# Ulcers in Horses



## TrailRiderx2 (Jun 29, 2009)

We have a 19 yr old gelding. That has just come down with stomach ulcers.
We gave him UlcerGard and now giving some Malanta. He is eating a little better but not eating his feed very well. Has anyone had this problem and do you know of any other meds to help him besides the UlcerGard which is $32. a day. We have been out over $400. already would like to pull the cost down a little. Any ideal is appreciated.


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## aabqh (May 22, 2009)

The treatment with Ulcer Guard is 32 a day because you are using a whole tube as a treatment. When you do that it's the same as Gastroguard at a somewhat cheaper rate. After treatment then the UG for prevention is 1/4 tube daily. That is still rather high at $8 a day for a preventative. Omeprazole which is the active ingredient in UG is really the best product for quick treatment currently because of the length of time it works. Previous medications worked but required 2 hr feeding intervals.

There are quite a few products out now for prevention after treatment is completed, most are unproven with minimal research on the product itself, while a few do help. You will hear everything from MoM and Tums to Alfalfa as a treatment but while most can help they are not manufactured in a way that they stay in the stomach long enough to reduce the acids. So if you really want to try other methods consider being at the barn feeding them every 45 minutes to hour and a half.

There is a pretty decent webinar on thehorse.com. Also, feeding alfalfa has been shown to help in prevention because of calcium content and the length of time in the stomach due to constant eating provided they are kept with food in front of them. I wish I could reccomend a new product to you by Kentucky Equine Research called GastroShure but it's not available for sale to the public yet but should be soon. It combines the Equishure product used to address hind gut acidosis with the stomach conditioning ingredients used to prevent ulcers and research has shown it to be very effective.


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## Deej (May 5, 2009)

I have a mini who has had diarria for two years! she was a rescue. I have tried everything. She also eats dirt. I have wormed her, Use sandclear and she cannot eat freash grass. I have recently started using Probiotic products and that seems to help. I just realized a couple days ago that perhaps she to has ulcers. So I have ordered some medicine that I hope will put an end to her constant belly problems. She also acts wobblely at times, and has gone down to her knees but then pops up like nothing ever happened. Has anyone ever heard of that? She is on mini pelleted feed, grass hay, minerial block, vitimins and probiotics. Any thoughts on this?


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## weefoal (Apr 4, 2009)

Deej have you had a fecal done on your mini?? I would start there and make sure there are no parasite issues. What kind of feed is she getting? Im not a fan of Platform mini feed. Way too high in starch etc. As to the dirt eating that is usually because they are lacking minerals. Does she have a mineral block?? And how old is she?

Kay


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## aabqh (May 22, 2009)

Deej,it's really hard to say specifically but if the probiotic is helping then we have a starting point. Most of the research in probiotic is in the yeast culture area with other bacteria added, there is not a lot of evidence stating many of the other additives in most manufactured probiotic are helpful. 

I would consider looking into EquiShure by Kentucky Equine Research, it is a great product as a digestive aid in the hind gut and the only product out currently that is buffered to release in the hind gut. Take a look at this link to an article from thehorse.com, it's worth reading and can answer a lot od questions.
thehorse.com article 

EquiShure


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## aabqh (May 22, 2009)

I wanted to add this but looks like I waited too long to edit. Diarrhea and loose stool is a classic sign of hind gut acidosis along with other gas colic type symptoms where the horse cannot process the feed once it passes from the stomach and into the hind gut. The going to her knees is a gas colic sign. This is where equishure can really help. While the problem can exist in all horses is often seen in horses feed high grain or high concentrate diets. Many feeds contain yeast cultures as the probiotic does but all do not.


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## Deej (May 5, 2009)

Thankyou Weefoal, Cocoa is 3 years old . She does have a mineral block and I have had a fecal test done, and it was negative for parasites. I just bought a bag of mini feed thinking it would be better for her, but I guess not huh? Today she does seem alot better but is still gassey. But her poop is much more solid. I will give it a day or two and see how it goes. Thanks again! And thankyou to Aabgh, You sound very knowlagable. I have never heard of "Acidosis", and will look up information on it. You've both been great!


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## NorthernMama (Mar 12, 2008)

TrailRiderx2 said:


> We have a 19 yr old gelding. That has just come down with stomach ulcers.
> We gave him UlcerGard and now giving some Malanta. He is eating a little better but not eating his feed very well. Has anyone had this problem and do you know of any other meds to help him besides the UlcerGard which is $32. a day. We have been out over $400. already would like to pull the cost down a little. Any ideal is appreciated.


Slippery Elm Bark powder and Aloe Vera Juice mixed in with feed -- about 3 oz of juice and two tsp of powder twice a day for a week or two, then once a day. It worked for my horse and my vet was very impressed and surprised.

