Adequan i.m. and Platinum Performance Supplements

[Janerubyy]

NOTE: The horse I am talking about is not currently on either of the following
ADEQUAN:
I read a lot of articles from vets saying Adequan i.m. is not good for maintenance of the joints and will not benefit my horse by having monthly injections. My trainer is trying to push me to get Adequan for my horse even though when she used to own her she wasn’t on it. What experience do you guys have with Adequan as a monthly injection? Do you see any changes in your horses movement (my horse has no joint problems now and never has, never had to get hocks injected or stifles done)? Would it be better if I did the loading dose biannually? Does she need the dose if she doesn’t have degenerative joint problems and would it be bad for her if I gave an injection to her which she doesn’t need? (She is a show horse, but I have been showing her for three years, going on four without her going lame or showing and signs of discomfort ever)

PLATINUM PERFORMANCE EQUINE WELLNESS SUPPLEMENT:
The horse I own is currently on OceanFeed Equine, but I am looking into switching her to the Platinum Performance Equine Wellness supplements instead. I have heard very good things about their supplements (mostly CJ) from other horse owners, and I just wanted to know if anyone has fed their supplements and has been pleased with the results on their horse if they saw any. Unfortunately at this time I can’t afford the Platinum Performance CJ, so please only people who feed their Equine Wellness supplement because I have seen first hand how well their CJ supplement works.
Also, if you know of an even better supplement which I can put her on (for preferably under $60 per month), I would love to hear your suggestions!

Thank you so much for your help in advanced!!

[JB]

Adequan is something you should be talking to your vet about, not your trainer. That said, from what you describe, there’s no way I’d be spending the money on Adequan right now for this horse.

There are a million supplements. The “best one” is that which addresses whatever issues and concerns you have about the horse, based on age, history, work, diet etc. IMHO, PP is an over-priced decent to good product, and you can do just as well, or better, for less in many cases.

[mvp]

The one thing Platinum Performance does right (that other companies don’t… surprisingly) is put in the amounts of the various ingredients they say they do. So I suspect that the whole free-through supplements market is a big bowl of “You get what you pay for.”

As for the Adequan, I’d use it as “on label” or not at all. But I would be willing to listen to a vet of a very good trainer for his/her opinion and experience.

I’m not sure what you should do. How old is your horse? If an older horse and you have never had the need to treat for arthritis, even injecting the lower joints of the hocks, I’m not sure I’d think you need to spend so much money on preventive maintenance. Some horses are sounder/less prone to arthritic changes than others. (BTW, injecting the lower hock joints and the stifles are two very different kettles of fish).

In your spot, I would start with a vet who has seen the horse move. Maybe you don’t need to pay for a full lameness exam, but I wouldn’t ask about the kind of mild lameness you might see in a horse where the pro was suggesting some preventive stuff without a good pro’s opinion as to how the horse is moving. IME, horses who would benefit from hock injections but aren’t “officially lame” look lame to people with educated eyes, and to people who don’t watch the horse go every day. So you might start there with getting a new set of eyes on your horse.

I answered your post because I do both— feed Platinum CJ and do a series of Adequan injections 2x/year-- for a mare I own. And that’s because the horse hurt her stifle badly enough to need surgical repair. This horse has recovered to riding soundness (so far). But that joint was put through the ringer, so I assume it will want to develop arthritis before any other. It may be that in a few more years, I’ll relax and stop spending so much money each year to ward that off.

My point is that you should decide whether or not you have a horse that 1. Has an arthritis problem; and/or 2. Seems to be one of those animals who is miraculously arthritis-free for her age and then decide how to spend your money.

[TWH_Girl]

@JB

Adequan is something you should be talking to your vet about, not your trainer. That said, from what you describe, there’s no way I’d be spending the money on Adequan right now for this horse.

There are a million supplements. The “best one” is that which addresses whatever issues and concerns you have about the horse, based on age, history, work, diet etc. IMHO, PP is an over-priced decent to good product, and you can do just as well, or better, for less in many cases.

Agreed with JB. PP is very pricey, though a good product. I’ve used Exceed 6-Way from MedVet and it’s a nice overall product and more reasonably priced.

Are you wanting to do something chondroprotective, or to address a problem? If preventative, I honestly don’t think they’re is a product out there that is going to prevent future problems. If horse is otherwise healthy with no specific issues, perhaps just MSM or a basic supplement like Cosequin.

