----- Original Message -----

From: RicoOneBadDog@...

To: BiStateMFTAssn@yahoogroups.com

Sent: Thursday, October 19, 2006 2:42 AM

Subject: Re: [BiStateMFTAssn] A lesson in Ulcers

Linda,

I have some idea what you are going thru. I went thru thisa few
years back with a miniature horse I had -thank goodness it was a
mini... as I always cringed at the thought of this happening to a full
sized horse! !!$$$!!

My vet at that time couldn't figure it out or give me definate answers.
I called Dr. Stew Robson frantically trying to get help, and he
listened to the symptoms over the phone and right then started
immediate definate treatment plan that included omeprazole, and
eventually the mini was healthy and happy again. (Dr. Robson is now my
vet instead of the local vet)

It is horrible to watch them suffer from ulcer. I am happy to hear
your horse will recover fully. I know the sting of the vet bills
too... as I just got thru with another expensive drug treating my mare
for four months! But she is well and wonderful. When you love the
animal, it just take what it takes to get them well and that is that.

Best of luck,
Becky

ps.. this may make a very good thing to add into one of our future
clinics as I beleive it is a benefit to all horse owners to hear this.

-----Original Message-----
From: zorro@...
To: ichr@egroups.com; GaitedHorsesOfColor@yahoogroups.com;
gaitedhorse@yahoogroups.com; gaitedhorsesforsale@yahoogroups.com;
foxtrotter@yahoogroups.com; Foxtrotters@yahoogroups.com;
FoxtrottersOfColor@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Wed, 18 Oct 2006 8:42 PM
Subject: [BiStateMFTAssn] A lesson in Ulcers

All,
 
I wanted to share a recent horrifying experience I had in hopes that
others can learn from this. I have learned more in the last week than I
ever want to again.
 
A week ago Sunday, I brought all my horses up for shoeing and worming.
We had recently changed hay sources, as my hay man hadn't been able to
deliver. The new hay wasn't the best quality, but it was put up
correctly, and wasn't weedy or moldy. My senior stallion (Lobo) had
been boycotting it, but I didn't think much of it.  So, when the shoer
was finished, I wormed everyone and groomed them.
I noticed in the next few days that Lobo wasn't finishing his grain,
but thought it was because we had a new mare in for breeding. By last
Wednesday, he wasn't eating any grain. I brushed it off as needing his
teeth floated and made an appointment for Friday. By Friday afternoon,
he had completely stopped eating
The vet took one look and said "ulcers".
I had always though ulcers were for competing show horses, and not for
breeding stallions that only trail rode. That's where the learning
curve began.
 
We immediately started him on GastroGard (omeprazole). By Sunday, he
was shivering, depressed, and didn't want to drink. By Monday, he was
in so much pain that he wouldn't allow the vet to touch him. We went
through an aggressive treatment of nasogastric tube oiling, blood
screen, tox screen, teeth floating, Vitamin B shots (appetite boost),
fibrinogen test, and injectable banamine (to control the pain) in hopes
of confirming the ulcer diagnosis, and preventing colic.  All tests
came back (within two hours) as completely normal. By the third hour he
was in shock,. and down in the stall. I thought right then and there we
were going to lose him.
I got him up, blanketed him, and got the vet there. He pulled out of
shock slowly. We upped the GastroGard dose to double (each dose is
$35/day at vet cost).
At this point, I began pulling out all the stops, and contacting
gastro specialists at Oklahoma State University and Colorado State
University (after being advised to do so by vets at Mizzou).
As advised, we began getting fresh grass to him (envision five adults
in the pouring rain for 2 hours pulling grass). This was the only thing
he would touch. With the double dose of GastroGard, warm mashes,
constant watch, and hand grazing three times a day, he began to improve.
 
So, in summary, I've put together a quick list of things I've learned
in hopes this may help others and prevent future problems.
 
1) Over 60% of all horses will experience some degree of ulcers in
their lifetime, with performance horses (showing racing, etc.), and
weaning foals comprising the highest number. Many horses will never be
diagnosed until it becomes severe.
2) Omeprazole (trade name GastroGard) is the only FDA approved drug
that will actually heal the ulcer. Meriel has the patent until 2015, so
there's no chance of a cheaper generic until then. To get complete
healing, treatment is recommended for 28 days (at $35/day).
3) Many other drugs act as "buffers" (Neigh Lox, etc.), but they only
coat the stomach, and there are typically backlashes after the drug
wears off. Some can cause diarrhea, or may slow the digestibility and
actually cause limited gut motility.
4) The only true way to diagnose an ulcer is by endoscopy (passing a
small camera into the stomach), although response to ulcer drugs is
typically a method of diagnosis.
5) Feeding techniques can cause, aggravate or prevent ulcers. High
forage (hay and grass), and lower grain concentrations help prevent
ulcers. A high grain, low forage diet, or intermittent large meals can
create ulcers. Senior feeds with a low fat content (higher fat promotes
more stomach acid creation for digestion), high fiber (complete feed)
are a good feed for post ulcer horses. Alfalfa hay also helps reduce
stomach acid due to the high calcium content.
 
We discovered that changing the hay had caused Lobo to reduce (almost
totally) his hay consumption (problem #1). Since he appeared to be
losing some weight (another ulcer symptom), we increased his grain
(problem #2). And to add insult to injury, we wormed him. Although the
wormer (ivermectin) did not cause the ulcers, it certainly aggravated
the heck out of them.
As of yesterday, he was firmly diagnosed with stage 3 ulcers (the
worst).
The good news is he should recover totally, and I have learned a huge
amount over the last few days. The bad news is the vet bill.
 
Hopefully this information will be of help to others.
 
If you have specific questions, please feel free to e mail me
privately. Please also feel free to pass this on.
 
Thanks to the vets that helped, and to Gabby Moore for urging me to
act quickly and start the blood draw.
 
Most of all..... do your homework. Go to www.yahoo.com, or any other
web browser, and type in equine ulcers. There is a wealth of
information.
 
 
Linda V.
www.zorrofarms.com

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