Hi All, My beloved pony is PPID/IR and has been on Prascend for some time now. As I am hoping to help w his lack of shedding, I found a Chasteberry product I can syringe down his throat (I’ve not found a pelleted or powdered product he would remotely consider eating). Oddly enough, he seems to be sweating now in weather he’s never been sweaty in before. The chasteberry product is the only thing that is different. Anyone else experience this? Thx, NH
What was the reason for adding chasteberry when he is on Prascend? The lack of shedding?
Herbs are great and drugs are great but mixing the two oftentimes is not great and can cause a negative reaction. Your horse needs the Prascend, I doubt it needs the chasteberry.
If he hasn’t started the chasteberry, don’t put him on it. If he has, I would get him off the chasteberry right away.
I am a person who would much rather take the holistic route, but my Cushings horse is on Prascend. It is doing exactly what it is supposed to. I would not consider adding chasteberry for any reason.
Get your horse re-tested, if he hasn’t been in the last six months. It’s possible the Prascend dosage needs changed, if it isn’t doing what it’s supposed to.
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Thank you, Walkinthewalk. As I mentioned above, he is on Prascend and has been for some time. He is followed very closely by his veterinarian and I test him quarterly. He is on the appropriate dose but does not shed as well as I’d like. There are many threads on COTH where people have added chasteberry and Dr. Kellon speaks to it being helpful in some cases, as well. I spoke w his veterinarian and we thought we’d try it. The sweating is weird and I was curious to see if anyone else had noticed it. Thanks for your thoughts. I appreciate it.
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A lot of vets recommend Chasteberry in addition to Prascend - all of mine have.
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May be time to start clipping him
Hi Ryansgirl, thank you for that affirmation. Yes, Dinkydonk, I think you are correct. I was hoping he would shed a little better and I could wait until April or May, but I may need to soon. I just hate clipping when we still might get a really cold snap…even though he has more blankets than I do coats!:lol:
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Ryansgirl, do you have a chasteberry product you’ve had good luck with for a really, really picky eater?
I have a PPID hinny that continually sheds/grows heavy coats throughout the year. Right now he doesn’t have much of a hair coat except on his belly. Often he is hairier in summer than he is in winter. He too has an extensive wardrobe to cover all weather situations. Just had to keep an eye on sales and buy them on closeout at the end of the season.
Gateway Superstore has a cherry flavored liquid that I’ve used before–smells good enough to pour over ice cream. You can buy it in a qt size tip and pour bottle if you want to just try it, and then switch to gallons for saving$
Dinkydonk, thank you- that’s the one I’m using now. I have to syringe it in his mouth. I tasted it-it smells wonderful and I thought it tasted pretty good. My pony disagrees. He will eat Metabarol but that’s about it.
I used the powder form from Horsetech and have them add extra flavoring (they have peppermint, fenugreek and a bunch of others they can add at no extra charge). My mare was always super picky but would eat this. Only thing is that its powder and I think you wanted liquid form? Horsetech can send you a sample to try. It’s not on their website but you can call and order it over the phone (it’s about $26 for a pound).
There’s also Evitex:
https://emeraldvalleyequine.com/product/evitex/
I’ve never tried it but I’ve heard good things about it.
I used Horsetech for Chasteberry - it’s a powder but I had them add extra flavoring to it (they have various flavors they can add at no extra cost). She ate it as I mixed it with a minimal amount of TC Senior. She was also super picky. Horsetech will send you a sample and it’s a decent size. It’s not on their website so you have to call them but once you’ve ordered it it’ll show up in your account so easy to reorder. Though it is a powder…
Evitex is another option - it’s a liquid and I’ve heard good things about it. I prefer Horsetechs powder as it’s much more economical and the I knew my mare wouldn’t touch the liquid.
Thank you, Ryansgirl. I will call them tomorrow morning. Anything for dear pony💗
And, I’ve tried Evitex. No way, no how…said dear pony.
Unfortunately I can’t give you a ton of detail because it was not my horse, but I used to board with a woman who gave her senior IR mare chasteberry powder and her mare did start sweating more. She was used to being blanketed and would sometimes come in drenched in sweat while it was reasonably cold. She did speak to the vet about it, however I am not sure what the outcome was. I DO know that she did start giving it to her mare two weeks on/ two weeks off but I am not sure why. Wish I could give you more info, but just wanted to let you know that the same thing has happened with someone I know.
I use the Gateway Su-Per chaste tree berry liquid, and it seems to be palatable. It smells like cherry snow cone syrup. It’s also cheap.
I have not noticed any weird sweating but I’m using it to even out some hormonalness, not for metabolic stuff.
Thank you, AimeeW!!! I really appreciate knowing this.
And, Simkie, thank you, too! One thing I wondered about is that if it is supposed to even out a hormonal mare, what does it do to a gelding???
And to all who recommended HorseTech, thank you! I called this morning - they are terrific to talk w!
Probably nothing? (Hormone-wise, I mean.) It has a variety of effects. Here’s a link with summaries from a few published papers, you might find it interesting?
https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics…x-agnus-castus
Hope you’re able to find something that your guy eats on his own! 
I was just searching for this!!! Thx!
Smartpak has chasteberry pellets. My horse eats it. It’s not that much per day you should be able to mix it into something easily.
Equestrianette, thank you. I’ve tried their Smart Pituitary to no avail, but not the plain chasteberry. Worth a shot!
