Arthritis in older horse

Gilbey

Gilbey

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My Welsh D has developed arthritis which is making riding quite slow and steady. He is better with exercise but I can't turn him out for long as he gets laminitis just by breathing grass!

So what I want to know is what products have you used and do they work? He is on Danilon and Cortaflex daily, but not as good as I would like him to be. I only hack for less than an hour on quiet tracks at walk as trot is not really on his agenda.
 
When I had my old horse I used to give him Hilton Herbs Reflex mix. It was a few months before he showed any signs of improvement on this mix but as it was the only thing he would readily eat I felt I owed it to him to keep trying with it.
He used to have Bute if he needed extra help but as he hated Bute I tried to keep this to a minimum.
In the end though, he had to go on Bute-every-day as the arthritis progressed. And eventually even this wasn't enough and he was PTS. I think the key is gentle exercise and something to help dull the pain. If you can keep him moving, even if it's just pottering about it will help to break the cycle of pain and resulting stiffness, just a little anyway.
 
I had a pony like this and found adding omega oils really helpful, it works as a general anti-inflammatory and complements the cortaflex well, I used NAF Linseed or omega oils. Also try to get him out as much as possible, my vet recommended two hours twice a day so there was less time standing in, I know it's difficult with the laminitis, but even if it's a walk in hand it will help keep the joints free. I also used magnetic wraps in the winter as they are supposed to improve blood flow to the area, only used to put mine on for 12 hours/ day though, not sure if they are supposed to be on all the time, I think this helped!

Good luck
 
Bless, my old boy developed arthritis in his later years.

You are already feeding similar supplements to what I did, to ease the pain a little. I fed bute and ExtraFlex to mine.

I also found that popping on stable raps, or bandages overnight helped my old horse. You boy sounds as though he is stabled a lot. Do his legs fill? If so, the bandages will help reduce any puffiness and ease the pressure around his fetlocks. I had a set of magnet boots, which I shared between my two horses, but tbh non magnetised boots seemed to help him just as much.
 
Thankyou everyone. No his legs don't fill. He is out at 8am for 2 hours and then I try to hack him 5 or 6 times a week. he is very happy in himself.
I will try the omega oil. What does anyone think of green lipped mussel?
 
I believe green lipped mussel is a natural source of chondroitin, which features in many joint supplements. 4g is the recommended dosage of chondroitin per day, in order to have an effect. Also, are you feeding enough joint supplement? I think many of the manufacturer's 'maintenance' doses are a waste of time, as they don't provide nearly enough of the 3 main ingredients (MSM, glucosamine and chondroitin).

This thread is a great source for info on joint supplements: http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=368448&highlight=april+analysis
 
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