Joint Supplement- Majesty's Flex Wafers?

[chestnuthunter]

I finally decided that it is time for my 13 year-old Quarter Horse to go on a steady joint supplement. He’s been ridden hard since he was 2; he started out as a cutting horse, and since then has continued cutting and currently competes in reining, trail, ranch pleasure, dressage, equitation, the hunters, and the jumpers. So his joints get quite the workout! He is short (about 14.3) and stocky, with long pasterns but otherwise fabulous legs. He is also an easy keeper, but I try to keep his weight down to where he is only slightly chunky. Even though a judge once told me he looked like a Christmas turkey. I still cringe at that comment.
I looked around and researched joint supplements, and found the Majesty’s Flex Wafers + HA. This is the description of them: An easy-to-feed wafer containing a combination of 6 powerful joint support products. Each wafer contains 150 mg Hyaluronic Acid (HA), 2500 mg Glucosamine HCl, 2500 mg MSM, 2500 mg Yucca extract, 600 mg Chondroitin Sulfate and 1000 mg vitamin C mixed with apples, cinnamon, molasses and oats.
A great tasting treat that ensures that your horse will receive his entire dose of supplementation.

I give him one of these per day with his evening feed. It is important to note that this horse has NEVER been unsound a day in his life, and I want to keep it that way; this supplement is purely a preventative and maintenance thing.

I plan to take him to college with me (Auburn) next year, and I plan to ride and show him for many more years, so I want to keep his joint in tip-top condition! Have any of you tried these wafers, and what did you think? Does it seem like a good choice for him?

Thanks!

[SAcres]

You’re wasting your money. If you want to stick with an oral supplement there are MUCH better ones out there, but you’re better off just doing Pentosan or Adequan or some other injectible.
If you wanna stick to something “cheap”, get msm and do a 20g per day dose.

[chestnuthunter]

[QUOTE=SAcres;7442795]
You’re wasting your money. If you want to stick with an oral supplement there are MUCH better ones out there, but you’re better off just doing Pentosan or Adequan or some other injectible.
If you wanna stick to something “cheap”, get msm and do a 20g per day dose.[/QUOTE]

I’m very hesitant to do any injectibles, considering there aren’t any issues. I just don’t see a reason to put him through injections when they’re not needed.

At $62.99 for a 30 day supply, if these are “cheap” I’m not going to be able to feed anything more expensive than this.

What other oral supplements might work?

[cmdrcltr]

If you’re looking for cheap, and oral, you’d be better off investing your money in straight MSM and dosing at 10,000 mg a day. Select makes it in a pellet, if you’re worried about your horse not eating the powder.

[chestnuthunter]

[QUOTE=cmdrcltr;7442974]
If you’re looking for cheap, and oral, you’d be better off investing your money in straight MSM and dosing at 10,000 mg a day. Select makes it in a pellet, if you’re worried about your horse not eating the powder.[/QUOTE]

Yeah, he definitely won’t eat a powder…

20g or 10,000 mg dose though?

[rememberthenight]

I used them because my gelding hated powders. It wasn’t perfect but definitely kept him more comfortable than without joint supplements. I think that having the supplement in a treat makes delivery so much easier, and my gelding loved them!

[cmdrcltr]

Pretty sure I just read on another thread here that 10,000 mg was recommended, but I guess I would check that first.

[chestnuthunter]

[QUOTE=rememberthenight;7443009]
I used them because my gelding hated powders. It wasn’t perfect but definitely kept him more comfortable than without joint supplements. I think that having the supplement in a treat makes delivery so much easier, and my gelding loved them![/QUOTE]

They’re MUCH easier than regular supplements, and since my gelding isn’t uncomfortable or creaky without them, I think they’re a good fit for us. My gelding loves them, too! But he will eat any kind of treat I offer him. His favorite thing ever is cold grapes in the summer. But put a powder in his feed? Nope.

When he gets older, if he’s still jumping and being ridden and shown, I might step him up to Adequan or something more powerful, but I feel like these are a good “starter” joint supplement.

[sdlbredfan]

I have had good results in the past with Legacy. It is a pellet, apparently palatable and contains same ingredients as the wafers except for HA. The folks at SmartPak also have several good pelleted alternatives. If you really think you need a ‘cookie’ Winnie’s Cookies are a good source of Flax, which is a useful anti-inflammatory nutrient, and you can just get pelleted Corta-Flx with HA or liquid for your HA if you want to add that.

[SAcres]

Sorry, let me clarify.

Majesty’s flex wafers are VERY expensive for the ingredients you are getting. Therefore IMO it’s just not worth the money. If we’re talking oral supplements, you’re going to ideally want something with at least 10,000 mg of glucosamine and 10,000 mg (10 g) of msm. I really wouldn’t stick with the wafers though, as convenient as they are, they are also unfortunately expensive for what you get.

Msm…the recommended dose is 10,000 mg (10 g) which is really the smallest dose you can give and expect it to do some good for the horse. I routinely feed my seniors 20,000 mg (20 g) with no ill effects and I do actually see some improvements in movement, whereas with 10 g I do not. Plus msm is dirt cheap so you’re looking at a few dollars a month to feed 20 g.

