Possible ulcers

[I don’t like mondays]

Hi, I posted yesterday about my horse being bargy at his new yard. Got some great help but it’s made me start thinking about possible ulcers. I’m going to ring the vet Monday but am keen to do some research first. If you think your horse could have ulcers do you have to go through scoping to confirm this or can you buy something and treat them if you suspect them? My horse has some of the symptoms so I’m wondering if he could have ulcers. I’ll do whatever is best for him, but I’m not keen to put him through a night at the vets (he’s not a good traveler) if I can buy something to treat him at home (I’d check with the vet before I buy anything). Also scoping doesn’t always show hindgut ulcers, is that right?

Has anyone used this new product called Relyne Uk? It looks like you can buy Gastroguard online but it’s expensive.
Would be great to hear others experiences before I chat with the vet. Thanks in advance

 

[doodle]

Robin has just been treated for ulcers. The sedation and scope were the easy bit. The meds were the hugely massivly expensive bit! About £1300 for 6 weeks treatment. A lot of money to waste if you are not sure of the issue. I would scope and then you know what you are dealing with. The starving is a pain but actually not been as stressful as I thought. He was starved overnight at home and first thing next morning I arrived, loaded and went before others in the yard start going out. I took his hay away at 8pm and I think he must have just slept the rest of the night. That said he is very good and used to travelling so I wasn’t worried about that bit.

 

[HobleytheTB]

Definitely get scoped first! If there's no ulcers it's a hell of a lot of money to waste on treatment. The severity/ location of ulcers also dictates the length and type of treatment. Most vets can scope at your yard, so you don't have to travel. It's just a bit more expensive with the call out etc.

 

[doodle]

Mine won’t scope at the yard.

 

[Bellaboo18]

I'd scope, then you know what you're working with. I was very surprised how well my mare took starving the night before; I took her haynet away at 10pm and she was very chilled when I went back to her in the morning. I think this is something owners worry about more than the average horse.

Some vets will scope at home.

There are lots of supplements etc available to prevent ulcers but you do need omeprazole (gastrogard or peptizole) to actually treat them which you'll only get legally with a prescription.

You're right about hind gut ulcers not showing on a scope but omeprazole will actually make hind gut ulcers worse. So i'd scope and then if clear, treat for hind gut.

 

[I don’t like mondays]

Thank you for all the replies, so helpful. I hadn’t realised the treatment was so much money so definitely worth a scope to see if we actually need treatment. Thanks again

 

[doodle]

Peptizole was 1 syringe a day. £717 for 28 days which is the normal course. Sucralfate was I think about £90 for a 10 day course. We ended up doing 6 weeks as he was too ill to be rescoped to see if they were better.

 

[doodle]

Scope was about £350 including the sedation for it.

 

[asmp]

We scoped our youngster but he had “a very clean stomach”. We took him to the vets to spend the night as although it was expensive I didn’t fancy boxing him to the vets when he was very hungry (and no doubt angry)

 

[Bellaboo18]

I must have been lucky, my ulcer bill was quite a bit smaller than Kamikazes.
I've just looked and on viovet (with prescription) you can get 28 days worth of gastrogard for £450, I paid closer to this.
Scope including sedation less than £250
We treated with sucralfate as well, I'd have to check the bill on this one but nowhere near £90 for 10days.
Sorry K but wanted to reassure OP a bit.

 

[doodle]

Fair enough and actually good to know if I need to treat him again out of insurance.

 

[Two Fs]

I would scope as where the ulcers are and how severe affects treatment. It’s also worth asking your vets if they do a ’scoping day.’ I used Hirds at Sheffield and it was much cheaper to take her on the dedicated day rather than a day where they were just scoping the one.

 

[milliepops]

My bill is more like K's and the initial 6 weeks wasn't enough so I'm on week 9 so far with another scope after week 11. Def scope first if you can.

 

[Domirati]

I am up to £1650 and into week 5. Injections are £272 each each week and Sucralfate has been fed twice daily for five weeks with another three before the next scope. He had grade 2 at front of stomach and really large, bleeding ones at back, vet said not quite the worst she had seen but not far off.

