Gastric ulcers and preventative supplements
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Gastric ulcers and preventative supplements
My horse was diagnosed with gastric ulcers in November. He had a course of Gastroguard, during which time he was re-scoped and the ulcers had gone. Three weeks after finishing the course, however, another scope showed that the ulcers had returned. He's now on another course of Gastroguard but I want to give him some sort of everyday preventative when the course finishes. The vet suggested something which would coat the stomach lining, possibly sucralfate or bismuth subsalcyclate but when I've looked into them, it seems they can sometimes cause constipation so I'm not overly keen. I know there are a few supplements out there. Has anyone tried any? I'm considering Naf Gastri-vet or Equine America U-guard plus as these supposedly offer the coating properties my vet mentioned. I must add that my horse's management is in line with preventing ulcers already. He's turned out all day (only in over night since he started to show symptoms with ulcers in Nov and I'd feel mean leaving him out overnight in the cold now he's used to being in. He'll be back to 24/7 turnout in the spring.), has plenty of hay and, as he's a good doer, doesn't get hard feed, only a balancer. Does anyone have any experience with these or any other ulcer supplements?
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Re: Gastric ulcers and preventative supplements
U-guard worked quite well for my horse though he was a crib-biter and wind-sucker as well. The only way we managed to keep the ulcers as bay was to have him eating hay all the time pretty much, also my vet said that keeping the amount of protein in his diet low could help has a high protein diet makes the stomach more acidic. Does he have hay in the field? Also if he paces when he is out in the field and doesn't like being out this will stress him out and make his stomach more acidy.
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Re: Gastric ulcers and preventative supplements
Thanks. I think I'll give U Guard a try. He likes being out as that's what he's been used to. Spends the whole time stuffing his face! I'm really looking forward to leaving him out full time again (although he doesn't seem to mind coming in either). In general, he's not a stressy horse. Very laid back in fact. He doesn't have hay in the field at the moment as there ended up being piles and piles of it scattered around and he didn't even look at it. (It's a huge field and there's still lots of grass on it- Assume he considered that more interesting!) He does get hay in the field in the winter usually though and he has hay from a trickle net overnight in the stable. I'm considering using slippery elm as a preventative too. Any opinions?
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Re: Gastric ulcers and preventative supplements
Im feeding Gastro-Kalm (Equus Health) to one of my horses with a sensitive gut. Ive read that this is also good for ulcers as it helps to reduce the acid. It only costs about £12 a tub so it may be worth a try!
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Re: Gastric ulcers and preventative supplements
If all else fails, I'm pretty sure you can give a lower dose of gastroguard as a preventative measure.
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Re: Gastric ulcers and preventative supplements
Thanks. You can use Gastroguard at a lower dose but apparently it's not good as it shuts off the acid production which is good in the short term to allow the ulcers to heal but not in the long term as acid is actually needed to break down the food. Without it, apparently, they can end up with hind gut problems as food passes into it unbroken down. I decided to use Equitop Pronutrin. It's quite pricey but I think it's made a difference. Its supposed to coat the stomach lining to protect it and strengthen the gut mucosa. I'm just dreading the Autumn coming now as I've heard that's when they tend to reappear for some reason!
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