I doubt it… especially with covid 
Thank you! I try to do everything I can to make my horse comfortable, and I always love learning new things about how to help them.
So, during this 10-ish day vacation, should I be doing anything with him? Light lunging and grooming? Or just grooming and spending time with him? (May be hard with michigans weather)
And lets say nothing changing during this 10-day vacation, then what? Should I re-access for ulcers?
Understood. I would back off on the 6 day per week riding (probably a good idea to give him the winter off, I doubt that 10 days will make any difference) and keep your grooming light and soft.
Some TBs really dislike a good brushing. Get a very soft brush and a towel and use those to keep him clean.
If you are inexperienced with hot toweling and other aspects of grooming, invest in some good grooming books, and I would have a vet out to see if he has ulcers. Turn out is essential.
Realizing now that I am old and that you may be able to just look up hot toweling on the internet and not have to buy books. 
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If he has only been treated with Omeprazole, try again with Sucralfate. Mine didn’t respond at all to Omeprazole, in fact, I believe it made her worse since it wasn’t treating the right area. Huge difference once she got the right treatment.
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Obviously your horse is not happy or comfortable. So it’s your job, through the process of elemination, to figure out what’s going on with him.
I’ve had grouchy horses respond to Nexium within 3 days. Noticeable change in their demeanor.
What has been done since you’ve had him regaarding potential ulcers?
For now, back off heavy grooming. Buy a soft face brush for any body brushing. Tb’s can be thin skinned and sensitive. Listen to him, if he doesn’t like it.
How’s the saddle fit? Are you sure he’s not back sore? How thorough was your PPE?
Sore hocks can affect their backs and therefore their body.
Rather than pay a trainer to ride 2X per week, maybe get a vet check and chiropractor to check him out. He’s still a baby- that’s pretty intense riding/training. Back off a few days per week.
Overwhelmed? Probably he is. Too much too soon.
Agree w/ more turnout w/ buddies. Stalls are not healthy for young horses.
Listen more to your horse, he’s trying to tell you things and nobody’s listening.
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I’d recommend spending good quality time with your horse, without fussing him to death. Over time, you could even introduce stretches and simple massage. My horses love that stuff, and it’s a good diagnostic tool as well.
I live in Maine and keep my horses at home with no indoor, so I do give them the bulk of the winter off. This has never caused a problem yet, so long as you have a good legging up program in the spring. Skydy’s suggestion is a good one.
Maybe try a ten day break with modest requests and see if his general attitude is better. If so, you’ll know that rest is a good strategy, and you can move on from there. I agree that this is too short for injuries to heal and muscles to really relax, but I imagine you’d see some change in attitude towards you.
And do check for ulcers in any case. That just seems like common sense under the circumstances.
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I agree with the suggestion to have him scoped for ulcers. Also, what about saddle fit? Have you had that checked recently? His back could have changed quite a bit in the past 6 months.
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Scoping is surprisingly cheap. I suppose it varies depending on area. Two horses in my barn were just scoped- it was about $300 each and I’m in a pricey area. MUCH cheaper than treating with gastroguard for the full recommended treatment. That being said, some horses just dislike being groomed, particularly in certain areas. Mine is one of them.
Ulcers may well be the culprit here. If you don’t want to scope him, you could try putting him on omeprezole or GastroGuard for 3 to 4 weeks, and see if there’s any improvement in behavior.
The other possibility is to have the vet check the horse for Lyme disease. Lyme disease is notorious for causing behavioral changes and sensitivity or reactiveness to touch as symptoms. Ask the vet about taking a blood sample to test, and ask to have the Cornell test done.
Here’s some information on Lyme disease in horses:
Cornell vet school page on Lyme disease in horses
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During his 10 day vacation you could try doing some Masterson massage with him. It’s easy to find tutorials online. It’s not a muscle massage in the traditional sense, which he may not enjoy right now, but it’s just using light touch with your finger on pressure points to relieve tension.
Time off is time off: no lunging. Hand walking if you want. Sometimes doing nothing is the most best thing you can do.
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How is the behaviour in the pasture/paddock? Any bad experience with e.g. barn staff?
Oh, man, my guys LOVE the Masterson Method - the TB especially. Not difficult at all, either.
This might be a great thing to try after an initial period of total downtime.
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Some horses feel that their stalls are their private spaces and don’t share well or like to be handled or groomed in the stall. Since you can’t use the cross ties, maybe take him outside to his paddock or someplace he can be secured. Does your saddle fit correctly? Have you checked all of your tack for sharp points or something in the saddle pad sticking him? Does your bridle fit correctly and is the bit the proper size for his mouth and adjusted so it doesn’t flap around or pinch? Do you check when you put it on to be sure nothing is pinching and everything is fitted correctly? Have you checked his teeth? Maybe an equine chiropractor would be something you could try. Good luck and kudos for looking for a good answer.
FWIW with a new horse at a long show whom I had good reason to suspected had ulcers, the vet simply had me do a course of omeprazole without scoping.
Made an immediate difference. Like overnight.
How much did it cost? Can you give me more info on it?
Well it actually all works out, he gets his 14 day break while i’m stuck in quarantine with covid 
Thanks to JB and Simkie, Two of my horses just completed a 30 day, 3 capsules per day in AM, of Nexium 24 Hour Omeprazole available on Amazon, cost like $80. for two horses. Saw a dramatic change in behavior in 3 days. No more ear pinning, no more grouchiness, happy faces again.
There’s many older threads here that you may want to read using the search bar.
Hi Sakey,
It sounds like you are really working to figure out the best thing for your boy, good for you! I agree that this is most likely a pain response so good idea to look into that. In reading this thread, I did not see anything about who he is turned out with? Is he alone or is he out with other younger horses who like to run and play? It is so beneficial for young horses to get out and burn off steam with each other. I have an unusually playful 27 year old gelding and so I try to make sure that there are always a couple playful board horses out with him to keep him entertained.
I also think that his workload may be a bit excessive. I agree with a vacation and softer grooming tools. When I was training my young jumper, my coaches said to jump no more than twice a week. I took a conservative approach to working him because I was looking for a long term playmate rather than a competition partner. At 27, he is still going strong and popping over the occasional jump. With thoughtful management, you can get that longevity out of a competition horse too, but moderation is key.
I really hope you are able to identify the source of his discomfort. I also encourage you to think about what you want to get out of your relationship with this horse and structure your work routine around that rather than around what others expect from you and your horse. Good luck!
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Classic signs of gastric ulcers…
Search the horse care forum here for esomeprazole. You’ll find a great thread on treating for ulcers with OTC Nexium. It’s cheap and won’t hurt to try it.
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Here it is
