True, depending on pH. I spent a large part of my career determining stability for pharmaceutical products so I’m a little more cautious than most people wrt stability and storage conditions. 
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My dosing requirements were largely met by a 35cc syringe & molasses but I think you could do the same with a 60 and applesauce.
Saw off (box cutter will do or sacrificial sharp kitchen knife perhaps) the tip including most of the abutment surface–you want to leave just a small rim so the plunger doesn’t fly straight through but with a essentially wide open top, you don’t then lose the volume in the tip. Rinses out well + lasted quite some time before needing to make a new one. Check for sharp edges after cutting–some were better than others for sure.
I would then microwave a small molasses carton —just to soften not to boiling; insert plunger just enough to make it stable enough to hold in left hand or stand in a tall tin; pour in perhaps 1"-2" molasses, add pre-powdered/crushed meds from a folded piece of wax paper, then top off with some more molasses. A kebab skewer worked well to stir so there was no glut of nasty powder & horse was still looking for his molasses syringe after 3 months of this done twice daily.
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I use this one. If the plunger gets sticky after a while, you can grease it with a little olive oil.
On a side note, I have two horses that can detect that tiny quarter tab of Previcox and sort it out of their feed. We have (so far) been able to fool them with a hollowed out carrot with the pill stuffed inside…
Prednisone can be obtained in a paste form. Making it a million times easier to deal with.
I know for sure that Wedgewood Pharmacy in NJ compounds it and all the oral meds they compound that make in super yummy flavors…apple, vanilla maple, mint etc
ask your vet if he or she will write you a script to get it from them. I have never been disappointed with the products!
ETA…they will also make the exact strength you need so no reason to shoot 60cc down the hatch, they will make a more concentrated product and then you may only have to feed 10cc etc. I also know they make a chew tab but I believe it’s flavored for dogs.
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For long med regimes, chasers can definitely help too. Saved my older guy’s life, he is good to dose but after wks in ICU, getting nasty metronidazole in him (won’t accept anything in food) was near impossible. We trained him to accept it using the bribery of a chaser of candy canes (his favorite )in water to get the bad taste out after.
Glad to find I am not alone in adding peppermint or wintergreen mint candy into coffee grinder with meds. Then just a bit of water and handful of grain for nice am/pm snack. With sucrlfate I give meds first. Then feed all other critters. Then feed the patient. The sucrilate really helped cranky face ulcers
Is two minutes in hot water right before going in the horse really likely to destabilize the drug significantly?
I understand that storing drugs in excessively hot or cold areas will affect stability, but how long does that take?
There’s hot, and there’s boiling hot. I would not use water that’s 212* or anything warmer than you can stick a finger in, with any medication, even for 1 minute.
There is significant influence in the perception of taste by input to olfactory receptors.
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I bought a coffee grinder, did the pills along with a peppermint. Sometimes the humidity would set up the mix a bit before the horse got to it. Be sure to tap out the grinder and cover and have dry hands. My horse hated being dosed but will eat stuff if there is enough candy involved.
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Has anyone tried this trick for dissolving pills in the syringe? I wonder if it would work for our equine meds? Looks super simple. https://www.facebook.com/520930149/posts/10161106280010150/
Here is another video of the same trick:
https://www.facebook.com/147110465887286/posts/304534046811593/
It entirely depends on the medication. And stability can possibly be impacted by the other components of the mixture, pH, exposure to oxygen, light etc.
There are no hard and fast rules, but mswillie is right that in general heat and moisture are the most likely culprits for most medications. (I also work in the drug product field, determining the formulations that have adequate stability for commercial use)
The problem with asking your vet is that s/he very likely doesn’t know because these types of situations aren’t typically part of stability testing, so no one would really know.
Case in point. I am currently working on develop a pediatric formulation for an existing adult medication. The pediatric formulation will be a sachet of granules that will be sprinkled onto a spoon of applesauce or yogurt for young children to take. We are required to do testing that there is no degradation of the drug during the time the granule is in contact with the applesauce or yogurt. If the dosing instructions were “dissolve in water heated to boiling”, we would have to conduct that test to verify the integrity of the drug under those conditions.
Because it’s easier on future dosing if the stuff tastes good.
OP If it dissolves in applesauce, just put pills in applesauce, thin it with applejuice if necessary Other wise dissolve in molasses water, or something similar.
The idea is to get a consistency thicker than water, but thin enough to squirt. And still keep it tasty.
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