Pill carrier ideas for metabolic pony

[pompeiii]

My mini was just diagnosed with cushing’s. He is also insulin resistant (it may be a result of the cushing’s). He lives a very low sugar, low starch life as it is and doesn’t actually need to lose weight. But, metabolically he’s a mess.

He also has heaves and takes Zyrtec daily.

As we’re adding in prascend, what is the best safe pill carrier for a metabolic mini? While he is fed 2x daily, I only feed him in his stall once. The other meal is outside and he tends to share with my thoroughbred (it’s soaked cubes/fibre beet with mad barn Omneity and salt mixed in). In the morning, he gets a similar meal with his Zyrtec, plus magnesium, and a fly supplement.

I need a carrier for his evening Zyrtec (vet has prescribed him 10 2x/day) and maybe his prascend (I could add to his feed but I’d like to make sure he eats it). He will eat pretty much anything (including dewormer). But, with his issues, I want find the safest solution. He also uses an inhaler so I’d prefer not to force anything down his throat and make the inhaler process more difficult (he’s very good for that right now).

I can also make something this weekend if you have suggestions for homemade pill pockets.

[IPEsq]

My guy eats Zyrtec pills whole with his balancer. I was giving him his ID meds in a piece of banana last winter.

[CHT]

I have used figs to hide pill pockets. also tiny baskets made of grass. I have found that with prascend it can help to vary the pill delivery system.

[pompeiii]

He doesn’t get feed in the evening but he eats them in the morning in his feed without issue. I’d prefer not to start feeding him in his stall before turnout just because it makes things difficult (while I do cubes outside, my mini eats through a muzzle and my thoroughbred likes to flip over feed pans — I don’t want to risk losing pills).

[Simkie]

You could try these?

https://beetebites.com/

They’re especially for metabolic critters. Although I agree Zyrtec is usually very well accepted on its own in whatever bucket feed you use, and Prascend is often one of those things they’ll accept in a treat for while, then refuse. Prascend is super easy to dose orally, though.

[pompeiii]

@Simkie

They’re especially for metabolic critters. Although I agree Zyrtec is usually very well accepted on its own in whatever bucket feed you use, and Prascend is often one of those things they’ll accept in a treat for while, then refuse. Prascend is super easy to dose orally, though.

This horse thinks dewormer is a treat so hopefully some of his food motivated mini personality will win out. I might try those for the Zyrtec if I can stuff 10 in one (or even several and feed it with the rest). I truly have no problem feeding with feed if he got a second meal he just doesn’t. He will almost eat them out of my hand but not quite. He needs something with it. (He has eaten bute tabs out of my hand but I can generally only get him to do that one day before he learns it tastes bad… but he always tries again if a few days pass).

I think part of the problem is I don’t know how much sugar is too much. And we probably won’t know until next blood test. If it was just the prascend, I wouldn’t worry too much. A half tab is tiny and can be stuck in a tiny piece of anything. But for 10 Zyrtec, I’d need a lot more. A full fig newton is 6 grams of sugar. If I could manage with half of one, it would be a different story.

[Simkie]

You could do Zyrtec in a handful of his balancer?

I did treats for my mare on Prascend but it only worked for a few weeks. Thankfully it’s dead easy to dissolve and dose. 1 cc of water is enough! No question they’re getting it that way.

[Demerara_Stables]

I don’t know about the pricing, but one of mine is on powder cetirizine (Zyrtec) from chewy and he eats it in grain no problem. Could you mix that into some no sugar added applesauce or the like and syringe it into his mouth?

[pompeiii]

It seems the overwhelming answer is just to toss evening pills into feed. Which means I need to find pellets to feed him. He currently gets no pelleted feet. And give him no more than will fit into my hand.

He gets Mad Barn Omneity premix which is a powder as a vitamin/mineral mixed into fibre beet with a few cubes soaked. The fibre beet cannot be fed dry.

I could feed him my gelding’s feed but at that point, he might be better off with a fig newton or some other concoction for his second dose. I guess I’ll keep exploring.

(The reason I don’t feed dinner inside is my thoroughbred stresses when he first goes out. Keeping his gut happy is also non negotiable and cubes outside has played a huge part. There is more to this, but not important.)

[moonlitoaksranch]

I never found a pill carrier for our old Shetland. Nothing worked. I ended up buying a goat sized plastic bolus to slip into her mouth and pop that pill past her taste buds. Working well for many years.

Bolus Gun (Plastic)

[OzarksRider]

I use fig newtons for Prascend. I feed 1/2 tablet in a 1/4 piece of fig newton morning and evening, just put it in his ration balancer mix and he gobbles it up every time.

[luvmyhackney]

Current regime is crushed sugar free peppermints for Prescend and Zyrtec. I crush 1 or 2 and mix meds with it.

I was using a syringe but needed to find something easier for when I travel.

[Renn_aissance]

Zyrtec will soften/dissolve if soaked. Chuck it in with his hay cubes.

Assuming pony is not in a metabolic crisis, it is fine to use a spoonful of sugar to help the medicine go down. My horse gets his Prascend in a piece of Fig Newton.

[Simkie]

I like nose bags a whole lot when feeding in groups. A handful of the soaked stuff he shares with his friend in a nose bag in the evening with his Zyrtec would work just fine. Rinse out bag and hang to dry for next day.

[beowulf]

Going to echo most that the Zyrtec can just be top dressed on the feed, but don’t add Prascend to the grain. They will go off their feed if they associate it with the Prascend. It must taste awful, because even our treat goblin of a horse became suspicious of treats. I mix it up. Sometimes it’s a fig newton, sometimes it’s a donut, sometimes it’s in his big bucket of alfalfa cubes (5lb+). He is toothless, so I think having it diluted to such extremes makes it more palatable.

Those Anise goat treats from from Manna Pro are pony crack and are also good for disguising bad tasting pills.

[Demerara_Stables]

For those that use fig newtons - have they worked for a long time? Mine was doing the German Horse muffins with tons of molasses and one day she paused chewing to listen to a sound and then it was all over. She won’t even eat those without drugs anymore. I’m tossing it in her grain but I’d love to hand feed it. She’s notoriously picky.

[Simkie]

@Demerara_Stables

For those that use fig newtons - have they worked for a long time?

Worked for my mare ONCE. And only once

[beowulf]

@Demerara_Stables

Mine was doing the German Horse muffins with tons of molasses and one day she paused chewing to listen to a sound and then it was all over.

The pause was probably because she finally got a taste of that Prascend. Permanently going off a treat is common. It must taste awful for them. I vary the delivery vessel because of that.

Mix up your delivery - and try feeding a few Figs naked first.

For a while we used pill pockets and just put it in his grain - that worked for a long time (~7 months or so). But then he must have finally gotten a taste of it mid-bite because he got suspicious of his grain.

[IPEsq]

Could you do a small serving of beet for the evening Zyrtec?

[Demerara_Stables]

There was actually a loud sound outside - she does it when eating as well, but I agree she paused at just the right time to be able to taste it. My mom got her to eat some plain muffins when I traveled recently so maybe I’ll try some plain fig newtons. She’s great about a dosing syringe but I’d really prefer a treat.