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Ventipulmin shortage. Alternatives?

Horse Care
#1

2 questions, both on the topic of treating RAO. I’m soaking hay, keeping him in good ventilation, etc, but I sure wish I could get my hands on the 330 ml bottles of Ventipulmin. Does anyone have any idea why it has been on backorder at Boehringer for so long?? Is there hope it will become available again?

. In the meantime, what are folks using? Back in the dark ages we gave a pony prednisone. Vivid memories of watching him pick the little white granules out of his sweet feed w his pony lips!

Googling showed me the herbal Equipulmin. Anybody have feedback on that??

#2

I use a beclomethasone inhaler for my pony when needed. Sometimes an albuterol one, too. Would those be an option?

#3

I have a backup albuterol inhaler for my guy, but knock on wood, haven’t had to use it. I’ve also had good luck with Zyrtec and steaming hay instead of soaking it.

Does any of the vets in the area have a stash where you could buy a bottle or even the vet school might have some?

#4

I saw somewhere recently (Heartland Vet supply or Valley Vet?) a different compounded syrup. You could also get the aerosol chamber and use an inhaler.

#5

I don’t have an answer for you but the same company is the parent for my dog’s very important and very $$ heart medication. It is on backorder everywhere. I filled out their contact information online and they actually sent me an email with a phone number to call. I called and spoke to a nice lady in Atlanta who could only repeat their company line. “Yes, I know how important this medication is. Yes, it Is a manufacturing and supply chain issue. No we don’t know when it may possibly be in stock again. No I cannot be certain that they are even manufacturing the drug but I know people are “working on it” to get it back into online pet pharmacies and clinics.” I have to wonder if Venti is not in the same position. This drug company always had some supply chain issues and then COVID really messed them up. I am “that lady” who now has stockpiled enough meds for my dog to get through January and I am already worried about being able to secure more then. My dog’s med is manufactured in Mexico and evidently is sitting in a warehouse there waiting to get to the US.

Very frustrating! There is a huge demand for this med, the compounded “generic” is reportedly not quite the same and not as effective… and dog owners are scrambling to get their hands on it…

#6

I give my 36 year old pony dex. He’s probably around 850lbs and gets 3ccs then tapers down to 1cc. He then tapers to getting 1cc every other day and if possible to just 2 times a week.

#7

I don’t have an answer for you, unfortunately my friend is going through the same thing right now. He is on dex but every once in awhile he has to have the Ventipulmin added into the regimen. He is allergic to the albuterol inhaler, and the poor guy is really suffering this year in the Florida heat :no:. If you find an alternative, let me know! I would love to be able to point her in a direction that might help them both.

#8

A barn I used to work at always used compounded clenbuterol (active ingredient in Ventipulmin, IIRC. Not sure if their is anything else in it making it more effective than the generic). We’re in Canada, so availability might differ somewhat, but definitely worth asking the vet specifically about.

#9

I know how important this medicine is when your horse needs it. Many years ago my late horse thrived on it until he passed at age 32. I ordered it from the UK (couldn’t get it here). Had no problems with supply.

Anyway, I did a quick search and it is in stock in Canada and the UK. With a prescription from your vet and you should be able to buy it but you should check with the pharmacy/supplier to make sure there aren’t any problems shipping it through customs.

This place does international shipping of prescription drugs. Although they are out of the liquid, they do have the granules in stock. I used the granules (liquid hadn’t been developed yet, that’s how long ago it was). Just mix it with some applesauce or something.

https://www.viovet.co.uk/Ventipulmin-for-Horses/c1529/

I’m sure there are other sources internationally. I’m really thinking this isn’t a manufacturer shortage but more of a Trump and his tariffs and other garbage “regulations”. I’ve had the same problem with a horse supplement (out of stock” for almost a year in the US. I bought it from a Canadian pharmacy and received it within a week. They told me that the problem here is with the FDA regulations concerning the label, nothing to do with the product itself!

