If we suspect you horse may have gastric ulcers, visual inspection via gastroscopy can confirm or rule out their presence. Gastroscopy involves passing a camera into the horse’s stomach and performing a visual inspection of the various parts of the stomach. With this technique, we can observe the location and severity of stomach ulcers, if any, that are present. There are two types of gastric ulcers and each type requires a specific treatment regimen. This is one of the primary benefits of the gastroscope, allowing us to tailor our treatment to your horse's specific condition.

In order to fully assess the horse’s stomach, it must be empty. Horses are grazing animals and usually have a stomach full of forage, except for overnight, when most horses fast. In order to perform a thorough exam, we need to fast your horse overnight. Most horses are not bothered or distressed from the lack of food, though they may be a bit jealous at morning feeding when everyone else is eating. No harm is done by this overnight fasting and we schedule most of our gastroscopes as the first appointment of the day so that the fasting duration is as short as possible. We suggest adding a muzzle to the fasting procedure as this prevents your horse from eating shavings, any remaining hay, and even manure, which may necessitate repeating the fasting and the gastroscope on another day. The typical fasting protocol is:

The procedure itself is quite easy. We sedate your horse for his comfort and to keep him still during the procedure. The gastroscopic camera is passed via the nose into the throat and is swallowed down the esophagus and into the stomach. The stomach is gently inflated with air to allow a full visualization of the entire stomach. The different parts of the stomach are inspected and photos are taken of any problem areas. Occasionally, we will take a sample of stomach fluid (more often on a recheck gastroscope to check that our therapy is working) or a biopsy of the suspect area. Once the inspection is completed, the air that was added to the stomach is suctioned out and the gastroscope is removed from the stomach. Once your horse has woken up from his sedation, he can resume his normal diet. We suggest waiting at least an hour after the procedure to feed and suggest you offer hay before grain.