ulcers,in everyones experience,does this horse sound affected?

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Prince33Sp4rkle

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just musing really, as with Star being an ex-racer, he would be in the top group for being affected......

he doesnt crib/windsuck, isnt colicky or gassy.
he eats up well and holds his weight well.
he isnt girthy or cold backed.

he has 24/7 access to fibre and is on low starch mix and linseed so diet wise im doing the best i can.

my only slight query, which makes me think he could, is that when i first get on he can be idle and grumpy off the leg(flicks tail, humps at leg, pins his ears), HOWEVER once sent forward firmly once or twice at the most, he is then totally in front of the leg and forward and at a show there is none of the grumpy humpy'ness at all because he just loves to party!

so,could it be mild ulcers? or just his nature-he was pushed hard as a racer and its taken him a year to settle to the fact he just does prancy circles now and not be worried about working and esp not be worried about hacking.

if he DID have ulcers, wouldnt he still be a bit of grump to start with at shows?

worth trying an ulcer supplement for a few months or does it just sound like a normal 5yo saying "do we have to..."

:paranoidofleicester:
 
Dante has his moments where you put your leg on and the response is either 'no thanks' or 'if I must' with a grouch mare-ish tail swish.
We've spoken to the vet about it breifly etc and looked at everything else and seems like a no, although we don't know much about what he did before we got him. We think Dan just decided it was a good trick to get us to back off working him so hard for a while, he's getting out of it now!

I doubt it's ulcers, but maybe a quick phonecall to your vet and see what he/she thinks might make you feel a bit better?
 
i wouldnt say he has ulcers - sounds like when you first get on his just doing the '5 yr old thing' and objecting to working to start with. Bloss is always slow off the leg and grumpy when i first start riding, once shes warmed up and going forwards shes fab. Shes always been like it.
 
I'm with Tempi, sounds more like he's making a half hearted attempt to get out of it!

Shadow is a little similar (even at 8), he starts off quite tense and takes a while to really work in properly...the more dressage I've done with him the more I understand what he needs in the beginning of a session.
 
Would be worth running it past your vet, he may have some old ones from his racing days still there. if he has ulcers, an anti ulcer supplement will only be useful after they have been treated. Ie with Gastroguard. My young 4 yo horse had developed them after being ill with peritonitis.

He had to be i/v every day for 10 days and developed them as a secondary. So we had to treat then put him onto an antacid as a preventative after the gastroguard.

Very hard to tell unless obviously they go in for a scope. My lad looked amazing with glossy coat etc etc and still had them. Good luck if you go down that route
 
Ulcers are far more common - in ALL types of horses - than most people first think.

I've had two years of ongoing stomach ulcer problems with my mare and to begin with she had similar symptoms as to what you are describing with your horse, but got much much worse over time.

I'm always for ruling out any pain with horses before telling them to "get on with it" - I'd highly recommend trying to liquid supplement Coligone (H's Mum on the forum sells it) - just buy a 1 litre tub to start with, syringe 50mls about 20 mins before riding for a week and see if that makes a difference.

I would also suggest going down the route of endoscopes, veterinary advice etc, but after my experiences I can tell you they'll only recommend horrendously priced Gastrogard and not look into the route cause of the ulcers!

If the Coligone works, try reducing the amount until you find a manageable level to the type of work you're doing.

Hope it all goes well.
Gemma
 
Never say never, my poor boy had suffered with Ulcers for a very long time without me realising or anyone else for that matter.

I eventually found out he had Ulcers when he started suffering colic, he suffered colic once in 2008. Put it down to a one off then it started again big time in the summer of 09.

I would say if you think there could be a possibility start him on a good product like Neighlox & see what he's like when your nearing the end of the tub. It will last ages btw but it's brilliant stuff.
 
I would disagree with those that say hes just making an attempt at getting out of work. Why would he if he enjoys it once he gets going? He may not show all the classic symptoms but he is still exhibiting 'abnormal' behaviour, for which there must be a reason. i think ulcers could be a possibility
 
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