Supplements for an elderly stiff pony

[EnduranceAli]

Gambit is approx. 33 and is quite stiff - although he still enjoys a little trot in the field and no one can keep up with his fast walk :)

He is fed on SS - Endurocomplete with Ruffstuff, as well as hay/grass (which he can't digest very well, but he enjoys the actual eating process). Also has garlic and cider vinegar added to that.

Hoping to get the ponies out 24/7, and last time I tried that Gambit was extra stiff the next morning.

Can anyone recommend anything to help with his stiffness. No Bute has been suggested - anyone else use that? Also, could I buy glucosamine (sp?) tablets and grind them up, put them in his feed? If so, what quantity?

Don't want to go down the usual senior feed route - I prefer to keep to the SS no-cereal mix.

Ali xx

[puzzles]

I fully recommend Equine America Cortaflex! It works fantastically, well worth every penny (plus it lasts for a fair while).

:-)

[Snowyboy]

my vote is for Equine America Cortaflex - expensive but worth every single penny!

its brilliant

[Nik-n-Kia]

Devils claw root granuels!!!

They have worked wonders for Kias leg!!! no stiffness and we used to use them for Bimbos arthritus.

You could also buy human Glucosamine as you said and mix in. I also used equivite joint on bimbo as his arthritus progressed and a full tub lasted me ages.

Nikki xxxx

[Kim and Jodie]

My 31 year old is on Cortaflex and to be honest, it doesn't seem to have made a massive amount of difference. That said, I don't know how she would have been without it - might have been a lot worse. Check out www.hiltonherbs.co.uk and www.globalherbs.co.uk - they do some mobility herbal products and I've found they worked brilliantly in the past and they're a bit cheaper than Cortaflex. A slight word of warning on Devils Claw (which mine is on) is that I recently found out that it can cause stomach problems. I'm keeping mine on it for now but I am seriously thinking about changing it.

[Pink's lady]

Cortaflex works well for some horses and not very much for others. There are a couple of other glucosimine and chondritin supplements on the market and they can sometimes work better.

We found it worked well for Kim but not for Toby - he tried Gold Label Glucosimine 5000 and it worked really well for him. The dog gets NAF Solubale Superflex and it works well for her.

Cortaflex is EXPENSIVE so it might be worth trying a cheaper version first - something with glucosimane, chondritin and MSM in it.

As for Devils claw - it's a herbal painkiller and as powerful as bute. Unlike bute it's side effects have never been tested, so they are unknown. If you are thinking on giving a painkiller I would go with the tried and tested drugs from the vet.

I think it would be worth getting your vet out to have a look - they can advise on supplements and prescribe you bute (or dannilon). For a small pony you'd be looking at maybe 1/4 a day, so about £1 a week. Dannilon is more expensive but has less side effects.

He is stiff because his arthitic joints are painful, so giving a painkiller is probably the kindest thing to do. The other supplements just inprove joint condition - great for stopping it progressing further but can't reverse the arthritis nor stop the pain. He can stay on it permantly too - Kim gets 1/2 packet dannilon a day and it makes such a difference to her.

[Mehitabel]

copper is on riaflex - he is coming up 25 and went on it because we thought he was coming out unsound in the morning from stiffness when in overnight for the school\''s busy saturdays (he lives out the rest of the time, but as many as we can come in on friday nights). turned out it was a weirdly presenting abscess, but by the time it popped i'd bought the stuff, so he went on it and improved markedly anyway.
the deterioration had been so gradual we hadn't really noticed, but the first time i rode him after 2 weeks off while the abscess healed and he had been on the supplement, he pinged off into a trot so big it nearly sent me out the back door.
it has taken 15 years off him, stride-length and activity-wise.

[sheer bliss]

I decided to stock Equine America products, after my sucess with Cortaflex, Cortaflex HA, and Buteless

It is expensive but ther is a reason its the UK's number 1 joint suppliment :

''Cortaflex is the only OTC equine joint supplement to have achieved a significant improvement in the symmetry of equine tarsal joint movement following a rigorous double blind clinical trial, conducted by the College of Veterinary Medicine at Michigan State University. This trial, undertaken by one of the leading equine research institutes in the world, used advanced measurement techniques including force plates and motion analysis to ensure that the data collected before and after the supplementation of Cortaflex was of the highest accuracy. The outstanding results of the study were then presented by the author, Dr. Hilary Clayton BVMS, PhD, MRCVS, at the conference of the globally respected American Association of Equine Practitioners, and published in the conference proceedings''

See: http://www.scallywagsequinesupplies.co.uk/p/search/


Jill