Immun-Ocean Tried, Tested and Trusted for over 10 years

Gastric ulcers are the bane of the high performance horse world. They can be difficult to diagnose with the majority of horses not showing outward clinical symptons. Some signs can include poor performance, colic, girthiness, weight loss and behavioural changes.

Gastric ulcers are sores that form on the stomach lining. They can affect any horse at any age but are more common in high performance and race horses.

Treatment of ulcers is aimed at removing the predisposing factors and decreasing acid production. When possible, horses should be allowed free access to grass or hay. They should also have a diet with as low a starch and sugar level as possible. Do not allow horses to be without access to food for more than 4 hours.

Gastro with extra probiotic encourages the growth of friendly bacteria for regular gut function, which allows the horse maximum utilisation of the feed. It also is a natural source of magnesium which has calming properties.

Gastro with extra probiotic has a known acid buffering capacity due to high calcium levels and the unique sponge like structure of the red algae element. This gives it a large surface area to mop up the acid in the horse’s stomach.

Investigation of the buffering action of the red algae was undertaken at the Royal Agricultural College, Cirencester, UK. This research looked at the potential for macro algae to buffer acid production and pH levels in-vitro.

The results showed that the buffering capacity of the macro algae kept pH levels constant in all diets despite the rise in lactate production and prevented a drop in pH.

This has significant nutritional benefits for helping to maintain gastric mucosal integrity in horses, particularly those fed high levels of concentrates. The nutritional benefits of feeding Immun-Ocean are multifactorial and complement all feeding regimes.