Rood & Riddle and Merial to host Gastroscopy Event during Country Heir Horse Show

Competitors at the Kentucky Horse Park have an opportunity for a free gastroscopy exam of their horse June 11-12, during the 2-day break between the Country Heir I and Country Heir II Horseshow. Gastroscopy exams will be held in stalls 1-7 in Barn 4.

Merial conducts gastroscopy seminars throughout the year with equine veterinary practices nationwide providing horse owners with the diagnostic examination for their horse at no charge with medication purchase required only for those patients identified with stomach ulcers. In addition to the free gastroscopy, medication discounts and specials are available at the event.

Standard treatment protocol for horses diagnosed with gastric ulcers is to administer GastroGard® orally once daily for 28 days at the rate of one tube per 1,250lbs of body weight. However, individual dosage and treatment recommendations are based on the horse’s body weight and severity of ulcer. "I routinely recommend anywhere from 5 to 28 days treatment. I make the treatment recommendation based on the severity, distribution and area affected,” reports Merial veterinarian, Dr. Hoyt Cheramie. "Most non-racehorses get less than 28 days when I scope.”

Participants having their horses scoped can purchase GastroGard® at the event for the discounted price of $32 per tube. Participants also receive a $5 Rebate Coupon per tube of GastroGard® for every tube purchased up to 28 tubes. GastroGard® is the only FDA approved treatment for ulcers in horses. Some discounts and rebate coupons will also be available for non-participants.

Rood & Riddle internal medicine specialists Dr. Bonnie Barr, Dr. Peter Morresey and Dr. Steve Reed along with Merial veterinarian Hoyt Cheramie, DVM, DACVS, will be on hand to perform gastroscopy exams and provide educational commentary to explain the procedure, exam results, and educational information on the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of gastric ulcers. Anyone interested in learning more about gastric ulcers in horses is welcome to attend the seminar at any time during the day, a horse is not required. Drs. Barr, Morresey and Reed are available throughout the day to discuss gastric ulcers and answer questions.

Gastric ulcers are a common medical condition in horses and foals. Numerous publications have identified that up to 60% of show horses have ulcers and up to 90% of racehorses may develop gastric ulcers. Clinical signs associated with gastric ulcers are numerous and often vague, and easy to misinterpret making the diagnosis of gastric ulcers sometimes be tricky. The gold standard of diagnosis is gastroscopy, which is visualization of the stomach with a 3 meter endoscope.

Country Heir Horse Show competitors who wish to take advantage of this opportunity should contact Whitney Mathes at 859-233-0371 or by e-mail to wmathes@roodandriddle.com to schedule an appointment.