And NO grains. If you are feeding a pellet ask what the ingredients are.


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## aynelson (Jun 13, 2009)

northernmama said:


> Slippery Elm Bark powder and Aloe Vera Juice mixed in with feed -- about 3 oz of juice and two tsp of powder twice a day for a week or two, then once a day. It worked for my horse and my vet was very impressed and surprised.
> 
> And NO grains. If you are feeding a pellet ask what the ingredients are.


This is a great formula for humans as well - I am glad to see you recommended it. I study herbal medicine and slippery elm and aloe were 2 botanicals I was thinking just thinking about!


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## aabqh (May 22, 2009)

Hind gut acidosis is a newer term, much like Equine Gastric Ulcers were years ago when we really didn't know a lot about them. I've been through quite a bit of gas colic episodes w/ my show horses including a gas colic that resulted in surgery. Frankly it wasn't until my wife started working for KER's research farm that I began hearing more about acids problems specifically in the hind gut. EGUS in the stomach is also an acid issue and Omeprazole (Gastrogard) is a pump inhibitor that shut down the stomach acid production in the stomach to help heal the ulceration. 
 If you think about it we have been using yeast cultures in feeds for years to help w/ digestion in the hind gut and taking that a step further the Equishure product contains a sodium bicarbonate that in capsulated to release in the hindgut and not in the stomach which was not possible until recently. Quite a few Vets are using the product and there has been a lot of positive feedback in addition to the research.

I'm here because I've taken an interest in this but am not the expert.  If you need any info on Equishure feel free to call KER or email Anne there at [email protected] Hopefully this didn't turn into too much of an advertisement but it's an interesting area and I didn't try to sell anything in the first post lol.


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## aynelson (Jun 13, 2009)

In humans, when taking proton pump inhibitors, it leads to hypochlorhydria which leads to gastric reflex, not to mention impaired protein breakdown (malabsorption) and decreased immune function (you need the stomach acidic environment to kill bacteria and viruses you eat.) I really question the use of sodium bicarbonate in horses to try and neutralize the acid in the gut. The acid is there for a reason. If you neutralize it, dysbiosis for all the gut flora will result. That sounds really similar to the old school (ineffective) way of treating ulcers in humans.

Remember with human ulcers, how everyone thought it was an acid-over production and it really turned out to be a bacterial infection? H. Pylori infection has been understood in the last few years as a culprit for ulcers in humans. Has this been investigated for horses?


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## aabqh (May 22, 2009)

If you read the links you will see that sodium bicarbonate is used to help balance the ph levels not kill all acid in the hind gut. The research is published and reviewed, what was done was tests on ph fecal levels of normal healthy horses compared to those with higher acid levels suffering from hindgut acidosis also sometimes refered to as a cause of colon ulcers. Also another thing to consider is that the one medication out there that actually allows ulcers in the stomach to heal in a quick manner widely reccomended is Gastraguard which actaully shuts down acid production in the stomach for 24hrs per dose allowing healing. Here is a very good article at thehorse.com

http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=10647

You may have to register but I think it's free and a great horse health source of info.


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## Barrelracer Up (May 22, 2009)

I was adding products to my store a couple of days ago and one of them has an effect on ulcers.
dac Forumla 911
Here is what I found:
Boost immune function; relieves cough & runny nose; relieves heaves. 
But another GREAT use is with ULCERS. dac can save you MUCHO bucks with 9-1-1 vs. gastro and ulcer guard. Another dac Rep has seen a equine scope where there were trachea lesions and two quarter size ulcers in the stomach. Customer used two handfuls of 9-1-1 a day and within two weeks the trachea lesions were gone and stomach ulcers were down to a pea size.. Again, two handfuls a day and clean water and hay and anything we could do to lessen the horses stress level, they did. This was a hotheaded young TB, so the barn gal lost a bit of weight with hand walking this TB. She was sooo glad to hear the results !!!!


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## aynelson (Jun 13, 2009)

Sodium Bicarb does not "kill" acid. When an acid and base mix, they yield a salt and water, not to mention a lot of heat. Adding a bicarb to the acid will cause the pH to be more neutral. As with any medical treatment, you must find out why the hyper-acidic condition exists in the first place and treat the cause. Otherwise, not only will you be dependent on a medication, you will mask the pathology and perhaps cause a bigger illness down the road. Treat the cause!


