Looking for any experiences with the IM injectable altrenogest (regumate). For personal health history reasons I feel really uncomfortable with the oral regumate, but I’m terrified of an allergic reaction with the IM injectable after the horror stories with Depo-Provera (medroxyprogesterone acetate) of horses dying. Does anyone know how the anaphylaxis reactions worked with Depo-Provera and if there are or are not the same risks with IM altrenogest? Any positive or negative experiences to share? Have to do something for my poor mare, have tried many herbal/supplement options and she needs help.
My vet never offered the injectable version as an alternative to the oral regumate, but I never asked why. Any injection carries a risk of an anaphylaxis response in horses or humans. I can’t find any specific reports of deaths in horses attributed to altrenogest (I can easily find those reports associated with Depo injections) but maybe that’s because it isn’t used as often?
That said, I had my mare on oral regumate for years and it really that bad. I have significant hormone-related health issues and the people feeding my horse at the 2 boarding barns where I kept her including young women as well as men and none of us had any issues or problems. I added it to her pre-portioned feed using a syringe wearing nitrile or latex gloves which you can buy at the pharmacy and using a locking syringe. Each day’s feed was in a tupperware container (regumate is oily and can go through plastic bags!) that the barn workers just dumped into her feed pan. I made a week’s worth at a time and re-used the tupperware containers each week. Everyone knew not to touch the inside of her feed pan or the tupperware containers.
I tried the injectable version. It seemed efficacious, but I stopped after three doses because it caused my mare to have a huge swollen spot at the injection site (my vet had me give it in the chest muscle rather than the neck). It seemed to be only cosmetic, but I didn’t like it.
I switched to oral and agree that it’s really not that bad. I used a heavy duty syringe that I got from Stateline or Valley Vet, can’t remember which. I’ve seen others use the dosing gun and that seems to make it even easier. I’ve also heard of others using a pump which seems the easiest, but you’d need to figure out how to measure the dosage.
1 Like
Also, the swollen spot took about 6 weeks to go away. Just to be clear I didn’t mean it disappeared after 24 hours or so.
Everyone at my barn uses a dosing gun, which is super easy. You set it to the mls you want (e.g., 10), and then in the morning the barn staff goes around and gives everyone their squirt of regumate. Refill the dosing guns every few days and it’s good to go. Easy peasy!
