It’s good to be aware of the many ways a horse can injure his tongue. Often, injuries are not discovered until some other issue requires a oral exam. Bleeding is the most immediate sign of a tongue injury, but you may not see a lot of blood.
Bruce Connally, DVM, and Tia Nelson, DVM, share the ways tongue injuries happen, tongue anatomy and how to recognize tongue injury side effects.
Source: EQUUS, March 21, 2022. Link.
The pain of some tongue wounds may affect a horse’s ability to eat, and the scarring, tissue loss, neural damage and other potential aftereffects of these injuries can have long-lasting repercussions, making a horse head shy and/or influencing how he responds to the bit.”