‘Gem peed six times between the time I got her out of the pasture to load for the FRC show and the time we got back home. Probably nothing anyone would comment on except for the fact that I’ve maybe seen her pee while being handled or ridden that many times total in nine years. She’ll almost always pee in the pasture as I walk up to catch her because she hates to under saddle or when being handled, but then during our actal time together she rarely ever does.
I filed it in my brain as mildly interesting and kept an extra close eye on her figuring it was a spring heat or the like.
Of course once you start paying close attention everything seems like a red flag. She seemed a bit girthy when tacking up. She was a bit reactive to being curried over her back and sides. Was she shedding or was her coat a bit dull? All tiny things that are easily overlooked but can add up.
Then she began leaving grain behind in her bowl. After a day or two of that she began to eat super slowly. She is always the first one brought in to eat and I noticed that she was barely touching it by the time the last horse was caught and brought in. In fact the other two were finished and Gem was maybe half way through hers. Odd.
Between all the blasted rain and my newly torn up arena, I didn’t ride all week. The farrier was out Friday afternoon and all seemed ok except for her lack of interest in her grain and an overall sleepy demeanor. Both uncharacteristic for her.
All things lined up in my brain added up to potential ulcers. I had changed her grain about six weeks prior and it could just as easily be the grain not doing as well for her and her not liking it or she could be in major spring heat and having ovary pain. Lord knows my uterus hates me on a monthly basis.
But I’d rather be safe than sorry and so I scratched from the h/j show I was slated to do last weekend and had Dusty order Gastroguard for me. Thankfully he is a vet and can get it through work because holy crap that stuff is expensive. How much do you guys pay for it? It was $400 for a month’s supply at his cost!! Jeepers.
Of course as soon as it got ordered Gem started looking more like herself. By Sunday she was back to gobbling her food down at Mach speed and running amuck in the pasture. So maybe it was just her heat cycle. Or the shitastic weather swinging from 80 and sunny to 45 and rainy. Yet again. Or maybe she was more tired and sore after those three jumping rounds than I gave her credit for. Jumping is hard. Jumping while spooking at everything is even harder.
I don’t know but since that liquid gold isn’t harmful mareface will be getting syringed daily for the next four weeks just in case. I’m giving her the next week off as well while she gets the first week of treatment and then we will get back to lessons and riding again with an aim at entering the FRC CT May 5th with added jump rounds at the end. I love that format and since it is only an hour away it’s a pretty solid place to show. Add to it that I adore their baby cross country fences on the other side of the road and maybe just maybe someday I’ll enter a HT there.
So that is the deal at the moment in Gem land. NQR but returning to normal again.
The Roaming Rider 
aw, hopefully she feels better after the treatment! i kinda figure my horses will get an ulcer treatment once a year just as par for the course, since traveling and training can be stressful on them. also tho this time of year is just plain hard for mares…
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I was always surprised when Gem never had symptoms during our endurance days. My luck has run out I guess.
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I’m glad she is on the upswing! Yeah ulcerguard/gastroguard is super expensive to do the month long treatment. I’d say you got a screaming deal!
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It pays off sometimes to be married to a vet 😉
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guess you will keep him huh? LOL 🙂 I am glad you got the ulcer stuff esp at that deal it sure cannot hurt. And to be fair Gem is older and even though the move was not stressful at all it has to effect them somewhat all the changes, right???
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That was my thinking. I can’t believe she is turning 20 this year
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I can buy it with a discount and it’s still about $25 a tube blegh
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I heard rumor it is going generic soon, so hopefully the price drops significantly.
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Ummm, $400?? It was well over $1,000 when P went through ulcer treatment (insurance covered it so not sure exactly the cost). Hope she feels better soon!
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That is ridiculous! I knew it was high, but didn’t know what practices ended up charging for it
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I think I paid around $1,000 for 28 days and that was with a discount (forgot what percent discount it was) I got from Ulcerguard bc I participated in a free ulcer scoping clinic that they and my vet put on. Gus got to be one of the case subjects and I’m glad I did it bc he ended up having grade 2 ulcers. But at least I was saved the scoping price bc that can be around $300-$400 I think? But yeah that stuff really is liquid gold!!!!
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That’s expensive! Holy crap.
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Sounds more like mare issues than ulcers, but you never know with horses. That’s an awesome deal on ulcer meds.
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There was a stallion at the show we went to and Gem was very interested. he was super well behaved and adorable and never even looked at my hussy. She is going to be treated regardless now with how much that stuff cost.
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Oh man. I can’t imagine having to show a stallion. All those mares trying to tempt them all the time. One of the mares at our barn shoves herself into the face of all the geldings whenever she’s in heat, but thankfully they don’t care.
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That is certainly an impressive tree and I can see why you plan to remove it!
Hope Gem is on the up and up soon. It’s great that you caught things so quickly!
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It’s a shame they planted it so close to the house. I really don’t like it there tho so it’s got to go
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Hoping she’s back to normal ASAP. Nothing worse than NQR… good call on scratching from the show. Better safe than sorry.
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I really wanted to go but there will be other shows
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Hopefully the ulcerguard helps, or that was just the big heat cycle of the year for her and wont come back. Im sure their cycles can change, just like ours.
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Looking back now I’m guessing it was cycle issues because now she is just fine
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I wonder if it was the spring grass? I’m glad that she’s better!
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Could be but she has never had an issue before. Who knows. What I like about living here is that the fescue grows al fall and winter so by the time spring comes in it isn’t a massive reintroduction again
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Aww bummer! Hope she is feeling like her old self again for good! Ulcerguard can’t hurt and that is a GREAT deal!
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I do too. She is generally angry right now with life but seems to be settling back to her normal
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