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Bailey's Story

A journey to understanding ulcers in our equine partners

The first time I met Bailey was 1.5 years ago when her riding partner (Carol) asked me to give Bailey a massage. It was in September and the day before our Mile Hi Barrel Horse finals. Carol's sister had just lent her Bailey and so they were still getting to know each other.

After introducing myself and telling Bailey that I was there to give her a massage, I started to go over her muscles just to give me an idea what areas needed more work. She wasn't too pleased with my being in her pen let alone my hands going over her body. She was quite the cranky mare. As I started to massage her poll and neck, she seemed to relax a little until another horse would walk by her pen. She would pin her ears and kick the stall wall at the horse. Yep, quite a cranky and an unhappy girl. Bailey was talking in her own way and now it was up to me to listen and understand what she was trying to tell me.

The more I massaged Bailey the quieter she became and she seemed to relax. Once I got her relaxed at my presence and touch, I checked her stomach points to see if there was any indication of possible ulcers. When I lightly touch her stomach points, she kicked the stall wall each time. Not only was she telling me that her tummy hurt but she was screaming that it was very painful.

After finishing Bailey's massage, I told Carol that I thought Bailey had ulcers but the only way to know for sure was to have a Veterinarian "scope" the mare. We also discussed getting the mare on some ulcer supplement.

Carol put Bailey on a pharmaceutical which was expensive and didn't have quite the effect that Carol was wanting. Carol talked to Melanie Luark from the John Ewing, Formula 707 Company (http://formula707.com/) and they had just started conducting research on an ulcer formula they were wanting to add to their supplement line up. Carol put Bailey in the research project and she responded very well to the Gastro Essentials ( http://formula707.com/whats_new.htm ).

In December, Bailey was making some great barrel runs and she and Carol were becoming quite the formidable team. Bailey had started running in the 2D and in December started running in the 1D and then went on to winning the 1D. Bailey was running so well that Carol enter them both in several rodeos where they placed well.

Now when I go into Bailey's stall to massage her, she is much more relaxed and calm. She loves her massages. She's not in pain so she isn't the cranky girl I first met. No more kicking at the stall wall either at my hands or another horse walking by.

So why do horses get ulcers?

Every hour, the parietal cells lining a horse’s stomach secrete more than six cups of concentrated acid — it’s part of the digestive processes of an animal meant to graze all day and all night. A constant supply of food passing through the stomach requires a constant supply of acid to help digest it.

When horses can’t graze at will — and many horses can’t — the acid production in their stomach doesn’t stop. Particularly for horses in high-stress training and performance situations, high-energy feed is quickly consumed and quickly digested, which means that, long after the stomach has emptied, the acid continues to flow.

In many horses, this results in painful ulcerations of the stomach lining. Poor appetite, diminished performance and poor condition may all be signs that a horse is feeling the effects of his unnatural lifestyle in his gut. Even though his heart is still in the competition, his gastrointestinal tract may not be.

Formula 707 Gastro Essentials is a natural support for the stomach lining

Formula 707 Gastro Essentials has been specifically formulated with an effective combination of natural soothing herbs, essential amino acids and minerals to aid digestion and mitigate the effects of acid on the stomach lining. Just four ounces of Formula 707 Gastro Essentials mixed in with the feed twice a day will maintain a healthy gastric system and help keep horses in top condition.

Gastro Essentials Case History

Veterinarian Dr. Joe Stricklin observed a number of horses with symptoms of gastric ulcers for a period of up to two months. According to Dr. Stricklin, at the beginning of the study, all the horses were not finishing their grain or performing up to optimal standards for them. Others were lethargic, grinding their teeth, or having frequent symptoms of colic.

Observations

Horses were fed four ounces of Formula 707 Gastro Essentials twice a day. Dr. Stricklin reported that all of the horses were much improved symptomatically after receiving the product within 10 to 14 days. One of the subjects — a former cribber — gained 143 pounds in 30 days. Horses stayed symptom-free as long as they were on the product but began to show some slight evidence of pain three weeks after finishing the trial program.

A third of the horses had been scoped both prior to and after the feeding trial. Although initial scopes showed ulceration along the demarcation of the glandular stomach, after 30 days of feeding Gastro Essentials, no ulceration could be seen.

Conclusions

According to Dr. Stricklin, Formula 707 Gastro Essentials relieved pain symptoms and can be effectively used to maintain healthy digestion in horses at a more affordable cost than expensive alternatives. Dr. Stricklin also noted that all the horses ate the product freely and without hesitation — would even eat it as a treat from the hand.

This was a recent article in The Horse. April 2010

Equine Stomach Ulcers Still at 60%

For the second year, a nationwide series of more than 160 gastroscopy events showed 60% of horses were identified with stomach ulcers, according to a press release from Merial.

"This is the second year that these scopings were able to show horse owners the type of potentially painful stomach ulcers that their horses have been dealing with," said April Knudson, DVM, manager of Merial Veterinary Services. "Many times, horses are suffering in silence from stomach ulcers due to their natural tendencies as a prey animal to mask pain."

Veterinarians evaluated the horses' stomachs using gastroscopy. Throughout the year, 1,532 horses across the country participated. Overall, 922 horses from 37 states had some ulceration as identified by gastroscopy.

There are many triggers for stomach ulcer development, and stress is an important factor, Knudson said. Horses may experience stress when exposed to such situations as competition, training, travel, lay-up due to sickness or injury, shows or events, limited turnout or grazing, and trailering.

Ulcers can develop quickly, too. One study ( http://www.thehorse.com/ ) showed that horses can develop stomach ulcers in as little as five days.

So take a closer look at your horse, is he/she being naughty and misbehaving or is he/she trying to tell you something?

We use Formula 707 Gastro Essentials on our horses and have found it to relieved pain symptoms and effectively maintains healthy digestion in horses at a more affordable cost.

If you would like more information on Formula 707 Gastro Essentials, you can email us with your questions. StarAmazingGrace@aol.com or contact the John Ewing company through their web site at http://www.formula707.com/contact.asp . The Formula 707 company also has other great supplements that we use here at Star Amazing Grace Performance Horses.

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