Is there any pain killer i can get for my horse over the counter?

Question

Is there any pain killer i can get for my horse over the counter? If so were?
He is older and has arthritis.
NOTHING MEAN THANKS.

Answer 1

I'm guessing that you are just assuming he has arthritis, and have not had that verified by a vet? If a vet did the diagnosing, he or she would also be the one prescribing treatment.

Antiinflammatories such as bute are prescription meds that are used to treat arthritis and they are not just about pain relief. They are given to reduce the inflammation which is damaging to the joints. As with any drug, long term use can lead to adverse effects, so veterinary monitoring for signs of those effects is a part of the treatment plan.

If your horse does have degenerative joint disease, which should be diagnosed by a vet, then various treatment options might be prescribed, including giving otc oral glucosamine and chondroitin preparations or oral MSM a try. These are generally regarded as safe if purchased from reputable dealers, but their efficacy is still a matter of anecdotal subjective evidence as opposed to objective scientific proof.

As one answer mentioned, you can ask a vet to prescribe Previcox, but you'd be asking the vet to violate federal drug law. Previcox is a firocoxib preparation that is not FDA approved for use in horses. There is an equine equivalent called Equioxx, so it is illegal for a vet in the US to prescribe Previcox to treat a horse. Vets can only prescribe off-label use of drugs when there is no equivalent FDA approved drug available. Firocoxib (Equioxx, or Previcox) given at a clinically effective dose of 0.1 mg/kg (.045 mg/lb) of body weight is recommended for no longer than 14 consecutive days of treatment in horses, and toxicity develops after 30 days of continued use, so Previcox is no miracle drug to replace bute. http://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/fda/fdaDrugXsl.cfm?id=18680&type=display



None of the prescription drugs should be given without ongoing veterinary monitoring, since all drugs have the potential to produce adverse reactions, toxicities and side effects, and not just bute. Those risks are weighed against the benefits when these drugs are prescribed.



Before just finding a drug to mask pain, your horse deserves and needs to be examined and diagnosed by a qualified veterinarian. No otc supplements, knockoff drugs, or homeopathic junk should be administered without veterinary evaluation and monitoring.

Answer 2

I'd give BL Pellets or BL Solution a try. BL simply stands for "bute-less", it's a natural formula made to have the same effect as bute, but without the negative side effects. You can buy it at most feed stores.

However, my mother pulled her arthritic mare off of it because some of the natural ingredients used are a little controversial (I think it was possibly the yucca root, but I can't recall). The horse never had any bad side effects, but my mom thought that she'd rather not risk it. So that's your call.



You can get bute from a vet, but you should never leave your horse on it long term. Your horse could develop stomach ulcers or become immune to bute, among other things.

For a stronger relief, you could ask your vet for a banamine injection for your horse. Again, not OTC, but it has a stronger effect. Still not something you could rely on long term.



Have you considered giving your horse injections into his arthritic joints? That sometimes helps my mom's mare, although it's not 100% effective.



Also, if he's not already, you should look in to putting your horse on joint supplements. I personally use a product called HA (I can't remember what it stands for, though) which really helps both my non-arthritic 22 year old mare and my mother's arthritic mare.

Answer 3

Horse Pain Medication

Answer 4

Pain Relief For Horses

Answer 5

No you can't get anything over the counter - you'd end up with druggies in tack shops buying the stuff so they can get high. You can get feed supplements that help with mobility (e.g. Cortaflex)



Bute is only available from the vet, but if a horse is on it for a long period of time, it can damage the liver, so an alternative should be used (at the direction of your vet)

Answer 6

No you should never give over the counter pain killers to a horse or any animal. If he is old and has artritis you need to get him checked out by your vet who can then give you the best medication to help him and keep him pain free.

Answer 7

Listen to Gale Hawk and do not just start your horse on any meds of any description without speaking to your vet...they will create a plan for you using what is best for YOUR horse. That is what is important here. Not all horses are the same and so not all will respond to the same treatments the same.



Do not use Bute or other pain meds long term.

Answer 8

Extended use of pain killers is bad for the liver and kidneys in humans and horses. Before you try bute try glucosamine & chondroitin for horses.



It works in SOME cases of arthritis. I am one of the lucky ones it does work for so I can tell you it improves mobility and relieves pain from personal experience. I have been taking it for over a decade and feel better than I did before I started taking it.



It does not work right away it took a month for me to see improvement and if I quit it notice in about a week.



If it does not work in a month quit and try something else.



I also used it on my old riding mare and on an old pony and it helped them too. (They were my guinea pigs before I tried it)

Answer 9

No. You need to get some bute from your vet and listen to the directions for its use. Also, the vet may be able to give you other advice on how to comfort your horse like foot care, weight managment, exercise, appropriate turn out, lots of other helpful hints and things they see from a visit to your farm and looking at your particular horse.

Answer 10

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RE:

Is there any pain killer i can get for my horse over the counter?

Is there any pain killer i can get for my horse over the counter? If so were?

He is older and has arthritis.

NOTHING MEAN THANKS.

Answer 11

No no no! You can give glucoseamine and chondriton joint supplements but you should never indiscriminately start a horse on pain meds. Not only is it hard on their livers and kidneys (I for one consider that the smaller of the problems) but far worse, it deadens their pain response and they wind up injuring themselves because they do not notice the pain, in some cases the injury is quite severe.

Answer 12

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Answer 13

You can get aspirin at most feed stores. It should help. It would be better to talk to your vet about what's best to give him, though.



ADD: You don't want to use Bute long-term (and arthritis is kind of a long-term thing, haha). It destroys their kidneys. Talk to your vet about Previcox-it's great for long-term use, as it targets the area that's inflamed/in pain and stays there. You do need to get it from a vet, though.

Answer 14

Previcox (SP?) Bute is hard on the horses digestive tract and Previcox is relatively new and works GREAT! I don't have enough good things to say about it!

Answer 15

That's an excellent question

Answer 16

With vet orders Bute if it is terrible, But if not, Supplements

Answer 17

you can usually buy butte paste at the feed stores, if not ask the vet.

Answer 18

I usually use Butte

Answer 19

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