IT sounds like a load of XXXX but beer saved this horse's life.

Diamond Mojo, a six-year-old Australian waler, had been given up for dead by his owner Steve Clibborn after being struck down with a bout of potentially deadly colic.

So, as desperate men do in desperate times, Steve turned to the bottle not for himself, but for his horse.

"I had pretty much kissed him goodbye," he said.

"I had spent 23 hours straight with him but nothing worked and then I remembered an old bush tale that said you could feed them beer.

"I don't know whether I really believed it or not but it was worth a shot and as soon as he had that beer, he burped and perked right up. So I gave him another couple."

Over the following days, Steve repeated the dose using Queensland's own XXXX lager until his prized endurance horse rediscovered his mojo.

Colic is a medical problem common in humans and horses resulting in acute abdominal pain, which can be caused by factors such as stress.

Diamond Mojo had an unrelated leg injury that could have triggered the ailment.

Colic is often fatal to horses and opinion is divided on how it can best be treated. But Steve thinks he is on to a winner with the nectar of the gods.

"It bloody well worked," he said. "I am not sure of the science behind it, but because it's gassy it can give them some relief in their stomachs.

"He ended up taking quite a shine to XXXX so I had to get him off the grog or he was going to cost me a fortune."

Originally published as Beer brings horse back from the dead