Horsey antihistamines - help!

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BBP

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My vet just prescribed me cyproheptadine but I can't find it anywhere on line. Obviously I'll call vet on Monday and find out where they recommend for dispensing it, but I'd like to get it this weekend if I can. Does anyone else use it? Where do you get it?

I took the pony in yesterday for a lameness work up but typically he was so high on adrenaline that he was sound as a pound! But he was absolutely out of his mind, running around the vet stable, dragging the poor vet nurse in the trot up, throwing himself around in the lunge, trying to ditch me when I rode. Eyes were rolling, lips drawn back to bare teeth, nostrils drawn back. Every time he has been recently he's been a star, two weeks ago his bloods for liver and muscle were normal. Only thing that's changed is his pollen allergy seems to have kicked in as he was like this crazed creature all last summer til October. So we are reasoning that he may look lame as he's so damn tense through his entire body that he can't move properly, his back is like a plank of wood despite feeling amazing just a few weeks ago.

I'm waiting for nose nets to be delivered, and we are going to start on antihistamines to get him comfy, then wean off them if I manage to keep a nose net on him in the field if it helps enough.
 
I know a few people who feed human antihistamines to their horses to help with head shaking and sweet itch. They've had great results!

Not sure if the amounts but would guess it would be about 4x what you'd need for a person.
 
I had a horse that used Piriton. Not sure of the active ingredients, but he started with 10 morning and night, and went up until the symptoms subsided.

The Piriton was from the vet.
 
I use the Cetirizine from Pharmacy first with good results for sweet itch too. We use one tablet per 70kg.
 
My little section a is like this almost unrideable in summer. Towards the end of last season I began to be able to manage it with a hood on in the field. Nose net and ear bonnet when ridden along with vaseline around the nostrils and piriton before riding
 
The good news is lloyds pharmacy have said they can order it for me as it isn't sold in uk for human hay fever. Bad news is a 2 week script is £260!!!! I'm going to have to query this with my vet as clearly that is not an affordable way to deal with hay fever! Prescription is for 32 4mg tablets twice a day - This pony is making me and my bank balance cry!
 
I give Tiny Fuzzy (33 inches tall) 10 Piriton twice a day at present (on vet reccomendation), can get it via vet, but we found it on line at around £12-15 for the 500 tablets tub.
In a month or so, this will drop to 5 x twice a day, unless the buttercups really steam ahead.
I find we can cut right back by early July and stop by August.
 
Those of you using cetirizine/piriton, are you getting good results? