Galaxy Update – 17th August 2021
With COVID locking down my entire state this month we are still without a follow up gastroscope so unfortunately I can’t give you a technical update on what is actually happening in Galaxy’s stomach.
What I can report on is her behaviour, which is probably the best indicator we have at the moment for what is happing inside.
I have been taking the opportunity just to spend little bits of time with Galaxy in the last week. I decided I would see how she reacted if I bought her out of her paddock to be brushed while haltered. I wasn’t going to push her and just brushed her neck and shoulders.
With lucerne hay to munch while I brushed she accepted the brush and I think even enjoyed it. No indication of her wanting to pin her ears back.
I also took her for a walk to find some tasty grass in our big pasture and while she grazed I brushed her all over, including her girth and belly. Again, no indication of wanting to pin her ears back (or kick) as she had grown accustomed to doing when she was badly ulcerated.
What the vet had to say…
I had Dr Doug, my vet out to check her stifle joints as she has odd movement in her back legs on occasion. Doug diagnosed her with ‘upward fixating patella’ and has suggested I use exercise to try and rectify this!
Doug and Stacey (our amazing vet nurse!) both commented on how much her behaviour had changed since she spent the night with them prior to her original scoping (back in May). And I have to say, she is turning into a pretty chilled out little girl. She no longer runs to the rails and whinnies when we take any of the other horses out of the paddock and she grazes a lot!
So outwardly she is doing well. Her coat still looks pretty foul but she should shed it soon and get her summer coat so will see how that looks before I worry too much about that.
Her diet remains almost the same. I have reduced her lucerne hay from 4 kg/day to 2 kg/day as she is in very good condition so I am having to balance calorie intake with managing ulcers!
I have also added a small amount (80 g/day) of copra meal and sugarbeet pulp to add a little more fibre variety to the diet. While her primary issue is in her stomach, I am also very conscious that the stomach is only one part of the entire digestive tract. I do think anything we can do to promote hindgut health will also support stomach health indirectly.
Moving forward
Next steps will be more groundwork with her and depending on how she accepts this we can move on to ridden work.
Stay tuned for our next update on Galaxy’s progress healing from gastric ulcers!
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