So my pony has terrible allergies for half the year. Last year the vet had her on a powdered medication that, due to pony being a pony, has to be mixed with water and use a syringe. This year we are trying a pill. Pony will eat pills in grain, but given that she’s a messy eater I’d rather not have to watch to make sure she gets all them in her. So I plan to put them in treats to make life easier, she’s a little piggy and treats are easy to get in her. I’ve used a few different brands in the past but wanted to know what’s everyone’s favorite treats for hiding pills is? I would love something that was super easy to get the pills into.
Soft oatmeal cookies work for human sized pills. But I usually use the single-serving applesauce cups mixed with a generous handful of a textured or extruded feed and the pills. The natural applesauce is a little thicker than normal applesauce and they will literally lick the feed bin or bucket clean so they don’t miss any of it.
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My horse thinks Nickerdoodles are crack, although they are expensive.
Fig Newtons! Shove the pill in the filling. I find that the low fat ones hold up better.
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My horses like the Sunbelt oat and honey granola bars. You can sort of squish them around the pills.
https://www.target.com/p/sunbelt-bakery-oats-honey-granola-bars-10ct/-/A-14996391?ref=tgt_adv_XS000000&AFID=google_pla_df&fndsrc=tgtao&CPNG=PLA_Grocery%2BEssentials%2BShopping&adgroup=SC_Grocery&LID=700000001170770pgs&network=g&device=c&location=9007829&ds_rl=1246978&ds_rl=1247077&ds_rl=1246978&gclid=CjwKCAjw-OHkBRBkEiwAoOZql0KFIE9QSm2t4RL7DCKmH-ZzyejHOXGb1vDr2DkktKwwPTYyhW1irRoCzawQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds
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Apple slices.
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Dimples Pill Pocket treats or Stud Muffins work well for me. Dimples have a little hole and I stick the pill in and then “plug” it with a peppermint or I’ll break a Stud Muffin in half and mash the pill in and squish it back together.
Pill Camo by Nickerbait! I’ve tried lots of others but my horses would not eat anything else. Some are too hard but these seem to stay soft for a long time. I have 2 horses who get a pill each day and cut one small in half giving half to each horse.
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My horse has been on stall rest and then hand walking for rehab over the winter. He needed some medication to chill him out. I board and the grain room is unheated. So I needed to find a way to prepare ahead of time in those conditions so the meds could just be dumped in the grain by the person feeding. Anything liquid was out. After getting suggestions here I ended up putting his multiple pills in Fig Newtons. Works really well. It is a bit fiddly to make as I have to slice each cooky open like a sandwich, add the pills, and put it back together again! I do a week’s worth at a time.
Another vote for Fig Newtons. Perfect for giving pills of all sizes.
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Ditto the apple slices. And they are exceptionally cheap if your grocery store occasionally (or often) has them 6-ish to a bag in the “get it before they’re too bad” section for $1.
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Fig Newtons are the best for serious pill sneaking. I also really like gumdrops, peppermint flavored, for 1-4 pills. If you cut them in half, the exposed gumdrop area is very sticky, holds pill really well, and perfect for Previcox or other simple pills.
I have found for “liquid” supplements (APF, etc), that a very dry gingersnap is the best for holding up consistency and disguising the flavor.
If you really get desperate, I’ve hollowed out a thick carrot and then capped with cream cheese frosting. It’s a bit of effort but does do the job if they’re reeeeaaaallllly suspicious.
German Horse Muffins or apple slices work good too. I buy the apples by the bag for cheap like JB but he’d knock you over for a GHM.
I second the German Horse Muffins. Two of my horses are on Pascend and very, very picky about what they eat. I make “pill pockets” from the muffins and they gobble them right down. I suspect the peppermint flavor helps hide the taste and the muffins are sticky enough that the pill doesn’t fall out. They’re a bit pricey, but you can usually make 3 pill pockets from each muffin.
Bananas are great too - pills are easy to push in.
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Thanks for all the suggestions. I’m currently using German Horse Muffins, the favorite of both girls. However they can be a little hard after a cold evening and I need to get four pills into one, small pony who is fat I try not to give her too many. The fig newtons sounds just like what I need to I’ll pick up a box next time I’m out.
Another vote for newtons of any flavor. The dollar store ones.
Yeah, my Dollar Store must think Im a Newton-aholic! My guy needs 2 cookies/day so it adds up quickly and I tend to buy multiple packages at a time.
They are also very reasonable at Walmart.
The funny thing about the amount of Newtons I buy (for daily meds, long term) is that I personally hate them. They are all for the horses.
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