My vet said to starve from 5pm so I bring him in early and give him hay for the afternoon then a large feed, I then bundle him into the trailer at 7.30am and deposit at vets, back in field by 11am. He has been twice now and I worry more than him I think.

I would say scope if you are not sure, I was convinced mine did not have them as he is always a grouch in winter so felt quite rotten when I saw how bad they are. He is on another month’s treatment, thank you NFU!

At least it will rule them out if your horse is clear, scope was about £250 with VAT and sedation.

I did ring and have a long chat with the vet first and described his symptoms and they were really helpful, may be worth doing that first.

My vets also suggest the Science Supplements Gastrogard as a supplement post ulcers. Good luck, hope you get to the bottom of what is wrong.

 

[milliepops]

I send mine overnight to be starved and scoped next day, she's not the best loader and my box is off the road at the mo so I'm using a transporter each time. Although it is extra £ I don't have to deal with the guilt factor and at least she is loading when she is not hungry and grouchy!

 

[Domirati]

Wondering how long mine will keep loading willingly, a trip to Newmarket with colic and two to the vet starving, to be sedated and have a tube down his throat, sum total of his travelling since May! He will start to object soon I think.

 

[clairekat]

Mine finished treatment at Christmas, I didn't bother with scope this time as symptoms were same as before. Since she finished her course of injections I have been using Abler omeprazole from the states on a preventative dosage which works out a lot cheaper than anything I could buy here

 

[I don’t like mondays]

Thanks everyone for taking the time to post. I hadn’t realised how expensive ulcer treatment could be!!
Did your horses have the textbook symptoms of ulcers? Mine has been grumpy all winter (now bargy) and sometimes lifts a back leg towards his tummy when I brush him (sometimes doesn’t)

 

[milliepops]

Thanks everyone for taking the time to post. I hadn’t realised how expensive ulcer treatment could be!!
Did your horses have the textbook symptoms of ulcers? Mine has been grumpy all winter (now bargy) and sometimes lifts a back leg towards his tummy when I brush him (sometimes doesn’t)

Mine is a tricky soul anyway, she is prone to hormonal troubles and is generally a fairly nappy sort of character. However it stepped up to the point where she was more or less unrideable, and then she went to nip me when I did her girth up which is UNHEARD of, she's a sweetheart on the ground, so i phoned vet that day. before that it was hard to pinpoint whether it was her usual autumnal hormonal grumps or something else. She was already on a gastric supplement but clearly that hadn't been enough to prevent them, she had squamous and pyloric ulcers. squamous ones had healed at the 6 week scope but the pyloric one still there.

 

[I don’t like mondays]

Mine is a tricky soul anyway, she is prone to hormonal troubles and is generally a fairly nappy sort of character. However it stepped up to the point where she was more or less unrideable, and then she went to nip me when I did her girth up which is UNHEARD of, she's a sweetheart on the ground, so i phoned vet that day. before that it was hard to pinpoint whether it was her usual autumnal hormonal grumps or something else. She was already on a gastric supplement but clearly that hadn't been enough to prevent them, she had squamous and pyloric ulcers. squamous ones had healed at the 6 week scope but the pyloric one still there.

Thanks. I’ll call the vet tomorrow to talk about scoping

 

[Domirati]

Mine is always grumpy, especially in winter. He got quite lethargic to ride and was kicking from one end and biting from the other when I put his saddle on. I was surprised as he has a fairly stress free life, out during the day, loads of hay, scoped him to rule it out, turned out it was a good job I did. Good luck.

 

[ycbm]

Mine finished treatment at Christmas, I didn't bother with scope this time as symptoms were same as before. Since she finished her course of injections I have been using Abler omeprazole from the states on a preventative dosage which works out a lot cheaper than anything I could buy here

Cautionary note, Abler does work, it does get here, it's not legal it's a prescription only drug in horse dose in the UK
.