Fractious horse needs bute and 15 antibiotic pills twice a day. It has been a huge fight. He will not eat any meds in his grain no matter what yummy stuff we mix in. In fact, he will avoid all grain for days if you ever try to sneak anything in.
So, the syringe and an hour of struggling each time is what I’m stuck with. Can I mix the bute and the crushed pills in one syringe?
What are the antibiotics? It’s probably fine for oral meds.
Don’t have the name handy but it’s the sulfur based antibiotic
I’d imagine it’d work just fine although I’m wondering how you’re going to get the pills in said bute tube? If they won’t fit I have a method that worked great for us!
My long-retired show pony was on 72 pills a day for the better part of a year, 36 in the morning and 36 at night. It was a train wreck until we came up with the perfect solution which was grabbing a medium-large syringe (or old bute tube would probably work) and cutting off the end. We’d fill it with her pills in the morning (after administering the first dose of the day) then add a bit of water to help dissolve the pills down throughout the day. Once it was time to medicate again in the evening we’d top off the syringe with a heap of honey, molasses or apple sauce and squirt it down her throat. Then we’d re-fill the syringe with pills to soak overnight.
This method worked beautifully because the sweet stuff with her pills distracted her and then we could follow up with a dose of bute if needed. She eventually loved medication time!!
Isn’t there something on the market which is, in effect, a very thick mullen mouthed bit - hollow, with holes drilled through it and a plunger. Guess you could do Texas Trainer’s system to soften the pills in the am for the pm.
Some brighter COTHER will know what I’m talking about - I’ve just seen the ads.
I’m using the powdered bute that comes in a big tub. This horse is so upset about the syringe he will not let me place a piece of apple in his mouth now. He is super suspicious of everything other than hay on the ground. At 17 hh it’s a real battle and I end up wearing half the stuff.
The answer to Foxtrot’s idea: https://www.amazon.com/Grooma-Easy-W…/dp/B001E2N2BM
I used one for a little while on my old horse who wouldnt touch bute in any way. It did make things somewhat easier.
Edited to add: giving current horse long course of antibiotics. We dissolve them in a small amount of apple juice and he has thankfully been pretty good; we benefit from a couple tall staff people and a 15.3 hand horse, lol.
:yes: :yes:
https://www.valleyvet.com/ct_detail.html?pgguid=1a3816d2-48a4-4913-a9be-f2f72d5cb347
I would syringe something he totally loves first, then the meds, quickly followed by the yummy stuff, just so he starts and ends on a good note and you don’t end up with an avoidance of the bit itself.
I had a big syringe (60cc) and would put the bute and the SMZs in, and enough hot water to dissolve them. Before I went to the barn, I’d pull up a little more hot water, shake well, and then pull in a bunch of applesauce. Two weeks (that round) of twice a day, and he never fussed about it.
I’ve combined bute and SMZs in a syringe before with no issue. I add just enough water to make the SMZs pasty (not runny), add bute, add a spoonful of applesauce, mix up and put it in the syringe. My horse is good to paste, but I didn’t want to have to do it twice each time because he gets tired of it.
People, you can train your horse to accept being dosed. Takes 10 minutes for a few days. Then you don’t need to resort to all this nonsense.
Yup after this battle it is going to be part of the routine. Treats are now in syringe form
What are you mixing the SMZ with? I put mine in a cup, add about 1 tablespoon water. Let sit for a minute, stir to dissolve. Then I put it on their grain, add 1/4 cup of molasses (not maple syrup) and stir. I have not had a horse yet refuse it and they seem to love it.
Yup after this battle it is going to be part of the routine. Treats are now in syringe form
I have tried everything you could think to get my horse to eat SMZs and/or bute - molasses, syrup, soaked grain, soaked beet pulp, soaked alfalfa cubes, peppermint oil…Once he thinks you’ve contaminated his grain, he completely stops eating.
Get a large oral dosing syringe from the vet, split the SMZs in in half and add them and the bute powder to the syringe, pull up some water, let sit for a few minutes, shake to mix. I’d also give your horse some ulcer meds since he’s on bute - I use Nexium capsules in Pill Camo treats.
I dose with just straight water. I stick the capped syringe in the mouth sideways to get my horse to spit out all of the food in his cheeks. At this point, I can also correct him if he’s thinking about throwing his head around. Then, I stick the syringe alongside the tongue as far back as I can and dose. I have a 17.2 h horse that has had multiple rounds of 22 SMZs twice daily and this always works. I usually dose once, pull up a few more mLs of water, shake the syringe to get all remaining meds off the side of the syringe, and dose again.
I assume you are talking about SMZ and Bute. Both of which are a couple of the standard meds to have in one’s med cabinet.
As I and others have said, I don’t play games, mix up stuff in their feed to get the meds in them. I always use a proper dosing syringe. I do not like the large disposable ones. The tip is too short, the plunger is a PITA hang on to with an unruly horses etc.
SMZ melt pretty quickly in warm water, I buy and use butte powder. I use this doser, 12+ SMZ fit in it add water and let them melt. Getting the plunger in without squirting some out is a bit tricky until you get the a technic figured out. Should be room for a gram or 2 of butte. If you feel the need to add a treat of some kind to make it more palatable. I use a coffee grinder, SMZ and a couple of mints ground up. Butte comes in flavors.
This doser can be had at Tractor Supply. The pistol grip makes it much easier to get the job done. Grab the halter lay it against the side of their mouth, do the dance, pick my spot shove it in to the back of their mouths squirt and tickle their tongue with the round balled tip to get them to swallow. Once size bigger would make it easier to fit more in it. Might be able to find it on line. IMO this should be in everyone’s tack room.
Having a stall, room with a low ceiling is key to giving meds and doing other things with an unruly horse. They can only go up so high and can’t kick out at you. They only need to hit their head once or twice to figure out, There is the easy way and the hard way.
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Yes, you can. My guy is/was awesome about being dosed - could do him without a halter even. However, after 3 1/2 weeks of 63 pills (split into morning and night), he was pretty sick of the whole thing. He wasn’t bad, but tried to get his head out of reach. He gave up pretty quickly though.
Does he have to take Bute and SMZs? I would talk with the vet and see if a shot of Excede could be substituted for the SMZs. One of my horses hates Bute but happily eats Previcox or Aleve.
Why do some people have to come on here sounding so superior or short - OP asked for some advice and got some very good advice that actually was practical. Some horses become bloody difficult once they decide to.
Haha, there is always someone who knows everything and thinks other people are crap! Thank you to those of you who answered my questions. Some horses are never going to accept syringes, needles, etc. in 100% of situations that can come up not matter how much training and prepping you do.
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