How do you manage your comp horses with ulcers?

catembi

catembi

Well-Known Member
Joined
12 March 2005
Messages
13,254
Location
N Beds
Visit site
Me again...

I started Trev off on omeprazole on Mon eve & have been doing a sachet night & morning since then. Tried him Sat, &... a very definite improvement! He finally wants to work after several months of not wanting to do anything at all under saddle. We had another potter today & he was showing flashes of being a dressage horse again. I am very relieved & pleased, & it's made me realise how miserable I've been lately. T must have been pretty miserable too as I've been told by a friend with ulcers that they're awful.

Anyway, the plan is to keep him on 2 a day for a good month, then stay on one a day indefinitely. I've kept the vet informed, so we can work together.

He gets stressy travelling & competing, which we're planning to restart in May. What should I do to manage the ulcers? I've decided to give up with travelling solo & just take Jenny (ancient pony mare) everywhere as he is far happier with her. Should I give more omeprazole on the day or the day before to counteract the effects of the stress? What should I feed? I normally give a small feed of mostly alfa-a & SB before I ride to act as an acid buffer. Not sure if this would be appropriate at comps?

Anyone who's competed a horse with ulcers - did they produce unmanageable behaviour at comps? T has previously produced extreme behaviour where his brain switches off in the same way that a bolter's does, but without the bolting, IYSWIM. Lots of totally uncharacteristic snorting, blowing, prancing, rearing, bucking, all of which he NEVER does except at comps. I was wondering if he releases acid when stressed which washes over the ulcers & gives a dramatic pain 'fight or flight' response, so if he's pain-free, he might behave less erratically? May be clutching at straws here...

Finally, any other hints or tips? This ulcer business is all new to me, & I'm trying to get up to date with the latest thinking.

I am soooooo relieved to have my horse back! I am beginning to get cautiously excited about getting my school surface topped up, cleaning my tack, washing my saddle cloth, dusting off the floodlight & finding the extension lead so I can ride after work... Lately I've had no interest in any of it & have been feeling pretty glum.

T x
 
Ok first of all I would give both packets in one meal as Omeprazole works for 24hrs. Then he should always have access to adlib fibre, if the grass goes poor he should have access to hay at all times. A small fibre feed before competing will be fine, I got told when eventing she should be fed between phases, anything fibrous she will eat.
 
Forgive my ignorance but surely you should scope, treat and rescope to check work. Why would you feed omeprazole/ gastroguard if cured? Does it act as a preventative? Is it competition legal?
Never had issues with ulcers as have always pumped my horses full of adlib hay unless xc. People seem to be using gastroguard more commonly now!
Sorry for hijacking the thread catecambi, I hope trev gets better soon!
 
The vet said that they couldn't scope as their scope isn't portable. I have no transport atm & T won't load into hired transport. The vet said that in any case, what they prefer to do is NOT to scope, & just treat for ulcers & see what happens, & if the treatment works, then they assume ulcers.

I have spent £600 so far on full bloodwork, full health check, remedial dentistry (vet spotted an issue that 2 dentists missed) & an ulcer med trial was next. It's worked & I'm pleased.

I want to know how others manage their ulcer comp horses as there are probably lots of hints & tips above & beyond pure vet knowledge. E.g. there are various supplements & mgmt strategies for EPSM that people on here have told me about that have made a huge difference to my EPSM horse, whereas the best the vets can do is recommend PTS or say that it's 'a tricky one'.
 
I give mine Omeprazole everyday, she was scoped and diagnosed treated aggressively then 6 months later they came back even though her life style was as perfect as a Ulcer horses can be, she has been on Omeprazole now for 8 + Months I cleared it with the vet that she could stay on it prefectly happily and its fine for comps!
 
catembi said:
The vet said that they couldn't scope as their scope isn't portable. I have no transport atm & T won't load into hired transport. The vet said that in any case, what they prefer to do is NOT to scope, & just treat for ulcers & see what happens, & if the treatment works, then they assume ulcers.

