Ulcer managment

[mynutmeg]

So Roo had a bout of colic a couple of weeks ago that ended with an overnight stay cause she was still going after more than 24 hours. At the time the vets thought it might be caused by ulcers so she's had a 2 week course of peptizole. I was pretty skeptical to start with but after some research and starting riding her again in the last few days I'm convinced.
She's not insured for GI tract as it's all excluded so she's not been scoped and I simply can't afford any more peptizole for her. I am going to have chat with my vet on monday but thought I'd see what you lovely people can suggest.
So in the last 2 months we've moved 180 miles and she's spent the vast majority of the time on box rest due to check ligament injury (so just a few stressful things) She's back on normal turnout now and I've started to sit on her - she's very girthy for the first hole or two then she's ok and reacting when I groom her as well. Back etc is absolutly fine.
I've been thinking and she's previously had episodes like this previously where for a few months she'll be girthy and reactive to grooming but it settles down so I'm wondering if she's had ulcers on and off (I had even mentioned it to my previous vet who said not possible)
She's a rather fat cob but the whole time she was on box rest I made sure she had hay in front of her - it was always soaked tho so not sure if that makes a difference. She now has enough hay (unsoaked) that she has a bit left in the morning, and turnout every day. Feed wise she gets a small bucket of chaff with a balancer, and joint supplement.
I'm a student and caring for Roo on a very limited budget - I hate that I can't afford to give her the full peptizole treatment etc but want to do everything I can to help her be comfortable and have the best chance of healing these up.

 

[Charlie007]

I suspect my lad may have ulcers so I am feeding him as if he has. Ad lib hay day and night, fibre only diet, turnout. I have just started to use gastro g by superfix. Pricey so hopefully it does what it claims. I don't know how much the peptizole is so I can't compare prices x

 

[mynutmeg]

Peptizole is the same as gastro gaurd (same drug) and about £20 a syringe with the first few weeks being 2 syringes a day then weeks of 1 a day - so at least £140 - £280 a week to treat - not an option at all unfortunatly :-( Why she has to go have have something wrong with bits that are excluded I don't know - if she wants a vet bill can she not at least do something thats insured!

 

[GermanyJo]

Gastroplus from equine science wad the only thing that really sorted my horse, is not cheap but much less than gastroguard and works long term, at least give Deborah at equine science a call, she is really helpful

 

[fuzzle]

Gastroplus is the only thing that got my horse better too!!!!!! my horse had glandular ulcers and did months of other treatment but had no luck at all!!! She was very close to PTS and thanks to someone from the horse and hound forum telling me to try gastroplus that my horse is alive today and is fully better and competing this stuff is amazing!!! but good management to a must and feeding the right food is extremely important which you vet should of told you about, anything i can help you with let me know all the best xxxx

 

[mynutmeg]

thanks - the food thing is what has been a head scratcher as she's only ever been on fibre - no concentrates as shes a right fatty but I do wonder if the whole diet thing has contributed as although I've always tried to make sure she had food all the time being on a restricted diet has meant she's not got forage 24/7 and then the whoel time she's been on box rest while she's had food 24/7 (to help keep her calmer) it's been soaked hay and the water from that smells quite vinegary so I'm wondering if thats quite acidic and that, along with the stress of moving 180 miles etc has triggered them off this time (I reckon she's had previously and it's been put down to other things cause she's had periods before of reacting to grooming in exactly the same way as she is now)

 

[leggs]

I can recommend getting abprozole ( active agent omeprazole) at www.abler.com it is exactly the same thing as gastroguard, but affordable. Saved my horses life 2 years ago, Always have it on hand now.

 

[popsdosh]

I can recommend getting abprozole ( active agent omeprazole) at www.abler.com it is exactly the same thing as gastroguard, but affordable. Saved my horses life 2 years ago, Always have it on hand now.

Its illegal to import this drug as omeprazole is a POM !!!!

 

[Surreydeb]

Just a thought, are you sure your horse has no alfalfa in the diet? I changed the hi fibre nuts mine had and then had a cob very reactive to grooming. Stopped the nuts and a few days later she was back to her usual self. Some just can't tolerate alfalfa.

 

[mynutmeg]

There's some alfalfa in her normal chop - I did try to find some non-molassed, non-alalfa chop with no success as when she got some alfa-a-oil when she was younger as she went a little skinny she went very fizzy so I've tried to minimise it but simply couldn't find any that didn't have alfalfa and didn't have molasses - I try to keep her sugar as low as possible.

I was actually thinking of trying her with the dengie alfa, molasses free as I though alfalfa was good for stomach ulcers but may look again for a non-molassed, non-alfalfa chaff (suggestions welcomes)

 

[Surreydeb]

Does she need chaff? Mine does very well with a little fast fibre to put her supplements in.

 

[mynutmeg]

She gets it to slow her down more than anything else and let her feel she's had a feed with very little calories - she had a very severe choke a few years ago and has a tendancy to rush her food so I like her to have dampened chaff to slow her down

 

[fuzzle]

Havre a look at simple systems and also thunder brook base mix all very natural products designed for horses with stomach issues and ulcers they contain no sugars and contain essential vitamins and trace eliminates,both fab products!!! xxxxx

 

[leggs]

Its illegal to import this drug as omeprazole is a POM !!!!

Don;t know what POM is, but it's not illegal in Netherlands to import a drug that has been on the market for 30+ years. My vet even recommends it, rather than prescribing the criminally expensive GG from Merial. It is an over the counter supplement that Merial has compounded to surpass the acid stomach of horses. In a meanwhile making a fortune on a drug that has been around for a long long time.

so shoot me, I will go with abprozole everytime! cos it works !

