1/4 tube of gastrogard daily was recommended for my ulcer prone horse. Has anybody had any experience with long term gastrogard have you experienced any negative effects?
thanks in advance!
You can search the threads I’ve started.
I had my guy on a maintenance dose through an entire show season. He did terrific on it until he didn’t. We think that the long term use caused hind gut ulcers which led to two major (and expensive) gas colics. So two things: 1) omeprazole is not “side effect free” (as many many vets seem to believe) and I will never give it again without a good reason, nor will I give it long term. There are many other more benign ways to deal with an ulcery horse (alfalfa, apple cider vinegar, aloe vera juice, a chinese herb called “Stomach Happy,” and so on) 2) I still use it on my show horses that are ulcer-prone at shows, but I only use it for a week or two at a time and only in conjunction with a hind gut support product (I like SmartDigest Ultra).
On a similar note, it’s possible that my guy is sensitive to omeprazole - more so than your average horse. He also went into kidney failure when we ran a course of Osphos. So possibly the colics were something that most horses wouldn’t have happen.
But my favorite quote out of the whole thing came from my vet (who was at odds with the surgical/vet hospital vets where he was cared for during the colics) who initially was my only supporter on the fact that the omeprazole WAS the problem. She said, “even water has side effects.”
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Thank you so much for sharing your experience. My horse was diagnosed with ulcers in February and it was recommended that I kept him on a 1/4 tube lifelong after the initial treatment. I have done this but I do not feel that he is thriving. He had a very bad colic in June which had involved the small intestine becoming distended and very swollen with multiple loops. The prognoses was grim but he survived without surgery. He was on gastrogard at the time of the colic. I have kept him on Gastrogard a full tube for a month, 1/2 tube, 1/3 tube and 1/4 tube which he is still on. However I feel he is not quite right he developed sensitivity around the flank and some grumpiness since late September and I suspect hind gut ulcers. I feel I should get another gastroscope and I can’t really afford it at this time. The local surgeons in my area think that Gastroguard is completely safe for long-term use which is what he recommended to me. However I know some hospital do not recommend long term gastrogard. An internal medicine specialist at the University of Gueulph felt that long term gastrogard caused bile reflux colic. I have-wondered as his colic in June he had about 12 litres of reflux come out of the stomach tube.
i am concerned he could now have hind gut acidosis. He’s not terrible he’s eating, drinking, coat looks decent, he holds his weight at all times. I want to take him off the Gastroguard but am worried about rebound and recurring colic.
There is some research in humans on PPIs long term that suggest it’s not a great idea to take it constantly, forever, without breaks. But I don’t think long term effects have been studied in the horse.
Mine seems to get some hind gut problems, but I’ve tried a bunch of other ulcer remedies, and when his behavior gets to be very extreme, I have to use GG to help him. The other stuff doesn’t work. Right now, we go through this about once a year. I have tried other things for preventative (RiteTrac, ranitidine, etc., and most of the time that works, but it didn’t prevent the latest flare after a stressful event).
The horse lives on Equishure, so I up that dose some while on GG. I am also going to try tapering with Nexium this time for some more controlled tapering when I get there in about another week.
I know one horse who is on generic powdered omeprazole daily. He was on it when my friend bought him. She tried taking him off of it, and that didn’t go well, so he is back on I guess permanently. I suppose with that horse it’s the lesser of evils, and he does not exhibit side effects. I think my horse would not feel well on the same regimen.
All you can do is the best thing that works for your horse!!! What works for one may not for another and while there’s no long term study on the effects of omeprazole, for MY horse it’s a lifesaver but for others (like PNW) it’s not! I pull my guy off the stuff and it’s instant colic BUT he also has more than normal gastric ulcers he has pyloric ulcers and delayed gastri emptying so we have to go with what works!
Honestly, scoping IS expensive but it’s a heck of a lot cheaper than giving unnecessary gastoguard!!! I went through monthly scopes for a year to come up with the best treatment and maintenance plan!
For what reason? Usually, daily UG/GG is not done or recommended without various scenarios indicating the horse just can’t manage things on his own, not just “because” after a full round of treatment.
I have kept him on Gastrogard a full tube for a month, 1/2 tube, 1/3 tube and 1/4 tube which he is still on. However I feel he is not quite right.