[dressager]

Adequan is a great product… just because the trainer didn’t give it when she owned the horse doesn’t mean it isn’t a good idea now. The horse is ostensibly older now, different work, etc.
Adequan is also not super expensive but it isn’t free so if the trainer was on a budget, had lots of horses, this wasn’t her top horse— she may have wanted to have her on it but wasn’t able to.
The only “on label” usage for adequan is giving it every four days for seven treatments. That’s how the studies have been done. I had a horse I showed a few years ago that we did that with and then one injection every two weeks. Monthly is popular… I’ve also seen all sorts of non scientifically based formulas of giving it every month except four months a year when they get legend, every other month, etc.
In those cases there is no scientific evidence to show the proof that it works, but lots of antecdotal evidence to indicate it helps. Personally, I could feel the two week mark- he’d get his injection and he’d be back to feeling great. Every horse and situation is different.
i just went to a seminar about adequan. It will not hurt to give it if your horse doesn’t need it.
You say you’ve never had hocks or stifles injected. Have you done recent flexions? Feel that she is stiffer or tighter on one side? I’ve been told plenty of times that horses have never needed injections but when you see them go or pull flexions on them a different story is revealed.
We feed the PP wellness. It’s a great product and as someone else said, you know what’s in it. Developed by vets at a hospital here in CA. We started feeding it for their EQCO program but I will say that the horses on it have better quality coats. Our feeding program is already pretty solid so we are filling any massive nutritional deficiencies but I think it’s a solid, well rounded product. If you’ve seen a difference with the CJ then whatever changes you see, subtract the joint health factor, and that’s what you’ll have for the wellness.

[JB]

@mvp

The one thing Platinum Performance does right (that other companies don’t… surprisingly) is put in the amounts of the various ingredients they say they do. So I suspect that the whole free-through supplements market is a big bowl of “You get what you pay for.”

I’m not sure I follow - almost every v/m supplement I’ve seen that’s remotely anything decent has a guaranteed analysis listed.

As for the Adequan, I’d use it as “on label” or not at all. But I would be willing to listen to a vet of a very good trainer for his/her opinion and experience.

I do think that if one is going to start it, do the whole 7 injection course, 1 every 4 days. That’s what’s proven to have the most impact on the joint health.

But just because that’s “the best” doesn’t meant that 1 shot every month or so doesn’t have a positive impact, and there are those who do it that way and can feel the difference. Others don’t find any difference, and just do the loading dose twice a year.

[newhorsemommy]

You don’t say how old your horse is, but I wouldn’t start with Adequan or PP. Or if you REALLY want to try the PP, ask them to send samples. My horse wouldn’t touch it. He also won’t eat any of the SmartPak joint supplements (they will also send free samples) but gobbles up Flex Max by Absorbine and I actually do think it’s helping him. I’ve experimented with Cetyl-M off and on as well, but don’t see any noticeable improvement over the Flex Max alone. You could also try Pentosan, which is cheaper than Adequan, but it didn’t do much for my gelding.

Anyways, I’d start with something cheaper and see how he does

[luvmyhackney]

Platinum supplements are fantastic and I use them well before Smart Pak. Why don’t you try MSM and start from there? It a very cheap anti-inflammatory that is good for joints.

If you are in hard work and jumping or notice a shorter stride, less push from behind, longer warm up times, I would try Adequan. If a horse has none of these issues, then feed some MSM and be glad your horse is sound and happy.

[Janerubyy]

To answer some of the questions:
My horse is seven years old
She has been examined by our vet and she doesn’t need hock injection and she has no problems with her joints. (She could get her stifles done if I really wanted but it is kind of subjective to her performance because they are not hurting her and they aren’t really bad, just a tiny bit long, but nothing which has shown any discomfort.
I’m really just looking for something as far as maintenance goes for supplements, she is a solid 72+ horse (reining) and I just don’t want her joints becoming bad as she ages. So she has no problems with her stride or any stiffness, I have been riding her for four years now and she hasn’t changed the way she rides since she was a three year old, so I definitely don’t think she has any problems with her joints which is also the reason why I wasn’t all too worried about not feeding CJ.
My vet used to work for Platinum Performance Horses, and he highly recommends their products for several of the horses in our barn, I just haven’t gotten a chance to talk to him about her specifically yet. However, I always think it is nice to get opinions from horse owners who feed it (everyone in my barn feeds OceanFeed or CJ).
She is not I picky eater at all, so I do not think she will have a problem with not eating her grain, but I will be sure to request a sample.
As far as the Adequan goes, I think I am going to wait off on giving her any unless my vet tells me that he would recommend me putting her on it because it is a bit expensive to pay for if she doesn’t necessarily need it right now. It is just something I will keep in mind as she gets older.
Thank you for all your replies

[Palm_Beach]

OP, if you can, please link the articles on Adequan by vets that you mentioned in your first post, I’d like to read them. “I read a lot of articles from vets saying Adequan i.m. is not good for maintenance of the joints and will not benefit my horse by having monthly injections.”

I would not spend money on Adequan on a horse that is asymptomatic. I would hesitate to put it on any expensive joint supplement either. Maybe some MSM. Again, I’d like to read those articles you referenced because hopefully those vets suggested alternatives.

I use both Legends and Adequan frequently on my race horses. It seems to help those who already have a bit of wear and tear showing, and makes no difference to those that have no known issues even if they are a bit older. Once they are fit, we back way off the training and let mother nature do her thing, which seems to make the biggest difference.

