We are trying my older gelding on Gabapentin to see if that helps him, since methocarb/equioxx/injections have not helped thus far with his weirdness under saddle, most likely due to his neck issues.
Those who have tried it, can you give me the full rundown of your experience? What did you give it for, how long until you noticed a difference, did it work, have you kept them on it long term etc? I’ve never used it before so not sure what to expect!
We used it for a mare with DSLD near the end of her life. It certainly kept her “stoned”/took the edge of her on and helped keep her more comfortable.
I have a 16 year old TB gelding that reared and flipped over when I was leading him. He started showing neuro issues, like leaning against the stall wall, almost falling over, I’m not going in his stall and let him fall on me. Took him to NC State Vet School and they did a full work up. They thought he might have EPM, he didn’t. Per their recommendation I put him on Gabapentin 400 mg capsules starting at 14 a day, now down to 10 a day. It made a huge difference. He looks normal now. He’s been on Gabapentin since 2007 and no adverse results. He gets regular blood work once a year and nothing is abnormal. But recently in NC Gabapentin is a controlled substance so sometimes hard to get. Don’t know if it’s that way nationwide.
Amazing! Do you still ride him since he’s done well on the Gabapentin, or did you retire him?
He’s retired - along with the nerou issue he developed headshaking which we couldn’t get past. He’s a bright bay with 4 white stockings and a pretty big blaze so he looks nice in my pasture.
If it weren’t for the Headshakers do you think you’d still ride him? I’ve been on the fence about retiring this guy for ages, and was leaning heavily towards it before this appointment. But my vet wants me to try to keep him in work, especially if the Gab helps. I don’t think he’ll get nearly enough movement in otherwise to keep him from getting stiff.
I’ve used gabapentin several times for nervy pain. It’s a useful tool to have in the box.
It’s not going to address whatever is causing the pain, but it can help with the pain itself. If the horse is neurologically compromised, it’ll still be neurologically compromised, though.
Without the headshaking I would have still ridden him once the neruo issues improved. Before that I was afraid he would fall when I rode him.
I’m hoping that will be good enough for him-aside from the tripping, he passes all neuro tests. The trip is less of a toe drag or him not knowing where his foot is going, and more of his knee giving out-sort of like he’s getting a nervy zing or something. So not sure if the Gab will actually help or not, but maybe some underlying issues that contribute will be helped? Who knows!
It’s worth a shot–low risk & not really very expensive. Hope it helps! You should know pretty quick if it’s going to make a difference.
I have had my 8 year old on gabapentin for about 3 months for significant C5-C7 OA. She takes 20 grams 2x per day, and it might be helping - she isn’t stoned or sedate on it at all. I have also taken several other measures to help her, including a more rehab-style approach to her training so it is hard to know precisely if gabapentin is working for her.
If you decide to keep your guy on it, try to get the compounded version from Wedgewood. Super easy to add to feed as it is already in powder form and has an alfalfa flavor. Grinding up the tablets she needed - truly 'horse pill sized! - was a big mess. I think I pay about $200 for a bucket that lasts 60 days.
Unfortunately it didn’t help with him - I had my trainer ride him once too, to get an outsider’s perspective on whether he felt any different.
Is your mare still ridden? What else do you do for her to keep her comfortable if so?
My limited experience with it was not with a riding horse, so take this with a grain or two of salt. I had an old broodmare with a trashed stifle who benefited from gabapentin. It didn’t totally take her lameness away, but I tried taking her off of it once and it was very evident that it was helping.
It’s super cheap (relatively speaking) in plain tablet form. I didn’t have it compounded. I was feeding 4800 mg per day, split in two feedings. I ground 3 starlite peppermints with the tabs in a coffee grinder, drizzled some EO-3 oil over her feed, sprinkled the powder over the top and gave it a good shake. She was a picky eater and as long as I put enough peppermints in, she was content with eating it. She never looked stoned or anything.
I gave it a try for a very short time on a younger mare who has a healed broken pelvis. I didn’t notice any difference in her unsoundness, but she looked dumpy. I know it can cause nausea in humans. No idea if horses get nauseous, but that’s what she looked like. So I took her off and that look subsided pretty quickly. Maybe that’s just what she looks like when she’s high haha.
None of this may apply to you, or some of it may. But perhaps it’s helpful for someone. I fed it for several years, but just don’t have experience with giving it to a horse under saddle.
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