What is “not quite right” about him?
Not all issues, including digestive issues, are stomach ulcers. Omeprazole is likely to make hind gut issues worse. And not everything is related to ulcers anywhere
Long-term PPIs cause a magnesium deficiency in humans, and there’s no reason to think it wouldn’t do the same in horses. Yes, that’s a bit of an extrapolation, but the mechanisms are the same, so a reasonable assumption.
EquiShure is where I’d go with this horse next, just to see if it makes any difference, or you can try ranitidine and sucralfate (can be compounded together), as a way to see if hind gut issues are present.
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GG most definitely caused hindgut issues with Dexter. Equishure has helped along with Equiotic probiotics. Getting him off of the gastrogard helped too.
I recently saw a video from a vet who has used Finish Line U-7 as primary ulcer treatment in horses. I have a mare that was scoped and found to have ulcers. A full treatment later she still had them and had hindgut symptoms as well. A holistic vet recommended the U-7 and a rescope showed the ulcers resolved after 60 days as did the hindgut symptoms. I honestly thought it was just a delayed response to the GG at the time. (This was in 2010).
Dex has been having gas colic issues once or twice a week for quite some time so after watching the video I started him on the U-7 and after a week on it we have gone a whole week now without an episode. I can’t in good conscience recommend it as a primary ulcer treatment on someone else’s horse but as it’s cheaper than many of the supplements out there I feel confident leaving mine on it as a supplement.
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Didn’t you post a link on that video, on a thread here not to long ago?
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Some circles of people believe there may be a link between omeprazole and liver failure… however as far as I know there has been no true research into this with horses.
All medications can have side effects. We just have to decide if the benefit outweighs potential side effects.
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Thank you for sharing.I don’t think he has clinical signs of liver failure. Although the last two days I’ve wondered if he was drinking more than average. Hard to monitor because he’s often with the other horses.i’ve been worrying nonstop about him though checking him at 3AM.I am very thankful that work is close to home so I can drive home at lunch and feed him. I think I will have to do another blood test but bloodwork and just June was normal.
Just an fyi, my horse about two years ago exerienced liver issues (not on a ppi). His regular blood work was fine and even a standard liver panel looked fine. A check on SDH enzyme did show there was a problem (kept rising but the other typical markers for liver stayed in the normal range). Ultrasound and biopsy supported the SDH findings.
Just remembered someone posted back mentioning GLDH (Glutamate dehydrogenase) which is also a liver specific enzyme.
Not just “some circles”
https://www.livestrong.com/article/239961-omeprazole-liver-side-effects/
hepatitis, damage to the general bile system, and liver failure are potential side effects. That’s probably pretty rare in people on a normal course of omeprazole for an acute situation, and probably gets more common as the dosing continues.
I’ve never heard of any horse being compromised this way (and of course they don’t have a gall bladder so no bile production), but I suppose it is possible that there’s some liver inflammation (that’s all hepatitis is, at its core) that resolves once the treatment is stopped. Clearly I wouldn’t give it to a horse with known liver or kidney issues 
I do wonder if any inflammation markers would be seen at the end of a 30 day course, but I don’t know that people are going to spend even more money looking at that lol
What has your weather been doing? We’ve had a sudden drop in humidity, and everyone, even the cats, are drinking more.
Yes it’s well documented in humans. The problem is that human side effects don’t always roll over into horses too. A serious side effect a person may experience may not be of any concern in horses. Without research into it we just can’t be sure if it does or doesn’t cause liver damage.
However I would agree that it is probably likely that liver damage is a side effect for horses too, but this is from personal experience. It would be really beneficial if someone looked into how often liver damage happens from it though!
sorry if I’m preaching to the choir here!
OP, have you noticed any drastic behavior changes, weight loss, topline loss, or lethargic behavior? If you have, you might want to have your vet run bloodwork to see if it’s liver problems.
