Thursday, March 6, 2014

Notes on Experimentation

Note the First: Pentosan. Should we do a round in the spring, and see if he responds? Is it available again?

Legend injection in late fall made zip, zero difference that I could tell. Had a marvelous ride the day after, and then two days later, nothing. Taking him off Previcox has not resulted in a gimpier horse. I am not necessarily addressing a specific issue, but rather hoping I can improve the overall picture.

Note the Second: Gut issues. He remains the gassiest horse in the barn by yards and yards. Do I want to worry about this? Do I think harder about a hindgut treatment of some kind? Do I make some attempts at ulcer treatment?

He's already on a pre & probiotic and doesn't seem bothered by his gassiness.

Note the Third: General supplementation for weight/energy/hydration. Will try hay cubes/pellets, soaked, or beet pulp, soaked, as a snack/meal when out and hauling, or as something to give him as a treat after riding in the summer.

4 comments:

  1. Adequan was (and is) the one that’s hard to get your hands on. Pentosan apparently was scarce for a while but seems to be accessible now. I’m actually waiting on a PentAussie Rx for Tucker right now (his first; we’ll see). AFAIK the only hold-up is that our vet can be hard to track down sometimes…!

    I read something the other day suggesting that beet pulp can increase gassiness…thought it was at The Horse website, but I can’t seem to find it again now…

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    1. Hmmm, I will look into the beet pulp question, thanks.

      I will be interested to hear how Tucker does, and it's good to hear that Pentosan is back in regular circulation. Definitely leaning toward getting a bottle for Tris with his next vet visit.

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  2. Gut issues - gas specifically can be cause by high starch being digested in the large intestine. What feed is he on? How much hay and roughage? I would be concerned, gas is never something you want in your horse. I would suggest looking for a feed that has LOW starch.

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    1. He's on a primary roughage diet right now: more or less free choice hay (grass hay, I would guess 30-40lbs or so per day), and 2.5 lbs of Blue Seal's Sentinel SR per day, which is just under their recommended maintenance, as he tends to be a very easy keeper. It's supposed to be a low starch feed. He's been just as gassy when fed a low starch feed (ie something like the Blue Seal's Carb Guard). He gets a general nutrition balancer supplement with added Vitamin E and Biotin that includes a pre and probiotic. I have gone back and forth on worrying about this over the years: when he is in a well-managed environment it doesn't seem to bother him in any way, it's just his default. When he's not in a well-managed environment (ie, the pastures are overrun or he is not generally watched after) he has had some low grade gas colics.

      I have had vets look at him and check on him and none of them has ever specifically said something to worry about. So it's not my #1 worry but it is something I try to keep an eye on.

      To clarify, when I say gassy I mean: consistently high gut sounds and passing gas on a semi-regular basis (when he's led out of his stall, when he's warming up, when he lifts his belly to get into work, anywhere from 5-6 times of note while I'm with him in a 2 hour period).

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