Ulcers: So many horses these days have ulcers. The upper gut ulcer seems to be more common, but the lower hind gut ulcers seem to take more effort to heal.
For the upper gut ulcers Aloe vera gel is the most popular. If you buy a commercial gel, check the ingredients and make sure they aren’t toxic. If you have a lot of Aloe vera, you can cut off a couple of leaves from the bottom of the plant and scoop out the gel to feed to your horse until the ulcers are healed. You can store the gel in a jar in the fridge for a few days or in the freezer for longer.
For the lower hind gut ulcers herbs such as; marshmallow, slippery elm, meadowsweet, chamomile and liquorice seem to be quite effective. I’ve seen some horses heal from gut ulcers with just eating 1/2 a sweet potato daily. Looking at the whole of the horse is important. Does your horse have a good, natural mineral supplement? Is he on a natural feed? Does he have a good, large paddock to graze on with a variety of grasses? Does he have friends to play with? Do you keep the amount of chemicals that your horse is exposed to to the minimum?
