Quidding - When Your Horse Spits Out Wet Bundles of Hay
Are you finding strange lumps of hay that look a bit like birds nests gone awry in your horses stall or paddock? These lumps are called quids and mean its time to call your veterinarian or equine dentist. A horse that quids isnt swallowing its food properly and that can cause it to lose condition as it doesnt get the nutrition it needs. Another word for this is cudding as the wad of hay or grass looks like the cuds that cows regurgitate to chew after grazing.
Symptoms
Just looking at your horse it may not be apparent that there is a problem in its mouth. A sharp eye may be able to spot muscle imbalances and irregularities in the way the horse chews. However most people will first notice a horse is quidding when they find the partially chewed boluses of hay strewn around the feeder or see the horse spilling large quantities of grain out of its mouth when it eats. Those soggy lumps of mashed hay are a sure sign that something is going on in your horses mouth that needs the attention of a veterinarian or equine dentist. You might also notice your horse has very bad breath if the quidding is caused by an infection somewhere in the horses mouth. Horses that quid are also at risk of choke so its important to look after this problem as soon as you notice it.
There are different causes why horses are unable to chew properly and start to quid. The most common reason is that the horse has dental problems. Overgrown or fractured teeth infected gums teeth with sharp edges or missing teeth can impair the way the horse chews. Overgrown broken or sharp teeth may cause the horse to lacerate the inside of its cheek or tongue when it
chews. As a result it might not completely chew some food because of the pain.
Another cause of quidding is that the horse may have a foreign object wedged somewhere in its mouth and this too can cause the horse to only partially chew its food. A horse that has a jaw injury may not be able to chew properly. And paralysis such as what can be caused by a viral disease such as EEE may also prevent a horse from being able to chew properly.
Diagnoses
Finding wet lumps of partially chewed hay or grass is a sure sign that something is
