Bute and liver long term affects

dixie

dixie

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I have a 10yr old horse who has been on bute now for two years and will be on it for the foreseeable future. From time to time I try No Bute which works for a few months but always need to go back to the bute.

I know there are long term affects to the liver and wonder if there is something I could give him as a preventative measure.
 
You should also be concerned with the effects of bute on your horses stomach!

A gastro protectant would be a good idea.. omoguard - or gastroguard i think its called in UK.. an omeprazole based protectant is a must!! - i don't no if there is a new generation of anti ulcer drugs out in horses.. we use omoguard where i work.. on anything that gets bute!! especially foals as you can imagine!

protects against stomach ulcers!!! Otherwise colic will be another concern of yours!!

As for the liver.. i don't no how long you can use it for without it affecting it!! I know that they stopped using bute for people as it built up in the system and they died of liver failure!! and I know you can overdose foals very quickly with bute!!!!!

Is there nothing else the vet has recommended.. what is actually wrong with your horse???
 
Vet is happy with him being on bute long term. He's having 1 a day and is a large 17hh IDxTB & he's sound on this. He has arthritic changes in his fetlocks & has had this since 6yrs old! Am about to change to Danilon as have heard its kinder than Bute.

Have heard about Gastroguard now you mention it and will look that one up, thank you.
 
My horse is on barbiturates which apparently are very harmful to the liver. I heard of one vet who said the drugs cause liver failure in 6 months - well she has been on them for 13 years! To add insult to injury, she also takes antiinflammatories for arthritis (metacam) - she has been on those every other day for 6 years. I keep a close eye on her and dose her up with Restore every day as a precaution, and interestingly, she had a blood test last summer and her liver enzymes were well within the normal range. Every horse is different though so perhaps I'm just lucky. You have to balance quality of life with length of life and I know which I'd rather have.
 
Thanks thats good to know! My back lady is of the same opinion of you, she knows quite a few on bute long term and doesn't believe its that harmful - but there's always the worry.
 
Hmmmn, I'd be concerned for long-term use, and my vet certainly doesn't recommend it. I'd definitely recommend a regular liver detox if you stay on this route.

There are natural alternatives, such as devil's claw root and cat's claw root combined to work synergistically, which not only relieve the pain but reduce inflammation too. I have an elderly cob with arthritic joints and when he has a bad episode I use EquiReliefPlus which can be found at www.equinatural.co.uk, under Pain Relief. They also do natural herbal blends for joint mobility and arthritis, the latter of which I use for my cob on an ongoing basis - smells yummy and keeps him comfy.

(Quote from their website)
EquiReliefPlus ~ a synergistic blend of two herbs, Devil's Claw and Cat's Claw, designed to reduce chronic pain, swelling and inflammation in skeletal joints that are associated with arthritis, osteoarthritis and tendonitis. This blend has shown significant improvement in horses who had the most severe, radiating pain with numbness in the peripheral areas.


Devil's Claw is an anti-inflammatory and painkilling agent that has demonstrated very positive results to bring relief for degenerative joint pain, arthritis, rheumatism and soft tissue pain such as tendonitis. It has also demonstrated significant improvement in horses who had the most severe, radiating pain with numbness in the extremities. It has also been proven to be an effective replacement for phenylbutazone (bute) and cortisone, but without the side effects of these equine medicines.

Cat's Claw is an anti-inflammatory agent for all forms of arthritis, rheumatism and other inflammatory diseases. It is a rich source of sterols, the chemical compounds closely related to steroids, and has been known to reduce swelling by approximately fifty percent in tests.
 
Thank you, thats very interesting. The EquiReliefPlus may be of some help as he worked quite well on No Bute for a while

Initially its the Liver detox I'm interested in, so was looking for suggestions for this. I shall probably give the Liver tonic as try.
 
Hmmm was thinking about this the other day as toffee is now having a sachet of bute night before shes ridden. Vet said that the devils claw is a waste of money !!! He also didnt recommend cosequin either which shocked me.
 
I was also told to put my horse on bute long-term after he developed arthritis last winter. However once the inital box ran out I looked for something better as like you I was very worried about liver and stomach problems. I now have him on NAF Devil's relief (which has devil's claw and msm in it) combined with Feedmark Extraflex HA, mainly for the hyaluronic acid content which is very good for joint inflammation. I find this combination works very well and my horse now moves beautifully again (having been very stiff and lame behind before). So I would definately look for an alternative to bute. I find some vets can be very old school (like some horse people!) and will stick with what they've always done rather than following new ideas and research. Most likely not all horses get stomach/liver problems due to being on bute, but some do and I don't want to risk that my horse might be one of them!
 
Deff stick to as natural as poss for as long as poss as you can always go up a step onto drugs ! So I've used , long term , Devils Claw , Easy mover and Danilon and all have worked very very well and no ill effects on liver or other organs .
 
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