As far as injections go, unless your horse has an issue with injections, it is really the best way to go. I have a QH on pentosan and it is really no big deal to give the injection. It is small, with a small needle, takes a few seconds, and costs less money than a quality joint supplement. My horse is happier on it. You certainly don’t need to go the injection route, but it is going to be more beneficial to give injections and you certainly can use pentosan as preventative/maintenance.

As far as actual oral joint supplements go…I’ve heard good things about Cosequin ASU and Smartpak III. Also heard good things about Recovery EQ, Corta-Flx, Actiflex 4000, Fluid Flex HA, and Smartflex Senior (not show legal). There are plenty of pelleted joint supplements, and they’re easy to feed.

[vineyridge]

The problem with oral joint supplements is that no one really knows if particular ones work because there are no scientific studies done. In fact, there are very, very few studies on oral joint supplements to indicate if they work at all. Even if they do work, there are very few studies to show how much of what does work in horses. So you are much more likely to get the results that you want with a systemic injection that has science behind it.

Otherwise you are just throwing money at a problem, hoping that what you choose will work.

[chestnuthunter]

[QUOTE=vineyridge;7443116]

Otherwise you are just throwing money at a problem, hoping that what you choose will work.[/QUOTE]

Makes sense. I just would like to avoid injections unless they’re necessary, which they absolutely aren’t. This horse has no signs of being unsound whatsoever, so I’m just using the supplement for preventative care. But when he gets a little older I would absolutely consider them, especially if he’s jumping any higher than he is now.

[Posting_Trot]

You’re not going to do injections if the horse isn’t showing problems. I would (in your place) be very critical of any vet that suggested you do injections without the horse showing problems.

I do agree thought that the Majesty’s Wafers are expensive for what they’re giving you. You could find a pelleted supplement that has more of the potentially important ingredients for a lower price.

Look at Smartpack’s various offerings–they have a full range of different joint supplements.

In your place, I’d look at something that has 10,000 mg of MSM either alone or in combination with other joint supplements. HA tends to be pricey, but I’ve found that it also helps with horses that do have active issues. I don’t know that there have been any studies about preventative effects. It might be worth while not to buy the HA until the horse gets older and is beginning to display some stiffness.

Good luck.

[Chief2]

I cared for a friend’s horse for a few years, and used Majesty’s Wafers because he was super picky about what he ate (he also loves cold grapes regardless of the season. Is yours a Lusitano? He is.). He absolutely adored the wafers, and would have happily eaten the whole pouch if I had let him, but when I costed it out, it really made more sense for his owner to find something that was a better fit to the budget. She tried some of the more expensive joint supplements, but the best fit ended up being MSM. It is available in both powder and pellet form. Much less expensive, and it worked much better.

For my own horse, who is much older, I get Smartpak Senior Flex, and even though it is more expensive than straight MSM, it is still less expensive than Majesty’s Wafers. Folks here are just trying to get you more bang, for a lot less money. Good luck with your horse!

[TWH_Girl]

Agree that for the price of the wafers you can purchase a pelleted supplement that has a much higher quantity of ingredients. Smartflex II or III would be good choices for your horse- Smartpak.com. The injectables people have mentioned are not intra articular joint injections, but intramuscular injections of a joint supplement/medicine. These tend to be better used by the horse as it bypasses the digestive system. At 13 they are worth checking into and with his workload he should have some support. I don’t think the wafers would cut it.

[HunterRider84]

Pentosan and Adequan are not injections that are done in the joint they are IM but they are pricey. I’ve has good luck with Actiflex 4000 which comes in liquid and an alfalfa based power but I add more MSM. Flex force also make Glucosamine pellets that are pretty cheap and you can give the dose you want. But like it’s been suggested the waffers really aren’t worth the price.

[chestnuthunter]

[QUOTE=TWH Girl;7443733]
Agree that for the price of the wafers you can purchase a pelleted supplement that has a much higher quantity of ingredients. Smartflex II or III would be good choices for your horse- Smartpak.com. The injectables people have mentioned are not intra articular joint injections, but intramuscular injections of a joint supplement/medicine. These tend to be better used by the horse as it bypasses the digestive system. At 13 they are worth checking into and with his workload he should have some support. I don’t think the wafers would cut it.[/QUOTE]

When the wafers are gone, I will definitely check into Smartflex II and III, or maybe just straight MSM. This horse is very upset by injections, and if it makes any sense, gets “hurt feelings.” I know that may sound ridiculous but this horse has some abuse in his past and thinks he’s being punished anytime I do something that’s painful/uncomfortable for him. Mane pulling and carrying a crop included.

Smartpak Senior Flex is illegal for show use, correct? He is still being show USEF, USDF, and USHJA, so I do need to be watching my ingredients.

[hj0519]

[QUOTE=chestnuthunter;7444899]

Smartpak Senior Flex is illegal for show use, correct? He is still being show USEF, USDF, and USHJA, so I do need to be watching my ingredients.[/QUOTE]

Yes, but there is an herb-free version of SmartFlex Senior that is fine for showing.

[CDE_Driver]

For the record…Pentosan isn’t “pricey”.

[chestnuthunter]

[QUOTE=hj0519;7445105]
Yes, but there is an herb-free version of SmartFlex Senior that is fine for showing.[/QUOTE]

Ok. Ugh…joint supplements are confusing! Thanks for all the helpful input everyone