Getting a horse to take Bute?

[chocolategirl]

Help please? Horse is supposed to be on 2 Bute a day for 10 days then one a day for 7 days. He just point blank refuses to eat his feed with it in! I’ve switched to danilon as I know that’s meant to be odourless and tasteless, still won’t have it. Trekked to the local feed merchants yesterday to pick up some Naf mint, nope, still won’t have i. I’ve cored an apple, poured the powder in and replaced the core, he spat it all out, I’ve grated an apple in this morning, and the little monkey is still turning his nose up! Now bear in mind, this is a horse that loves his grub usually, not normally a fussy eater, so where do I go next please? help me?? btw, he won’t tolerate syringes into the mouth, so I wouldn’t be able to make a paste etc. What am I to do??TIA??

 

[asmp]

Jam sandwich? Used to be able to get mine to take bute (blue sachets) that way. Luckily he will eat Danilon in his feed

 

[gregory123]

Saracens recovery mash (banana flavour) and molasses

 

[Bonnie Allie]

Doesn’t this just do your head in?! I feel for you. We have one that won’t touch anything with even the tiniest bit of bute in it. Even molasses. So this horse has bute paste only.

I can’t be mucking around with those damned sachets.

Have you ever tasted it? It is sooooo bitter that Im not surprised it can’t be disguised.

 

[TPO]

Treacle sandwich

I syringed it when last horse needed dosed twice a day. He also got antibiotics syringed twice a day and for a while steroids syringed twice a day. Great fun...

Unsurprisingly he wasn't a fan but needs must. When a horse needs meds you have to get them in and it is possible to syringe unwilling horses. If he's that bad perhaps get some ACPs or similar to help for the first couple of days?

It's worthwhile taking the time.to.train horses to be syringed using water or apple juice to make times like this easier. Same with injections because it saves a fight at crucial times

 

[Illtellyoulater]

Keep it in the freezer

 

[Not_so_brave_anymore]

I've got one who won't eat the green granules but will eat the white powder (sorry-I can't remember the different brand names!) My current go-to for disguising meds is a small splash of apple cider vinegar.

 

[Pinkvboots]

Get a syringe and peppermint essence from the supermarket add a few drops with some water mix it and syringe it, my 2 will take anything with it now in a syringe.

Get him used to a syringe with just the peppermint first he will soon realise its nice then he will tolerate anything.

 

[Peglo]

I melted extra strong mentos in hot water and made a paste with my ones antibiotics, mixed it with a bit of chaff. The only way I could get mine to eat it.

 

[meleeka]

I just syringe it. My old girl is on Prascend and it’s the only way she’ll take it. Funnily enough she used to be awful to worm, but now it’s part of her daily routine she’s pretty good about it.

 

[fidleyspromise]

My friend used to have to syringe hers into her horse and then a vet told her once the feed is made and ready sprinkle it over the top of the feed and that way it has no taste - her horse eats his like this now.

 

[Griffin]

I always sprinkle it over a damp feed. However, if your horse won't take it like that, you could try syringing it in or mixing it with honey and some chaff. Apple juice on chaff can also work.

 

[cauda equina]

Try Danilon instead

 

[Unicorn]

I have a similarly fussy beast who has just done five days of bute and antibiotics. Turns out the magic combination for him is soaked grass nuts, apple sauce and custard. I think it's enough sugar to counter the bitterness.

 

[chocolategirl]

Thanks everyone! I’ve been chuckling at some of these answers at the lengths we have to go to just to get them to take their meds!??? I’m going to give a few of them a try and see how I go on. Bloomin horses!?‍

 

[tda]

Another one to try is sprinkle it on to something dry, just a chop or simular
Somebody once told me it tastes worse when wet?

 

[AdorableAlice]

Saracens recovery mash (banana flavour) and molasses

Seconded and I make the recovery mash with warm water for a very fussy horse.

 

[SBJT]

Mix it in the feed with apple sauce or molasses. Had this issue with my guy at the weekend, and found either one worked.

 

[ILuvCowparsely]

Might be something here you could try.https://h0rseservices.weebly.com/veterinarymedicines.html

 

[Lammy]

I feel for you! I have the fussiest horse when it comes to bute. He’s currently on a 3 week bute trial along with 44 paracetamol tablets daily. If he even thinks it’s in his feed he won’t touch it. And though he’s ok to worm I think if I syringed it in him I’d get away with it a couple of times but then he’d probably not be caught after. It’s not a great diet but for the sake of 3 weeks he’s having:

Paracetamol mashed into a liquid paste add the bute and pour in some liquid NAF Molasses and mix until it’s all brown not white.
Add handful of chaff to bind together
Handful of Saracens re-leve mix (he loves it as it’s blackcurrant flavour)
Splash of apple juice

Even then sometimes I have to add in some fibrebeet or barley ring mash as he gets suspicious and starts spitting it out and a change of food gets him to eat it.
He also eats it a lot quicker in a pen in his field as he thinks the other horses are going to get it.

This took a lot of trial an error as he’s another that won’t eat cored apples with bute in. I missed one paracetamol tablet one day so slipped the pill into a whole apple. He still managed to spit the half dissolved pill out.

Good luck!!

 

[AShetlandBitMeOnce]

Cut the end off of a syringe so there is no narrow bit or top, pull the plunger back fill it with powder and shoot it in the side of the mouth. The plunger goes all the way through so you don't have any left in the syringe, and it mixes with their saliva so they can't spit it out.

Told that trick by an old Irishman and it's the best thing I have ever been told.

 

[BronsonNutter]

Try this technique for syringing?

 

[littleshetland]

Jam and honey sandwich?

 

[Pinkvboots]

I melted extra strong mentos in hot water and made a paste with my ones antibiotics, mixed it with a bit of chaff. The only way I could get mine to eat it.

Thats fine but they are full of sugar so not great for laminitic or fat horses.

 

[Illtellyoulater]

If syringing, mix with yoghurt

 

[Peglo]

Thats fine but they are full of sugar so not great for laminitic or fat horses.

Yes I know the sugar isn’t ideal. I’m very fortunate that mine doesn’t have lami and getting the antibiotics in her was the most important. OP never mentioned if her horse had lami so I thought I’d share ?

 

[DSB]

Ask your vet for Bute paste and a dosing syringe, I also put a tiny sweet treat in first,so the last flavour they get is tasty.Honey,caramel sauce.apple sauce all work well and there are sugar free versions.I also dose before feed,so they are hungry and know food is following.

 

[Regandal]

Grated carrot - lots of it - mixed through the feed. I think it has a stronger taste than apple.

 

[chocolategirl]

Update ** so last night and this morning, he’s eaten his feeds consisting of hifibre cubes soaked with molasses melted in hot water, grated apple and some hifi light???? my guess is though he’ll cotton on soon and start turning his nose up at it again, but thanks to you guys, I’ve got lots more options to try now! ?

 

[Willowbankstables]

I can only get mine to eat bute by mixing it with coolstance copra. Think the coconuty smell masks it.