Tummy troubles

Well... I am an idiot! Sort of... I have been certain that there is something going on with Fleck. He's sound, he's working well but he was just not quite his usual perky self. I even mentioned that he wasn't eating as quickly and wasn't as aggressive with the others at dinnertime. DUH!! This morning he got halfway through breakfast and quit. Fleck NEVER stops eating... even when he colicked! So damn... ulcers!!! Why on earth it didn't dawn on me earlier... Although in my defense, I did at least think about it so luckily I had ordered two tubes of ulcergard already and it was set to arrive that day. Only I was only planning on doing the preventative dose. Now that he quit eating... it was time for the full dose. So.. he got a full dose and I put them out in the pasture to graze. My poor baby!!! He wasn't even grazing. I felt so horrible. 

That night he didn't even want to try to eat dinner. But he did eat alfalfa cubes and beet pulp, so... I ordered more gastrogard too. 

But it really explains a lot. He's been on more firocoxib than usual, he's been willing to work but not spunky, he's lost a bit of weight, he's been eating slow... I really think that this was the problem! Which.. in a way... I'm excited about. I hate to sound cruel, but... ulcers I can fix! Hopefully insurance will cover it, but.. it's fixable! I was worried that I wasn't able to keep him comfortable with the arthritis, but.. nope, this could all be tummy troubles. Now granted.. if the firocoxib bothers him that much.. maybe I can't manage the arthritis anymore. Argh.. but I think that I can. I think that his knees weren't bothering him as much as I thought. So... we'll see. 

I just want him to feel better. My poor big guy. Either way I plan to take him to FENCE. I think that even if I don't show... I want to go and hang out and cheer on my friends. And I'd rather have him with me where I can keep an eye on him. And I don't think the haul will stress him more than usual. Plus he might enjoy some special one on one time. And lots of hand grazing. :)