Has anyone recently used buteless or similar product? Did you find it made a difference? Any adverse reactions or temperment changes? Just looking for information. Thanks
I am currently using it, no temperment changes but some years back a friend’s horse acted very
drunk on regular. devil’s claw and yucca.
I’ve been using Hilton Herbal’s Multiflex Gold, which includes Devil’s Claw, for a few months now on my pony. He has not acted any differently while on it.
I’ve used Buteless quite a lot and have been very happy with it. Effective, no side effects, no behavior change. Long before Equioxx, etc, I used it with an older FEI horse, for 6-8 years, and it allowed me to skip bute for nearly all of that time. He’d had quite a hard working life but still enjoyed riding well into his 20s. Buteless made him noticeably more supple, less creaky, but didn’t mask lameness.
More recently, I keep a bag of it in the barn in case I want test whether a horse is having a comfort issue or seems NQR. I’ll try some Buteless or Equioxx (depends on the situation/horse) and report impressions when the vet comes. I’ve never tried other products with same/similar ingredients.
If anyone remembers the Michael Plumb Horse Journal, they tested it on quite a large # of horses (sound, known problems, mystery issues etc). They felt Buteless was roughly equivalent to about 2g Bute.
1 Like
Thanks for the replies. I don’t want to jump to Equioxx - I’d like to start slow- if I need it. Wasn’t sure if anyone still used it.
To Forward March- I do remember the Horse Journal - Michael Plumb had a question and answer section and I had asked a question about a TB and he answered it in his publication. I think it was back in the mid-late 1990s and I was thrilled!
I loved that publication. Full of info and no-nonsense advice and unbiased product testing.
4 Likes
Like another poster, I have used Buteless for years without any negative side effects. I do not think it provides as much relief as bute or Equioxx, but it helped my badly arthritic mare postpone taking anything else.
3 Likes
BL pellets were a godsend for my horse who hated powders.
I never saw a temperament change.
I’ve used it on my personal horse who has sustained what should have been a career ending injury, before she was even 2. I’ve also seen boarders and other owners use it over the years.
My general consensus is that it doesn’t work, even when doubled up…
It’s not meant to be pain relief. It’s not meant to be a replacement for prescription dugs like Firocoxib, Phenylbutazone, or Flunixin Meglumine. It’s meant to support the body in a natural inflammation response. If you don’t treat the source of the pain, the inflammation will still be there. If you work your horse hard, inflammation will still be there…
You are better off managing inflammation with a treatment plan under vet supervision, or a change in workload. Some injuries/conditions need low stress movement (IE hand walking), some need stall rest with limited movement for a little while. Most inflammation, will benefit from cold hosing.
If you’re wanting to use Buteless for a skeletal discomfort, like arthritis, or fusing joints, you’re far better off using tried and true injections like Adequan. If you’re sold on oral joint supplements, Cosequin, Cosequin ASU and Lubrigen are the only ones I’d bother with.
1 Like