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## Barrelracer Up (May 22, 2009)

Horses are foraging animals and their digestive tract is designed to digest forage. Due to the demands we make upon them, we increase the energy in their food by adding grain to their diet. A horse's stomach and small intestine is much smaller than it's large intestine. Food passes quickly, and largely undigested, through the stomach and small intestine. From there it enters into the fermentation vat of the hindgut, where bacteria breaks down and digest it. Food passes much more slowly through the hindgut.
In 1884 Christopher Gram was studying bacteria. He used an iodine stain to identify and study it more closely. The bacteria that accepted the stain were labeled gram-positive bacteria, while the bacteria that would not accept the stain was labeled gram-negative. The gram positive bacteria digests starch and sugars, whereas the gram-negative bacteria digests fiber. In a healthy hind gut gram-positive bacteria are slightly higher in population than gram negative bacteria.
Carbohydrates break down and convert to starch and sugars in the hindgut. With an excessive carbohydrate diet, gram positive bacteria feed on the sugars and multiply quickly, releasing lactic acid and increase the acidity of the environment. A low pH environment can kill gram-negative bacteria, and erode the mucus lining on the gut wall. Endotoxins can pass through the gut wall and trigger laminitis.
Lactobacillus acidophilus work in the foregut to start digesting sugars to decrease the amount of sugars entering into the hindgut. MOS (Mannon oligosaccharides) bind to starch and sugar-digesting bacteria (gram-positive) and remove them from the gut in the feces. By removing the acid making bacteria, MOS leave the beneficial fiber-digesting bacteria (gram-negative) free to multiply. MOS is also reported to have a buffering affect.
dac Digestive Feed Additive uses this approach plus many more other yeasts and mircoorganism to promote geed digestive-tract health. There are 1,500,250,000,000 live cell microorganism per ounce in the product. It has been used successfully to combat chronic colic, ulcers, chronic diarrhea, and has changed bad stall habits.
The above was a personal study by Vernon Schlabach. Vernon has spoke at many dac meetings and is one of the personal farriers for Randy Jacobs, plus other high ranking equine trainers. When Vernon started doing his study of the dda (dac Digestive feed additive) he was looking for help in Laminitis, but what he also found is that the dac dda also help CUSHINGS disease in horses. Basically it is the same theory as above but the dda will also help to bind all the sugars and starches that Cushing horses can't have and pass them trough the equine body. Of course we all know that with a Cushing horse you have to change your horses diet (feed) so you most likely go to the feed store and get a high fat low carb diet. If you think of what the above says, then all you need to do is add one scoop daily of the dda along with the Cushing specific feed and you have a double approach to helping the Cushings horse. Not to mention your horse will get double benefits in retaining all the nutrients in that specific feed. You can also change the feed to STRAIGHT oats, whole, crushed, steamed whichever, and you will get the same results for laminitis and Cushings. Vernon has proved that with many laminitis horses he has worked on and the laminitis horses that then turned into cushing horses with the thick crusty neck and polls and fat deposits over the hind quarters.
Other uses that many customers are doing with the dac dda is cutting their feed costs in half by using the dda for digestion and feed breakdown in the equine gut, and adding 1/4 to 1 ounce of the dac Bloom daily for the energy. Most of the customers that have done this are using straight oats and good quality hay and within a two week to one month period, have decreased their feed use and have saved money on feed costs by doing this. 

This was from another dac Rep. 
I would suggest looking into either the DDA or 911.


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## mindyme (Jun 21, 2009)

Omeprazole is generic for Prilosec. I did not know that horses can have Prilosec. Good to know.


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## aabqh (May 22, 2009)

aynelson said:


> you must find out why the hyper-acidic condition exists in the first place and treat the cause. Otherwise, not only will you be dependent on a medication, you will mask the pathology and perhaps cause a bigger illness down the road. Treat the cause!


I can agree with that to a large extent but you have to consider that because of the man made conditions we place on many horses it's pretty simple why these conditions occour as often as they do. For ulcers in general we know that placing them in stressful conditions, stall confinement with non optomial feeding times and needing to feed grains in more than 5 pounds at a time can increase the likelyhood of ulcers. Failing to keep the stomach and hind gut full of forage is also an issue as saliva produced in the stomach is a natural protection for the acid production while introducing grains cut saliva production. The same exists for colon and hind gut issues. Proper feeding and prevntion can prevent a lot of problems but depending on the use of the horse is not always practical and why we use feed supplements and medications.

We have a lot of different people using thier horses differently here I assume. As a personal note I own and board a total of 14 horses, a sum total of one needs to be on a product like we are discussing full time. That horse is in training, is hauled to shows several hours away routinely and happens to be a little nervous to begin with, and is placed in a stressful enviroment where we expect them to preform at thier best. It's easy for me to determine why the product is needed but not easy to correct provided the horse stays with it's same usage. Another reason some of the other horses may need it is during the spring where high fructan content in the pasture grasses causes issues.


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