Gut Support for the Worrier

[Abbie.S]

I’m not sure I am actually going to go this route as I haven’t found the majority of supplements of any kind to be particularly effective, but it’s something I’ve been considering for my older guy who holds a lot of worry, has his whole life, and while he’s a whole lot better than he used to be and continues to improve slowly over time, he’s just one of those horses that is always going to be sensitive to change. A recent barn move totally threw him out of whack and he’s not settling well, so I am going to get him A) back in a barn with a more fixed routine, and B) do a month of Gastroguard.

Once the Gastroguard is done I am toying with the idea of putting him on some sort of feed-through gut support, but it’s not something I’ve done for any of my other horses - past or present - as constant access to good forage, lots of turnout and correct work has kept them all happy and content. This guy just does not do well with major changes and at nearly 17 I don’t think much is going to improve in that regard.

What do folks feed for digestive support when all the other essentials are taken care of? He keeps good weight - he drops it fast when he gets stressed but it comes back fairly easily - his coat quality is good, his manure is normal, etc. This is really just to minimize the potential effects that “the worry” has on him internally and help him manage through some of the other changes so they don’t have such a ripple effect.

[cnd8]

I wouldn’t do a full month of Gastrogard. First, it would cost several hundred dollars. Second, I’d say only a week is needed. I have a gelding much like yours; worries about every little thing. I recently also made a barn move from drastically different living conditions. I gave him 4 days of Ulcergard (one tube) to help his transition (1 dose day before move, and one dose the first 3 days at new facility). He adjusted just fine and within a week and a half, his worry was not even evident. This horse is also on Assure Guard Gold, which does claim to help coat the entire GI system, but I’m not sure that would be the suggestion I’d make for your case as it is incredibly expensive.

[buck22]

I have a worrier who is otherwise a picture of health. He’s responded well to GG, as well as generic Nexium, but after a course was through he would slowly revert to his worrying ways.

Seeking something he could stay on more or less permanently, I looked to Animed’s product line as I’m a big fan overall of their supplements, they tend to be effective, inexpensive and palatable.

I tried a number of their digestive support products: http://www.animedproducts.com/productlist.php?c=Equine%20Care&s=Digestive%20Support

In the end, Ulc-R-Aid worked best for my boy. He also gets alfalfa pellets, flax seed, and whole oats in his ration.

[Abbie.S]

@cnd8 , I know the cost :winkgrin:. He’s been showing signs of increasing stress for a couple months now which tends to show up in the pasture with elevated bossiness/domineering behavior towards other horses. He’s not an aggressive horse, but when he is feeling really insecure he will lash out. The full month is at the recommendation of my vet.

[mmeqcenter]

I’ve liked Uckele G.U.T. in the past, and Aloe vera juice is always good.

[joiedevie99]

A full month of gastrogard makes sense. If there are existing ulcers, supplements aren’t going to heal those. Make sure you taper the dose at the end. Some horses react really poorly to going cold turkey on PPIs.

I’ve got one who has been treated twice for ulcers living on SmartGut Ultra. So far, it seems to be helping, but he’s also in a different living situation and climate now. I also bought a horse this summer who was still living at the breeder. He’s not particularly sensitive, but I worried about the stress of the move. He’s on GastroEase for now.

[Equkelly]

I really like forco but I will say that no supplement will make up for management shortcomings. I would first make sure the horse has 24/7 turnout, free access to hay, living with buddies, etc.

[Abbie.S]

@Equkelly

I really like forco but I will say that no supplement will make up for management shortcomings. I would first make sure the horse has 24/7 turnout, free access to hay, living with buddies, etc.

Check, check, and will be check once he is back to his (more) normal self. Like I said, this is on top of daily management to maximize gut health. Right now he’s more aggressive than I’d like towards pasture mates and so is out alone but next to other horses until he’s mentally back to his old self.

[Equkelly]

@Abbie.S

Check, check, and will be check once he is back to his (more) normal self. Like I said, this is on top of daily management to maximize gut health. Right now he’s more aggressive than I’d like towards pasture mates and so is out alone but next to other horses until he’s mentally back to his old self.

That is so refreshing to hear. I feel like I read a post on here every day that’s like “my horse is having x behavioral/ GI/ or whatever issue. He gets 2 hours for turnout every third Wednesday of the month weather pending. What supplement can I buy to make him not psychotic?”

But seriously FWIW, my mare also has GI issues and she’s been on forco since the spring and I really like the stuff. I’ve done aloe as well but I don’t think it did anything and my mare said it tasted terrible.

[PNWjumper]

I have 3 products that I use for gut support (on my two worriers in particular) beyond the alfalfa I supplement their grass hay with and apple cider vinegar (1 oz in grain twice a day):

1. Ulcer Eraser - absolutely love this product
2. THE Equine Edge GastroPlus
3. Stomach Happy - which is a Chinese Herb that I get through my vet

I typically only use one of those at a time (though occasionally will keep feeding the ulcer eraser at a show and also add in either GastroPlus or Stomach Happy), and I have found that just having the horses on one keeps them calm and settled and eating happily. And due to cost, typically the one I keep them on at home all of the time is the Ulcer Eraser.

Also, any time I put a horse on omeprazole now (I have posted extensively over the years about my Grand Prix horse who colicked because of omeprazole), I make sure to add in a hind gut support product like Succeed or SmartDigest Ultra.

[Elouise]

I started my horse on Vitalize’s Alimend this Spring and so far I am super happy. Mine didn’t have classic ulcer symptoms, but he just seemed unhappy (I do give omeprazole for the horse shows and traveling as precautionary). It was recommended to me by my trainer.

[BoyleHeightsKid]

I have one who gets very aggressive and will beat up his senior pasture mate when his stomach is bothering him. I’ve had GREAT results treating him with OTC Nexium and Uckele GUT for maintenance. He made a complete 180 with this combination.

[Obsidian_Fire]

I do think SmartGut Ultra is helpful. Expensive, but seems to work. There is Purina Outlast, and there is a Triple Crown product with gut support - StressFree Forage by TC.
I have used the Outlast, and I have seen it work on a tooth grinder in our barn. He quit, after years of doing so.

I had a worrier too. And I wish some of these had been available when I had him. One thing that helped him was mash. A lot of it. I don’t know if that’s feasible in your situation, but a large ration of mash twice a day with access to free choice hay and turnout was a big help.
For mash what I used was something we have here locally, a product called Special Blend (alfalfa, beet pulp, timothy, flax, rice bran, canola oil) and Triple Crown Senior, soaked in hot water.
Something about all that wet feed really turned him around. FWIW.

[Abbie.S]

Thank you guys so much for the recommendations. I obviously have no definitive proof that he has ulcers/gut issues as I haven’t had him scoped, but given his escalating stress behavior the past few months and a very tumultuous last week with the move to a barn that is clearly not working for him, I’d be quite surprised if he didn’t have at least something brewing. Getting a scope done around here isn’t cheap, easily $500+ after the farm call fee, sedation, etc is added on, so I figured either I scope, see nothing and don’t treat, scope and treat, or just treat. At the end of the day, just treating seemed like the most sound option financially and time-wise given this horse’s history and personality.