but next time he does it.. smell his nostrils/muzzle. If he is truly belching, it'll probably smell like fermenting grass/feed.

My mare used to do that whenever she had an upset stomach. It was very obvious it was belching, as you'd hear a loud grumble in her stomach, you'd hear the gas bubbles MOVE UP HER NECK, then a belching sound from her nostrils. And yes, it'd smell.

If it doesn't smell, perhaps the horse is windsucking? That's basically the opposite action, the horse is swallowing down air rather than burping it up. It also sounds kind of like a burp.

[lplotkina]

Thanks so much for the responses!

I did go and smell his breath. It doesn't smell fermented, persay, but it does smell very strongly of alfalfa. :lol: I think it smells kind of nice, really... (and he was wondering why I was sniffing him, instead of the other way around!). They are very tiny little burps and most people don't even notice them...so it may just be a bit of trapped air or windsucking that he does when he is excited to see me?

[sublimequine]

Thanks so much for the responses!

I did go and smell his breath. It doesn't smell fermented, persay, but it does smell very strongly of alfalfa. :lol: I think it smells kind of nice, really... (and he was wondering why I was sniffing him, instead of the other way around!). They are very tiny little burps and most people don't even notice them...so it may just be a bit of trapped air or windsucking that he does when he is excited to see me?

If he's not acting differently otherwise, just the burping, I wouldn't worry too much about it. My mare was obviously uncomfortable when she was belching, but she was having some stomach problems in general.

Also I'd guess the smell not being bad is a good thing! My mare's smelled.. fermented, and gross. :lol:

(Oh, what we do for our horses.. describing the scents of their burps! :lol::lol::lol: )

[Minerva Louise]

A horse at the eventing barn I used to board at developed a burping habit when he was injured and confined to a pipe stall. He learned to do the cribbing windsucking thing without grabbing anything. He'd stand there and every so often, "Urp."

So, they can crib.... without actually cribbing. Could that be what your horse is doing? Did he get stalled for a period when he was injured? This horse invented the burping when he was bored because he was on stall rest...

[sublimequine]

A horse at the eventing barn I used to board at developed a burping habit when he was injured and confined to a pipe stall. He learned to do the cribbing windsucking thing without grabbing anything. He'd stand there and every so often, "Urp."

So, they can crib.... without actually cribbing. Could that be what your horse is doing? Did he get stalled for a period when he was injured? This horse invented the burping when he was bored because he was on stall rest...

That's pretty much textbook windsucking. :yes:

[lplotkina]

A horse at the eventing barn I used to board at developed a burping habit when he was injured and confined to a pipe stall. He learned to do the cribbing windsucking thing without grabbing anything. He'd stand there and every so often, "Urp."

So, they can crib.... without actually cribbing. Could that be what your horse is doing? Did he get stalled for a period when he was injured? This horse invented the burping when he was bored because he was on stall rest...

Well, he WAS a show horse...and did spend a lot of time in a stall during his heyday. Very good thought...you guys are probably right and it's him windsucking.

And "urp" every so often is a perfect description of this sound! :lol:

Is windsucking harmful to him at all? I mean, there's not much I can do about I'm guessing.

[GatoGordo]

Honest-to-goodness reflux and gas from the stomach (via NGT), IMO, smell a lot worse than alfalfa, so I think it's probably windsucking + alfalfa scent from his mouth.

[sublimequine]

Honest-to-goodness reflux and gas from the stomach (via NGT), IMO, smell a lot worse than alfalfa, so I think it's probably windsucking + alfalfa scent from his mouth.

Agreed. :)