@joiedevie99 - some people say papaya tablets; I haven’t read your other thread but maybe they’d help?
Any Canadians on here? We can’t get PPI’s without a prescription except for OLEX24 at the pharmacists counter. Is that right? Anyone know how much OLEX24 is? It’s a 20mg delayed release omeprazole tablet. I’m not sure how many come in a container.
Equine omeprazole dose is 1.8 mg/lb or 2.26 g for a 1250 lb horse. It’s generally not at all cost effective to use the OTC people preps for equines–you’d need 133 pills a day at 20mg/pill. Nexium (esomeprazole) is a whole different ball of wax.
It looks like Amazon Canada sells Nexium, though: https://www.amazon.ca/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2/135-7365878-0027614?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=nexium
I didn’t even think of Amazon, thanks. I was skeptical of the OLEX not because of the cost, but because of the number of pills. We have to get both GG and UG from a vet up here and it can run $40/tube. I’ve done Abler in the past with this horse, but it always seems a little sketchy.
Sorry I haven’t read through every post to see if this was addressed - can you use the nexium instead of UlcerGuard as a preventative? What would the dose be for that? For the preventative doses do you need to taper off?
I am moving my horse before the end of the year and would like to put him on something a week or so before and for at least a week after, just to be safe.
What dose did you use for the preventative and how did you do the taper?
There’s no analogous dose to Ulcergard unless you’re splitting the capsules. When I treated as “preventative” when Piggy was on antibiotics, I just gave the full dose through the duration of the treatment and then a two week taper–2 pills/day for the first week and 1 pill/day for the second. Worked great.
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You can order UG from Amazon but it’s still expensive so I get mine shipped from entirely pets to a box number in Montana and pick it up there for much cheaper, they bill my Canadian credit card and don’t care as long as it’s shipping to a US address! So if you can set one up and drive across easily I’d recommend doing that as even with the exchange it can work out way cheaper (I just do this for multi week shows otherwise I use generic omeprazole from Summit pharmaceuticals through my vet)
I’m about 4 hours from the border and never venture that way so by the time I add almost $100 in gas it’s not really worth it. I tried using generic omeprazole this past show season and it didn’t seem to do anything, hence searching for an affordable enteric coated or delayed release option.
Huh. Our regular pharmacies have delayed-release omeprazole for a reasonable price. You guys don’t have that? https://www.cvs.com/shop/cvs-health-omeprazole-magnesium-acid-reducer-20-6-mg-delayed-release-capsules-prodid-1011996?skuId=488027
No. Like I said in my previous post the only PPI Canadians can get without a prescription is OLEX24 at the pharmacy counter. Apparently Amazon.ca will ship Nexium which seems odd, but it might be the most affordable option.
Yeah sometimes it sucks for us trying to get this stuff 
Yet for other human meds we are way cheaper… go figure!!
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My pony is small only 600 lbs so I used 3 pills one day prior to shipping and added a small amount of soaked alfalfa hay for the first few days at the new barn, 1/2 a flake 2X a day. I gave 3 pills for 1 week, 2 pills next week, and 1 pill last week. No issues. I would have liked to give the alfalfa longer but fat ponies don’t need alfalfa. No symptoms of ulcers, he’s fat and sassy.
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Hi! I have loved and read these forums for years but never felt the need to join so I could post until now! Just joined so I could say thank you for this information. I am going to try this on my new Paso Fino who I am pretty sure has ulcers. I have tried a couple gut supplements and adding in alfalfa and it seemed to help a little but not as much as I would like. I just ordered some Nexium from Amazon and will repost back my results in a week or two.
FYI for those using esomeprazole - Costco now has generic capsules for $14/42 pills. About $10 cheaper than brand name Nexium.
Generic at Walmart too $14.97 for 42 capsules. (happy dance)
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Equate-Esomeprazole-Magnesium-Capsules-42-Count/540457193
I did also notice that the brand name nexium was down to 17/box on Amazon today 
Thanks to this thread I’m trying Nexium with a horse who I was told is prone to ulcers. Supposedly his symptoms are usually very obvious (as in he stops eating) but he has always been touchy about being girthed and having his sides brushed, so I wanted to see if treatment helped that at all. No change so far, two weeks in. It sounds like most people have seen a difference by then. He is a larger horse, probably 1700 lbs or so. Should I try 4 capsules per day instead of 3 before calling it quits and tapering off?
@Simkie and others that have tried the Nexium treatment.
Have you had any experiences with symptoms coming back when you tapered off?
I did the full 4 week treatment of 3 capsules a day. Immediate improvement in mare’s symptomatic behaviors. Tapered to 2 per day for a week - still all good. Tapered to 1 per day - symptoms came back.
Thoughts? Anyone else experience this?
I am thinking of putting her back on the Nexium. Mare is on stall rest for an injury. I really don’t need her extra spooky, anxious and reactive while we rehab.
It is not uncommon for horses to experience a relapse when taken off either omeprazole or esomeprazole. Some horses’ acid secretions return to pre-treatment levels or even higher when the treatment is stopped or reduced. There’s even a name for it, “rebound acid hypersecretion (RAH)”. Some studies now recommend starting a horse on one of the gastric supplements as soon as you start to taper the medicine.
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