Hi all - I’m a new member to the forum, but have been creeping for a while. 
I am considering starting my 12 year old mare on a joint supplement - mostly as a preventative. She has only ever been on pasture/hay and has been doing well. I will be talking to my vet about this next week, but in the meantime, I was wondering what others are using? I like to do research before making any decisions. I am particularly interested in products that are available in Canada (so Smart Pak isn’t an option).
Evidence of the effectiveness of feed-through supplements is primarily anecdotal. Some people swear they can see a difference with certain products. Others of us just feed them because, well maybe it helps a little but it certainly can’t hurt so we feel like we’re doing something.
If you are noticing actual problems, Adequan or Legend may be the best option, which you should discuss with your vet. Otherwise, I’d just pick something with glucosamine and condroitin. My horse is 7, right now I just have him on MSM at the chiro’s recommendation (plus biotin for his feet and Ulc-R-Aid.)
If you want the most bang for your buck, I would choose Adequan for a joint supplment (not a feed through).
Legend, to my understanding, only gives an effect for a few days so it works the best given before (for example) a big competition where you want your horse feeling their best. Therefore, I would not choose Legend for an overall joint supplement for “the rest of the time”.
Agree on the Adequate statements. But MSM is so cheap and helps so man of their systems, it’s a good place to start.
Thanks for the responses so far. I am leaning toward MSM. Some horses at my barn are on Corta-Flex/Certa-Flex.
I will not be considering injections, unless my vet recommends it. I am more interested in oral supplements.
fyi Adequan is an IM injection, not a joint injection.
Here’s an answer, not a lecture…
Lubrigen pellets from Uckele are great. As is Exceed 6 Way from MVP. Horsetech Hylasport is also very good. Good quality from all of these manufacturers with good levels of support. Adequan is a great choice of you have a bit more going on that you need to address but it is pricy and not everyone wants to stick their horse with needles every few day. I get it.
I think that if your horse has not shown any evidence of anything wrong, I’d just give the horse MSM. I don’t think I’d bother with anything else because joint supplements tend to be pricey (and Adequan is pricey as well).
If you’re thinking about adding a supplement because there is a little voice inside your head that is saying “maybe the horse is a little bit off” then it would be a good idea to have the vet do a lameness evaluation. Horse owners are often not very good at “seeing” their own horse’s lameness, and horses tend to be stoic about low levels of pain or discomfort.
My vet described it this way - joint health supplements can support the normal healthy joint/joint fluid. Some feed through versions are effective. When they stop being enough and horse is showing arthritic changes, IM injections (Adequan, etc.) is the next step for treating joint issues. When they stop being effective, joint injections are the last effort to keep joints comfortable, depending on horse/workload, etc., possibly in conjunction with other meds for pain.
So, his opinion was that feed through joint supplements are not a waste of money - but they aren’t a treatment for arthritis - they are to prolong the normal joint health as long as possible.
I think Corta-Flex was one of the options that was considered worth buying; so might be worth adding but realize that you may not notice any difference in your horse.
Adequan is injected into the muscle (in the neck just like most vaccines are) when it is given as a supplement.
The point that most of us are trying to make is that an injectable supplement such as Adequan is much better “absorbed” and utilized by the horse’s body, than feeding something that has to pass through the digestive system first, before it gets to the joints.
There’s nothing wrong with feeding a feed-through supplement, as I do myself too, but I know that the therapeutic benefit of something feed-through is much lower.
I have used Platinum Performance CJ in the past and liked it. I have switched to T.H.E. (Total Health Equine) because the serving size is smaller, it’s slightly cheaper, and my horses like the flavor better. I feed Muscle Mass with a custom blend of joint and inflammation support.
Taking the monthly cost for some of the more popular options. I tried to use roughly similar bucket sizes to minimize bulk pricing advantages. This is all in US$. I don’t know what would be available or the pricing in Canada.
Exceed 6 way is $354 for 128 servings -> $2.77/day or $83/mo
PP CJ is $366 for 145 servings -> $2.52/day or $76/mo
Hylasport is $303 for 160 servings -> $1.89/day or $56/mo
Adequan is about $300 for 7 doses. If you do the 7 dose regimen twice/year that is $600/year or $50/month. The once/month dosing is slightly less.
Lubrigen is $165 for 75-150 days, or roughly $1-2/day or $30-60/mo
T.H.E. JointPlus is $154 for 160 servings -> $1.03/day or $31/mo
MSM is pretty widely available and costs vary too, but often in the $0.10 - $0.25/day range -> $3-7.50/mo
When you look at the overall cost, Adequan falls right in the middle of the pack. Granted, when Adequan was $400-500 for 7 vials is fell much closer to the pricey end, but still in line with Exceed 6 way and PP CJ.
Given that Adequan is the only one with clinical data to support its use, and clinical studies with oral supplements have been equivocal at best, for my money I will stick with Adequan.
Thanks for this - it was the type of info I was hoping to get! And, I am aware that Adequan is an IM injection, but as you deduced, I don’t want to go the needle route unless it’s recommended by my vet. As far as I know, she is not arthritic and I am not aware of any specific issues at this time.
Thank you for this info. A vet had suggested a glucosamine/chondroitin supplement for an aging dog of mine, many years ago, and provided the same description as your vet regarding oral joint supplements. It is partly why I was curious to see what was out there before I discuss things with my mare’s vet at her check-up.
Thanks for the cost breakdown!
It may be different in Canada. I’m not familiar with availability or pricing there. But so many people think Adequan is so much more expensive than the orals, but when you look at it over a longer timeframe, it isn’t so different.
I love the hylalube pellets from select the best and Actiflex 4000 is very good also.
My senior mare has been on Leg Up Joint pellets for about a year, and all former morning stiff-ness and clicking/popping joint sounds are gone. She’s a retired pasture pet with no signs of discomfort in her pasture frolicking, so injections and high dollar supplements were overkill, IMO. I’ll revisit our options if she needs more support in the future, but right now Leg Up Joint is enough.
I like the Hortech products I used hylasport for many years. Also like Equithrive for joints
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