I got the boys in this afternoon with a bit of trepidation. As Ace walked in I could see the tendon in his stifle "flicking" over the joint on the right hand side. I have a friend with a horse who will not turn right who is being treated for a meniscal tear on the right stifle, which has a baaaaad prognosis, so I was a bit concerned, to say the least. Once he had eaten his tea, omeprazole and Settlex I put him on the lunge and got him to walk in each direction. To say that I was relieved when he was the same on both sides in understating things a bit :-)
So back he went into his stable and I stood there wondering whether to ride him or not. The cons would be further pain if it hadn't yet worked or it wasn't ulcers. The pro was to get him to know quickly that he was no longer in pain. As I hummed and ha'd I realised that he was not touching a haynet in his stable. I gave him this haynet yesterday because he seemed so hungry, and he attacked it the entire time he was stabled. The difference was VERY striking. So I rode.
We walked around left in a lovely relaxed fashion. Then Buttie joined us on the arena threatening to cause mayhem, the little devil and I had to get off to chase him out and shut the rope at the entrance. Start again, and more left rain. I went to turn right and felt him stiffen and take a sharp breath. I asked for the turn and he hopped with the front end. I gently eased him into a circle and he suddenly realised that nothing was hurting, and off he walked. We did a few ten metre circles and five loop walk serpentines, which yesterday would have been a complete impossibility. Then I got off with the biggest grin on my face. Result! (Well done Lucy, got it in one :-)
I am SO relieved. Now we have to work out why he got them and how to stop it in future. It's not difficult to work out how he got them. First of all we brought him into Jazz's environment and in the first five weeks he ripped five rugs off his back. Once all that had settled down, the weather changed big time and they went out full time. Total disruption of his routine. Poor boy has had a stressful time!
The solution will be as easy as Jazz I hope - antacids. I've been using Settlex with Jazz for two weeks now and I would say he is even less stressy than when on a maintenance dose of Omeprazole. Since Settlex plus maintenance omeprazole has resolved Ace now, I would expect the Settlex to be good for him too. So that's "only" an additional £700 a year to find to keep them both on it!
C
Three cheers.
ReplyDeleteAs to "how?" Even foals have ulcers, so the causes can be nearly anything. The percentage of horses suffering from ulcers is estimated up in the 80% bracket with horses that are worked. They are very, very common.
I'd suspect Ace had some issues when you bought him and then all the moves aggravated the situation to the point where he was starting to not be able to "work through" the pain.
If that theory holds water, then once you get his tummy controlled, he should be even better than he was when you started with him.
Won't that be a treasure?!!
The meds tend to be on the expensive side, but the rewards are worth it. Maybe over time, as patents run out, less expensive versions will become available. It'd be nice.....
That's great news, well not great about the ulcers obviously but great that you got to the bottom of it so quickly.
ReplyDeleteI have a monthly prescription for Omeprazole but rarely need to take it nowadays - perhaps it's a good thing to stockpile just in case I have a horse that needs it!
ReplyDeleteMight be a good idea Liz - horse omeprazole is illegal to import and the licenced version is about £30 a WEEK!!! On the other hand ranitidine works for horses too, and that's on the shelf in Tesco. I'm glad you're better and don't take it much any more.
ReplyDeleteIt's a relief to get an easy and quick answer Tracey. For a while there I was starting to think we'd bought the wrong horse!
I think omeprazole comes off licence soon Jean and there are murmurs that it may become an over-the counter med. That would be good. Is it prescription only in the US still???
C
Another reminder of how sensitive horses are. As Jean suggested, this maybe be a pre-existing condition that was aggravated by his move.
ReplyDeleteI think the active ingredient in GastroGard (is that Omeprazole?) is due to come off licence this year or next. In any case, imported Omeprazole has helped our gang immensely :) Ranitidine works just as well but doesn't last for 24 hours like Omeprazole. So glad such simple changes/additions are helping out your guy!
ReplyDeleteFingers are still crossed for operation success :)
Omeprazole (yup, Gastrogard is Omeprazole) definitely works but importing it is a criminal offence (so careful who you tell you use it :-), I'd like not to have to do it if I can avoid it! I have a few tablets left from treating Jazz but he is now doing very well on Settlex so I hope to use that for both of them.
ReplyDeleteML you can see on the original video how he flashes his tail. This is uncharacteristic of his general demeanour and I think it indicates that he already had them when he was newly imported, and the change of routine here just made them worse.
C
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Settlex -
ReplyDeleteCalcium carbonate, aluminium hydroxide, dicalcium phosphate, magnesium carbonate.
No proportions given. I could get the carbonates much cheaper but I wouldn't have a clue where to source the hydroxide or the phosphate, so I bought the branded stuff. Currently 20% off and free delivery from Feedmark's website directly.
C
Hi our new horse gets nattery when we do his girth up and swishes his tail and stomps around when you touch or brush his belly, could this be the effect of the spring grass on his gut or am I being paranoid? He started about a month ago.
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I'd say that's a definite upset tummy Anne, because of the timing. Try ranitidine for 2 days and you should soon know.
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You know Caroline I am going to try this. He is an ex show hunter, stabled 24/7 - 9lb of hard feed a day (yes really I saw it when I tried him - astonishing) He doesnt get that now but I think it he is a prime candidate for ulcers.
ReplyDeleteShould add he is now like a normal horse turned out daily minimum hard feed, hi fibre diet. Adapting well he can be stressy but very kind. Thanks for your help x
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