[IPEsq]

Monthly injections have not been proven to be helpful, though many people give it that way. Many years ago, I knew some vets who gave it weekly for a month. The prescribed dosing is every 4 days for 7 injections.

It doesn’t seem like your horse needs it. It wouldn’t hurt, but it’s not cheap. I use it for horses with joint issues that are symptomatic or at least showing arthritic signs on X-ray. I will probably do another loading dose with my horse after he gets joint injections in his neck this week.

I feed PP Wellness for their comic program with Platinum Balance. My vet told me to use Platinum Balance for his gut issues, and I added the wellness after doing an elimination diet which resulted in him eating below recommended amounts of feed. Platinum products are heavily recommended by CSU here because they do a lot of research together. There are definitely cheaper alternatives. I am not sure your horse “needs” the supplement, but I really like how my horse is looking on this diet versus when he was on a ration balancer.

[beau159]

I am a huge fan of being proactive. If a horse does not have problems, I like to try to keep it that way.

I like giving feed-throughs because I like for my horses to get a nice dose of other vitamins and minerals. I used to feed PP CJ and I liked it, but I switched to T.H.E. Muscle Mass (custom blend) because the portion size was smaller and my guys seemed to like the flavor a little better (and it is a little bit cheaper).

But knowing that not everything in a feed-through is going to get absorbed, I do have my one horse with known issues on Adequan and my other other with no issues on pentosan (just because it is cheaper) They get their loading dose, and then monthly after that. Both of my lameness vets that I use (one is a regional expert) recommended for me to do monthly dosage with my horses as they say the literature has not proven / disproven one way or the other. If you choose to do two loading doses a year, you will spend more money on the Adequan.

I think it’s perfectly reasonable to give a joint supplement (either feed through or IM) to help keep your healthy horse, healthy.

[Janerubyy]

For everyone who recommended MSM, I know it is in replacement of the Adequan, but can I feed that with giving her the PP Wellness also or would I give her just the MSM?

[bitranchy]

@Janerubyy

For everyone who recommended MSM, I know it is in replacement of the Adequan, but can I feed that with giving her the PP Wellness also or would I give her just the MSM?

Personally, I’d choose one not both. The more streamlined your horse’s diet plan is, the better.

The notion I have about the Platinum Wellness formula is it is intended as a complete supplement. If you’re looking more specifically for joint support, I’d say save the extra bucks and buy a supplement targeting that. Platinum does have other options (ie. Ortho-Chron, MSM) if you’re interested in still using a Platinum product. I’ve heard good things about Recovery EQ, too, but no personal experience.

[luvmyhackney]

I honestly just use plain old MSM for a joint supplement. MSM is not an Adequan replacement by any means, just a cheap supplement that is proven to help joints. I would use Adequan before I tried injecting any joints and consider a Platinum option specifically for joints.

[Janerubyy]

I didn’t really mean a replacement, I meant that what people where recommending was to put her on MSM instead of paying money for Adequan, of course Adequan would work better for horses with joint problems, however my horse does not have any and I am looking for a maintenance supplement for her joints instead of Adequan which is more used for horses with known joint problems. I was just trying to differentiate from PP and putting her on Adequan or MSM because PP Wellness doesn’t have the joint aspect and I can’t currently afford PP CJ. Of course if her joints started to get bad I would put her on Ortho-Chron or Adequan.

[JB]

By “PP Wellness” do you mean the PP Equine, as the “Equine Omega-3 Wellness & Performance Formula”?

If so, there’s no MSM in there, so you can feed the 2 together if you chose.

[Janerubyy]

Yes, I mean the Platinum Performance Equine Omega-3 Wellness & Performance Formula.
I don’t want to over supplement her so even though there is no MSM in the PP Equine Wellness, I just didn’t know if it would be too much.

[Palm_Beach]

@Janerubyy

Yes, I mean the Platinum Performance Equine Omega-3 Wellness & Performance Formula.
I don’t want to over supplement her so even though there is no MSM in the PP Equine Wellness, I just didn’t know if it would be too much.

I was given a sample of PP (can’t remember which - think it had flax in it) by a rep who swore up and down that I would see a difference in my 8 yo horse who was on TC Lite and MSM and flax and looked great. Nope, nada nada nada. The packaging was impressive, though. Very shiny.

[bigbaytb]

I have used both Adequan IM and Platinum performance. Both are excellent.

However, I decided I was getting more bang for my buck and better results with the Adequan. First, use as prescribed on the box with the seven full injections. Depending on the horse depended how long the effects lasted. My horses that work hard, relatively healthy and are sound, can go for a year to a year and a half before I feel I need to inject again. My “issues” horses tend to last 6 to 9 months before needing and injection.

I did not see much difference with the Platinum Performance, and sometimes my horses refuse to eat it. With an injection, I know they have had the medicine.

In the end, the Adequan ends up being cheaper even if I add some flax and other similar products in the Platinum Performance.