Good luck with the Ventipulmin! 🙂

#10

ventipulmin is used in other areas of the world for humans, so it is possible the serge of lung disease due to Cov19 is causing a demand. There is nothing easily found about a recalls.

Agree with @Claddagh that it might be good to try other vendors and check Canada suppliers. Sometimes protracted backorders from a drug vendor is a sign the vendor is in financial trouble.

Disagree about “Trump tarriffs and garbage regulations”. The international market in sham drugs and impure drugs is huge, This drug is also widely abused by bodybuilders and others who want to change their body image. Control of drug trade and movement is never a bad thing.

1 Like
#11

I only say this is possibly a Trump tariff, taxation problem because I have had the same “out of stock” situation with a medication for my dog as well as a supplement that I use for one of my horses - both made out of the country by different manufacturers (neither of which are used or abused by bodybuilders or others). I do not know what is going on but it’s obviously something related to the US since the products are available out of this country when they are not available here.

I would love to know the answer/ reason!

2 Likes
#12

BI shut down several manufacturing plants during the starts of COVID. Many of their vaccines are hard to get right now as well.

1 Like
#13

I’m talking about medications not vaccines (although vaccine manufacturers may be having similar supply issues).

As @Lizrd said earlier “My dog’s med is manufactured in Mexico and evidently is sitting in a warehouse there waiting to get to the US.“

Apparantly the medications are being manufactured but for whatever reason they are not being allowed to be imported into the US. They used to be, but not anymore, leaving our US suppliers Out of Stock and us, and our animals, as customers without the medications that we need.

2 Likes
#14

I was just passing on what we were told by BI themselves. They were one of the few places who shut down manufacturing back in March/April. They informed distributors then of the delay on all of their products, vaccines, medications, etc. I know we are having a hard time getting Ulcergard that is further than 3-4 months away from expiration.

1 Like
#15

Ventipulmin is scarce here too. I just had to use the second half of my emergency bottle and wasn’t able to replace it. The word was hopefully the end of November.

#16

If you like, I have an almost full bottle of Ventipulmin (330ml). I bought it shortly before I had to put him down. Let me know if you’re interested in it and I can mail it to you.

Joan

2 Likes
#17

My old guy was on ventipulmin for manymany years and I was able to switch from ventipulmin to Zyrtec a few years ago, then reduce the Zyrtec seasonally after starting immunotherapy (allergy shots). I had started reducing the immunotherapy frequency and overall Zyrtec when he passed (unrelated to allergies).

Honestly I was kicking myself, if I had just started with the antihistamines and immunotherapy instead of steroids…it would have cost the same or less per month, his breathing would have been better, and I would have been DONE years ago.

”‹”‹”‹It doesn’t work for every horse, but if you think your horse’s breathing issues are primarily allergy related, it’s really worth a shot…especially now.

I have a super long thread around here outlining everything I did.

(BTW, the ventipulmin body composition thing is true. Mine suddenly started gaining weight after going off of it. Dramatically enough that I was eyeing the bottle and considering my own body composition…)

2 Likes
#18

Ventipulmin is bronchodilator. It is neither a “steroid” or an “anabolic steroid.

#19

It is not an anabolic steroid (it’s a substituted phenylaminoethanol if you want to get specific), but it does have anabolic properties.
That particular effect is why it got banned in the first place.

1 Like
#20

Sorry, “steroid-like” (although being a bronchodilator doesn’t prevent also being a steroid). But my point was, the ventipulmin was only treating symptoms and was requiring a larger dose over time. The antihistamines were at least treating the underlying problem and the allergy shots were actually fixing the underlying problem.

For my horse. If the problem isn’t allergies, or if your horse can’t tolerate antihistamines, or if your horse’s allergies don’t respond well to immunotherapy, then…that’s what you’re stuck with.

I just wish the initial treatment for my guy would have been focused more on the underlying causes instead of just the symptoms. (And obv that’s ultimately my responsibility. I just wish I’d had a little more information about everything. I literally spent more money and got worse results.) ”‹”‹”‹”‹”‹”‹”‹

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