I may have overreacted about his organs. He has not lost any weight. His main symptom has been sensitivity around the flank. I really do suspect this is a ulcer. He’s also more fussy about his hay. I have low Surat orchard alfalfa and local grass hay and he doesn’t consistently eat it all. In the past even when diagnosed with ulcers he was the kind of horse whom would eat everything. His belly is a bit big and I wonder if bloating is a factor. I’ve been checking on him often as I fear an ulcer could cause him to colic. The colic in June he was a surgical candidate but the surgeon said his chances were rather poor. My choices were surgery or euthanasia wait and see was not an option. Only because I saw clinical improvement in his mild colic symptoms did I discharge him against medical advise back in June. Since that time I told myself if he ever colics again I will let him go but he’s been doing well just because sensitive around the flank a couple weeks ago and I’ve been worrying.
@tazycat yes, I did. It’s on the finish line website and can be accessed at the bottom after clicking the option to read the clinical trial data.
This video is basically just a testimonial from the vet the vet who uses the U-7 as ulcer treatment. The clinical trial itself was done to test effectiveness as a preventative and had pretty decent results. At least it wasnt an impression trial. You know, the whole “is your horse better after beginning the supplement?” I honestly wish someone would do a true comparison trial where they would NAME the supplements tested against. It may very well save all of us a ton of money.
Finish line does state that their product is good for hindgut issues as well. And my very limited experience with the product does support that.
At any rate, here is the video regarding treatment again
http://www.finishlinehorse.com/testimonials/doctor-philips-u7/
as far as omeprazole and liver damage…PPI’s are associated with rare and usually asymptomatic liver enzyme elevations. Even more rarely, actual liver injury occurs. Omeprazole, though a possibility is not the most likely cause IF there is any liver damage. Please keep in mind that anecdotal side effects on the internet do not take other circumstances into account and also keep in mind that with omeprazole being OTC now many people think more is better and dose themselves with more than a recommended dose while taking Tylenol PM and drinking a glass of wine. Lol.
However, if the horse had severe inflammation and displacement with his last colic episode, that could very well cause congestion in the liver
@Fharoah I wouldn’t ignore soreness at the flank in a colic proned horse. At a minimum equishure and a good probiotic is at least worth trying. Dex gets mineral oil daily now as a part of the last ditch effort protocol as well as his other supplements.
You may have said earlier and I missed it but how often are you feeding and how much at each feeding?
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Thank you! The diagnoses for the colic in was had been epiploic foramen entrapment. I was willing to surgery at the time but to prognoses was so grim I was discouraged. The only reason I didn’t euthanize him at the vet clinic back in June was because his pain level had improved had heart rate had come down and his pain symptoms were mild after the initial drug therapy. I had nearly euthanized him that day but he just seemed to be improving so hauled him home and turned him loose and told my vet if he went down she could come euthanize him right away. But he started eating grass and drinking and has not shown signs of colic since that day. My vets were mythified by his survival but are happy he’s alive. A week after his colic I had blood work done which came back normal. Then he had some swelling under his sheath so I had my vet back again had him examined and his teeth floated and but she felt he was normal and the swolllem sheath was likely allergy. I have my vet looking at him tommorrow are will do a complete equine panel. He did eat every speck of Hay overnight and seems in good spirits.
That is great news. I hope he continues to improve.
what were his symptoms that made you investigate his liver?
He had started to back off eating and his hind limbs were stocked up. As a precaution a standard liver panel was run in case his symptoms were a result of a weed in the hay. Since he had a previous history with his liver (suspected sub-clinical reaction to TAT injection) SDH was also run in addition to the liver panel. Had we not run that, totally would have missed it.
He seemed not right. Sensitivity over the flank depression, increased water consumption depcresed appetite. I had blood work done and his white count was slightly low and his calcium levels was a point above normal range. I was totally worried but vet was not too concerned wanted me to rest in 2 to four weeks.
he was miserable so I tried his on a full tube of gastrogard. Nine days on a full tube of gastrogard his appetite is normal eating everything I give him much happier but still extremely sensitive over the flank. Second blood test shows normal white count but decresed BUN. The vet recommends retesting in two two three weeks. There is a chance it could be liver disease but it may not be significant. I am worried the gastrogard is causing liver toxcisity. At the same time I might be overreacting pulling the gastrogard since his appetite has improved. I’m very worried. I could get the internal medicine specialist to come see him it will be very expensive requires ferry travel. I could take him off the gastrogard and hope he gets better and not worse.
i am quite worried