I have spent £600 so far on full bloodwork, full health check, remedial dentistry (vet spotted an issue that 2 dentists missed) & an ulcer med trial was next. It's worked & I'm pleased.

I want to know how others manage their ulcer comp horses as there are probably lots of hints & tips above & beyond pure vet knowledge. E.g. there are various supplements & mgmt strategies for EPSM that people on here have told me about that have made a huge difference to my EPSM horse, whereas the best the vets can do is recommend PTS or say that it's 'a tricky one'.
Click to expand...

I tried all the suppliments and none of them worked, a friend swears by the protexin stuff for stressfull situations.
 
Yes, the vet prescribed pronutrin which is apparently the best, & it made no difference. I think we'll stay on the omeprazole long-term, if the vet agrees. The trouble started when he had an almighty stressy loading, then a few days later got chased by bullocks, then a few days later was so naughty with the farrier that he had a week barefoot til I could get some sedalin. So if taken off it he would probs stress himself into another one.

T x
 
Is it vet prescribed stuff... Or imported from America?

I used Tim Brazil to scope my horse at home, as I didn't have any transport at the time. Might be worth getting in touch with him?
 
wench said:
Is it vet prescribed stuff... Or imported from America?

I used Tim Brazil to scope my horse at home, as I didn't have any transport at the time. Might be worth getting in touch with him?
Click to expand...

Tim Brazil came to my yard to scope one, he travels all round so worth looking into.

The horse was clear but I have changed his management slightly as he was showing signs of ulcers and I assume he was intolerant to build up of acidity as he is now so much better. He is on ad lib haylage, although was before anyway, he is fed on Calm and Condition which he loves and now eats up all his feed, plus Alfalfa pellets which I take to competitions and feed him between phases/ classes and seems to be working well. I use the pellets as they are more portable than alfa a, just a few handfuls are enough to make a difference.
 
I use Coligone daily and give an extra dose in an alfalfa feed before a comp (or when we arrive at venue) It works wonders for my horse, but you would need to check if its compatable with what you are using already.
 
My horse was clear of ulcers... Turned Out to be KS. However I was convinced she had ulcers, had all the right symptoms
 
Holidays_are_coming said:
I give mine Omeprazole everyday, she was scoped and diagnosed treated aggressively then 6 months later they came back even though her life style was as perfect as a Ulcer horses can be, she has been on Omeprazole now for 8 + Months I cleared it with the vet that she could stay on it prefectly happily and its fine for comps!
Click to expand...

How much do you pay for your Omeprazole out of interest? A horse at our yard is on a course of Omeprazole and the syringes are around £30 each. For the scope & one month treatment she was quoted £1200.
 
I got mine from the USA. 20 sachets free to see if it worked, which was ideal as we were very much testing a theory. $300 for 200 sachets, so that's over 3 months at 2 per day, which is the 'treatment' dose and a good 7 months at the 'maintenance' dose. I too was quoted £1,000 for a month's gastrogard. T's insured, but I'd have felt bad caning the insurance when there was a cheaper way.

T x
 
I personally would not be shouting from the roof tops about buying this product from abroad as it is illegal to import it into this country as it is not licensed here.I know lots of people do but if caught there are very substantial fines.
I would also have some reservations about drugs shipped from India!
 
With difficulty!!

Ulcers are quite literally the bane of my life.

An ideal diet would be adlib good quality hay, an alfalfa and oil based hard feed with low starch/ sugar and access to daily turnout.

Feed before travel/ ridden work.

Feeding a good pre and pro biotic is a good idea.

I would up the number of sachets of the Abprazole on days when you will increase his stress.

Some horses, regardless of management, have ulcers. I'm going to scope mine again soon as I'm not convinced what I'm doing is working at the moment.

I'm not sure the Abler products work for every horse.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top