Does this sound like Ulcers?

horselover522

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Normally pretty laid-back mare. Loves hacking but like to take in the scenery even in canter so we don't generally go at any great speed!
Occasionally grumps about having girth done up but not with any consistency

She got choke a couple of months ago which resulted in her having about 20hrs with no food, 2 days of a bucket of slop every 2hrs from 6.30am - 11pm and then another 3 days of eating less than normal.

Bought back into work slowly, but once we got to cantering you could hear her breathing. After about 2 weeks got to the point where she didn't want to canter at all.
Thought it was choke related so was scoped which was all fine, and had bloods taken, also all fine.

Cut the work right back - did just walk for a week, then trotting week 2 then reintroduced canter at about 3 1/2 weeks. First week of cantering was ok, then could hear breathing again (not a fitness problem)

She has become ridiculously spooky to hack (real coiled spring, about to explode type thing) and 3 times has taken off cantering when asked to trot (never done this before in 5yrs of having her) but has been fine in the school.

Yesterday I went to ride her in the school but she was super tense as soon as we got in the arena, so stuck her on the lunge and she had a complete explosion (again something she's never done before)
Wasn't brave enough to ride today so lunged again - she was much better but wasn't happy cantering - bucking and speeding off and I could hear her breathing.

She has been grumpy about having her belly brushed and inbetween front legs and grumping when I just put saddle on her back (but not every time)

She seems to be better in the school if she's got a belly full of hay, but this doesn't seem to make a difference to the hacking.

Her appetite doesn't seem to have changed and she's not lost weight.

Does it sound like ulcers? Or something else? I'm pretty sure its not grass related as she's been in this week (she loves her stable and being in doesn't normally send her stupid)
 
Spooking, explosions, bucking in canter and girthy - sounds like it could well be ulcers, the easiest way to tell is to treat for it and see what happens, much less stressful than scoping which only shows gastric ulcers and not hindgut ulcers.
 
Our mare was similar, no bucking, but hated being tacked up, very tense and spooky and was unpredictable lunging. Sometimes she would simply top dead and refuse to continue . In her case it was pain related but not ulcers, she had bone spavin in both hocks.

She didn't appear lame as both hinds were affected, hated being lunged because of the strain on her hocks, dreaded being ridden (hence the twitchyness at being tacked up) and obviously being in pain made her tense and spooky.

Might be something to consider if you can rule out ulcers.
 
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