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I would use bute (tick all that apply)

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I am not sure how I feel about any of it, I don't think I would like to give it to a horse so that I could keep it in a significant amount of work whilst masking its pain, but I might not be adverse to giving it to an otherwise happy and healthy oldie now and again to keep them going for a bit of light hacking now and again.

For field soundness, I have really mixed feelings. As I understand it, most people don't just suddenly stick their horse on copious amounts of bute and then retire it to the field for years to come. It comes about slowly. The vet prescribes bute to overcome a specific issue which is later revealed not to be solvable, days slip into weeks slip into months. I gue3ss the horse was initially in pain, but because it is on 1-2 sachets of bute a day it is no longer in pain, and isn't that great to see? If you can keep the horse pain free using bute in the longer term (however long that is), is it then right to put the horse down even though it is no longer in pain and is otherwise happy because it's on bute? I am not sure.
 
I have answered this for Danilon as I haven't seen a sachet of bute in years! I would use it for a horse after an injury, I would use it long term after injury if they needed it, I would give a horse up to two to keep it from stiffening up for ridden work - not to cover up a lameness. I would use it to keep an oldie comfortable in the field but if it required over two I would really start questioning the horse's quality of life and I wouldn't give it to a youngster as I would only give it to an oldie knowing that it didn't have long left... I wouldn't feed it for years just to keep it in a field, I would PTS if it needed it all the time for the rest of its life if it was only young.
 
Difficult poll as there is no option for 1 bute to ride, or keep an old horse comfortable. I would probably be happy with that, but would struggle with giving 2 on a long term basis, due to issues with ulcers from bute. I would also say, having a small (size wise) herd, that 1 bute would be more for them comparatively than it would be for a big horse.
 
I have a 19 year old who has a history of injury led lameness from tendon/ligament damage. She did it at 12, was rehabbed twice over the next 3-4 years and broke down again. Came back to light hacking. All without bute unless it was in the resting actute stages. Last few years she started feeling her old injury so under my vets instruction she has bute when she needs it. However I retired her as didn't feel comfortable continuing even light work. Just didn't sit well with me even though I was told it was better to keep an oldie going.

She's been retired a few years now and is on one bute a day, which my vet says is highly unlikely to cause her issues and they are happy for me to adminster more if required. Besides I would rather she had a few comfortable happy years retired than not on the bute. She is loving her retired life. Yes her injury grumbles her at times, but so do mine and I still love my life.

She will tell me when its enough and I am watchful of those signs and ready to do 'a day too early, rather than a day too late'. I will make some heartbreaking decisions if she starts needing her pain relief increased on a daily basis.

I do believe sometimes decisions on not giving routine pain relief to oldies is more concerned with financial reasons than some higher moral ground.

I don't believe the arguement about kidney/liver failure holds much weight, unless the horse is on very high doses and that should most definitely be short term. Most on low long term doses will die or be pts from the condition they are being medicated for I would imagine before the bute gets them. That is certainly the message from my vets anyway.

I'm comfortable with my decisions, although I freely admit my bank account isn't and along with my plan not to feed her very increased quantities of bute if/when she needs it as I do think a moral line has to be drawn somewhere and that is mine, being brutally honest, finance will be part of that decision because it sadly has to be.

Hopefully though she will continue to surprise me and my vet will be right with his comment last week that she could go another 10 years yet.
 
Doublethyme said:
She will tell me when its enough

I do believe sometimes decisions on not giving routine pain relief to oldies is more concerned with financial reasons than some higher moral ground.

I don't believe the arguement about kidney/liver failure holds much weight, unless the horse is on very high doses and that should most definitely be short term. Most on low long term doses will die or be pts from the condition they are being medicated for I would imagine before the bute gets them. That is certainly the message from my vets anyway.
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Agree with all this.

I certainly knew when my boy had enough although my last memory is of him dragging me down to the field and trotting off around it.

I had no problem with keeping him comfortable on 2 bute a day (although would probably use Danilon now). He had another couple of years that he wouldn't have had otherwise.

And as I bought it from my vets and not a prescription he cost me a fortune :)
 
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