STOCKYARD
HORSE  DISCUSSION FORUMS

simbin

Just wanted to say I wouldnt have got back on him and ridden him if I had thought the ulcers were back it was only after I had hosed him down and he wouldnt stop rolling and wasnt interested in his feed that I realised.

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simbin

Ok have spoken to vet who said that he probably has a secondary infection from the ulcers so we are keeping him on the full dose of omoguard for another 3 weeks plus putting him on antibiotics and if he hasnt improved by then he will have to go to Murdoch to be scoped.

She is an experienced vet of thoroughbreds and breeds her own so she sounds like she knows what she is on about.

I might try and get some slippery elm as well. Does anyone know if you can feed that and all the other meds together. I know with humans you need to be careful when mixing herbs and drugs.

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jodie

I personally would just stick to the course of omoguard until finished and then maybe consider the slippery elm as a preventative after you are over the initial problem.

Stattik

Ahhh yes ulcers. ahah I pretty much know the ins and outs of the damn things. My horse is finalllly free of them and It took MONTHS.

I started mine on omogaurd when he went off his food etc. etc. I kept him on 5ml for a month then stopped. He came down with a gassy colic 2 days later and the vet came back and we started him on a maintanence dose for a further month. So he was all weaned off and we were ready to start again. A fortnight later he went off his feed, he also started napping on rides which he never does and would sweat up in about 5 minutes of work puffing and panting which I found out later was pain and the damn things were back.

Sooo I went out and bought tubes and tubes of omogaurd and kept him on 5ml a day for about a month and a half I think even longer than that, Then he was on 1.5ml a day for about 2 months after that and In every feed I added 2 scoops of gastro coat as it says on the container it can be fed in conjunction with ulcer meds which slipperly elm cant be. It doesnt cure ulcers it just prevents them, so dont go relying on just gastrocoat if your horse still has ulcers. They need omeprazole...ive tried it all (slippery elm, aloe vera, blah blah blah) and the only thing that works is the expensive never ending omeprazole.
Finally my horse is ulcer free though is only on 1 scoop of gastrocoat in each feed a day and he will be for the rest of his life. I also keep his belly full and never ever ever ride him on an empty stomach and I never take him on a long float trip with out a full belly and a 5ml dose of omogaurd for when he gets out. And I watch his feed bin constantly if hes not excited about his food I start to worry again.
Thats my story and so far its worked. I really hope you can find a way to get your horse ulcer free too. Good Luck there a real pain in the butt. You'll become a pro at them.

simbin

Thanks Stattik thats basically exactly where we are heading with this boy although the vet seems to think he has a secondary infection. Glad to see it will work eventually. I was just thinking of keeping him on it for life, its not worth the reoccurance. Yesterday he was obviously in so much pain I was nearly crying when I got home.
As I wrote in my earlier post he was covered in white lather and tried to get me off. I couldnt even get near him after to brush the sand of him after he had stopped rolling numerous times. He had only been on the maintenance dose for 3 days.
hes such a lovely horse I want to perservere with him as I think it is worth it. I'm also going to get something with iron in it to replace lost iron as his ulcers are possibly bleeding, his manure has got darker in colour.

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Stattik

Wow he does sound sore, I hope your vet can recommend a good plan of action for you..It definately doesnt hurt keeping him on omogaurd for longer than required. Thankfully I never noticed a change in my boys manure only he manured less as he wasnt eating anything..now its a healthy 5 a night any less and I worry. Ive turned into a hawk as you can see!! He'd also always have rub marks on his belly where he would turn his head and scratch and constantly point to his belly.
What do you feed him? Maybe theres something in that thats not agreeing with him. I kept my horse on a very simple diet of liberty, lucerne and chaff whilst he was on medication. Now hes on a tastier diet, ive even started adding sweetbulk which he just loves and fingers crossed we havent had a problem. If he was in fullwork I'd add chaff over sweetbulk, just seems like a healthier option. But whilst hes in holiday mode hes spoilt with sweetbulk.
I also thought about keeping my horse on omogaurd for ever though it does get better in the end I promise and after a few months once your horse is back into a healthy routine he will prob be fine just with the gastro coat and you'll learn to look for earlier symptoms and not take chances.

Kintara

I've personally never had to deal with ulcers, but friends over east used some sort of pro-biotics to clear up their horse with success?
Hope you can get it cleared up in your guy.
Cheers

Danni

simbin

Hes on a diet recommended by the vet very simple, chaff, lucerne chaff, cup of oats and sweetbulk.

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citygirl

cheers for that wormwatch

Lee

simbin

Yep wormwatch thats correct. My dad has had ulcers and it basically is the same. You need to nuetralize the acid in the stomach. I have also read and been told that horses should not be given whey as it is a dairy product and once a foal is weaned it no longer has the necessary resistance for its digestive system to handle milk products. Everyones opnions differ enev those of professionals.

Thanks for your advice everyone.

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