 

[Goldenstar]

Oops double post

 

[Goldenstar]

Alfalfa is good for horses with ulcers

 

[mynutmeg]

Don;t know what POM is, but it's not illegal in Netherlands to import a drug that has been on the market for 30+ years. My vet even recommends it, rather than prescribing the criminally expensive GG from Merial. It is an over the counter supplement that Merial has compounded to surpass the acid stomach of horses. In a meanwhile making a fortune on a drug that has been around for a long long time.

so shoot me, I will go with abprozole everytime! cos it works !

POM is prescription only medicine, bascially, in the UK it's illegal to buy or sell without a prescription from the vet (or doctor for a human) but totally agree with you on the price!

 

[fuzzle]

Happy hoof is a chop that i feed to my horse that had ulcers, now i use simple systems which is very natural feed. Dont be fooled because your horse is a good doer that she may not have ulcers, my horse was huge a very good doer and she was full of ulcers brought on by stress!!! think all your doing is fantastic!!!!! xxxxxx

 

[popsdosh]

Don;t know what POM is, but it's not illegal in Netherlands to import a drug that has been on the market for 30+ years. My vet even recommends it, rather than prescribing the criminally expensive GG from Merial. It is an over the counter supplement that Merial has compounded to surpass the acid stomach of horses. In a meanwhile making a fortune on a drug that has been around for a long long time.

so shoot me, I will go with abprozole everytime! cos it works !

Well i am glad it works for you but abprozole is unlicenced in any market being manufactured in India . It is marketed as ifit is coming from the USA however its just as illegal to use there as in this country If you check carefully it is illegal to import into any part of the EU .
There is now a cheaper version of omeprazole available in the uk made by Norbrook!
The only form of omeprazole available OTC is Zantac which for the privilege of buying over the counter you pay 10 x the price. For a horse take a wheelbarrow to get enough.

 

[Silverfire]

Well i am glad it works for you but abprozole is unlicenced in any market being manufactured in India . It is marketed as ifit is coming from the USA however its just as illegal to use there as in this country If you check carefully it is illegal to import into any part of the EU .
There is now a cheaper version of omeprazole available in the uk made by Norbrook!
The only form of omeprazole available OTC is Zantac which for the privilege of buying over the counter you pay 10 x the price. For a horse take a wheelbarrow to get enough.

Zantac is Ranitidine not Omeprazole. Ranitidine will treat ulcers you just have to give it more often. I used Cimetidine which is an antacid like Ranitidine to treat my horse who cannot have Gastrogard. I am currently using limestone flour and micronised linseed four times a day as she can no longer have Cimetidine or Ranitidine and it seems to help.

 

[Scatterbrain]

I found Gastroguard/Peptizole excellent for clearing up stomach ulcers but these products don't treat hindgut ulcers. I use Ranitidine to sort the hindgut, cheap and very effective. Equishure is also very good.

I tried Equine Science Gastroplus and it didn't make the blindest bit of difference. Complete waste of £200 for a months supply. I only tried it because it was constantly promoted on here by "Lucky Lady", who I now firmly believe was connected with the company. Admin have deleted her account, but she may well be using other usernames.

 

[popsdosh]

Zantac is Ranitidine not Omeprazole. Ranitidine will treat ulcers you just have to give it more often. I used Cimetidine which is an antacid like Ranitidine to treat my horse who cannot have Gastrogard. I am currently using limestone flour and micronised linseed four times a day as she can no longer have Cimetidine or Ranitidine and it seems to help.

Sorry it was meant to say Zanprol.

 

[GermanyJo]

I found Gastroguard/Peptizole excellent for clearing up stomach ulcers but these products don't treat hindgut ulcers. I use Ranitidine to sort the hindgut, cheap and very effective. Equishure is also very good.

I tried Equine Science Gastroplus and it didn't make the blindest bit of difference. Complete waste of £200 for a months supply. I only tried it because it was constantly promoted on here by "Lucky Lady", who I now firmly believe was connected with the company. Admin have deleted her account, but she may well be using other usernames.

I think different things work with different horses, that is why often it is trial and error, gastroguard only worked short term with my last horse, gastroplus transformed him, my current horse we suspect has hind gut issues, again, the gastroplus is improving him, I know lots of people have had success with equishure and succeed, my friends horse in UK is doing much better though since she switched back to gastroplus.
And, no, I have no connection to the company which sells this, just sharing my experience

 

[showqa]

Germany Jo, glad to read that as I have my boy on it and I'm hoping it is a reliable product. I agree though, not all horses will benefit from the same thing. Indeed, alfalfa is generally regarded as being beneficial where ulcers are concerned and yet I'v read threads where it has exacerbated the issue in some.

 

[fuzzle]

I agree with german joe, gastroplus worked on my horse and can t fault this product my horse is alive today and that says it all!!!! i do not work for the company either i just want to help others out there that went threw the same has me, my horse was close to been PTS and I'm grateful to a post like this that i tried the product and I'm glad i did xxxxxx

 

[flaxen tail]

Sometimes if gastro plus doesnt work its because its highlighting another problem ie tapeworm and so something is blocking it from working so its always worth ringing equinescience to let them know and they will advise, again some horses respond well to some treatments and some not they are all different .

 

[ceylon]

I too have a cob who sounds a bit similar to your girl. He can be girthy and a bit sensitive to grooming on the stomach area which I used to put down to cob behaviour! I've tried Gastro Plus and he is definitely not so girthy and also his general manner seems to have changed for the better especially when riding out in company and even me just getting on him. I have never had him scoped etc but I would say and I don't know how to describe this but he just seems happier in himself.