I recently purchased a 22 year old mare who has arthritis in her front legs. She gets around very well in the pasture but I’m told she can be crabby when standing for the farrier (she has shoes so it takes a little longer). Her previous owner told me that she gave the mare bute before the farrier came out to help ease her discomfort during shoeing. I am just wondering if anyone has any experience with the product Bute-Less paste by Absorbine. I am thinking of giving this product a try in place of the bute because bute is pretty expensive where I live. Is there really any comparison in terms of quality of relief given between the two products?
No there is no comparison in my experience. It can work ok if given regularly so the Yucca and Devil’s claw has a chance to reduce inflammation but won’t do much if given once here and there. Bute is so cheap it is practically free here, where do you live?
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Bute is super cheap if the vet will give you the powered form in the canister. Its like $30.00 and it lasts for ages (and this is in Canada, where our drugs are usually more expensive than in the US). I know some vets will not give out the powered canisters b/c they do not trust their clients to dose and use appropriately, so they dispense it by the dose in the tube/paste version. Is that what the issue is? I have never had a vet refuse the cheap powered kind to me. . . but I have a good relationship with multiple vets, shrug.
Not even close. Some “natural” bute alternatives might have a minimal effect on some horses when given daily over a long period of time but they don’t even make ad claims about short term use. Like for the farrier. Bute has been pretty cheap everywhere I’ve lived, way cheaper then 30 days of a supplement.
Old gal needs a painkiller to bend those old joints and stand on three legs. Give her a gram of Bute morning and evening the day before and one gram morning of. She’ll thank you for that. So will your farrier. It’s not unusual for geriatric horses to need a little help with this.
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It’s nowhere near what Bute does. In fact, there are TONS of supplements out there with higher levels of the ingredients. I’d buy any of those before buying Bute-less. That said, I do keep my show horses on Su-Per Substitute which is pushed as a bute substitute but it’s really a joint and inflammation supplement. I’ve still had to give my horses bute or some other NSAID while on it.
https://www.valleyvet.com/ct_detail.html?pgguid=0e66ec8f-67d1-4997-b816-53626fd800b9
Even if Bute-less and other similar Devil’s Claw-based products did work, they don’t work in short order like bute does, so still wouldn’t be suitable for what you’re looking to accomplish.
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Buteless “might” help if you have her on a daily dose of it for 4-6 weeks or so. That would make it more expensive that bute.
I agree a gram of bute morning and night the day before and a dose the morning of would be the best way to make her more comfortable for the farrier.
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This.
I have used the BL pellets for my horse because he needed long-term anti-inflammatory and discomfort relief and they came in pellets he ate like a treat and I wanted to avoid bute [ulcers]. It might be something to consider giving her long-term, but you would need something like bute for farrier visits on top of it still.
I don’t understand the comment about bute being expensive either. It’s crazy cheap where I am, and I’m so frugal I get the bottle of 100 tablets and mash them in a mortar and pestle myself rather than go for the more expensive powder.
The reputation bute has for causing ulcers is mostly related to long term use - people who gave horses 1 - 2 gms/day for months for a chronic condition or to keep them showing, for instance. Even that was variable/individual. I had a geriatric pony who tolerated a gram of bute a day for 18 months + with no signs of gastric distress. It would have to be a REALLY sensitive horse to have gastric upset for low doses over a couple of feedings.
I do pretty much exactly what F8 and BoyleHeights have described; and my teenagers stand more quietly and happily for the farrier. I consider a kindness to the horses, the farrier and myself.
Give her the bute.
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Wherever you live, the Abler Albutazone is on sale right now online. I got 40 1 gram packets for like $32.
Yes, in my horses case he had ulcers at the time I needed pain relief/AI
Keep in mind that the “natural” alternatives to NSAIDs can also cause ulcers, since their mechanism of action (for the ones that actually have anti-inflammatory properties) is the same. The only difference is that we have no research to tell us what the effective (?) and safe dosages are for these products. In my opinion, prescription medications are much safer for this reason.
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The product I recommended above actually has Calcium Carbonate in it to buffer the effects on the stomach. One of my horses is VERY sensitive to bute - three days on it and he’s insane, even with simultaneous UG/GG. Insane as in, my life has flashed before my eyes and I’ve gotten off with bloody fingers and legs from trying to get him under control, and he’s my absolute favorite, most trusted ride. Needless to say, he never gets bute anymore. He’s been on this for over a year now without any adverse effects.
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Calcium carbonate, or any other mineral that can help buffer stomach acid, only works while it’s in the stomach, which is just 20-30 minutes or so. Even then, the amount in it, as an inactive ingredient and not enough to warrant a number in the GA, isn’t enough to do much of anything for the pH
The deal with bute, firocoxib, and even Devil’s Claw, is their work is done systemically, which (potentially) affects production of the stomach lining, and that goes on 24x7 as long as its being used. Firo has a greatly reduced risk over bute for allowing ulcers to develop. DC has probably even less, but that’s because it’s doing less in the way of reducing inflammation. I suspect the MSM is doing more in terms of reducing inflammation than the DC is.
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Probably true. Alas when I was dealing with Yo [in the situation I am talking about] Firocoxib was not on the market yet… we used it later with him with great success.
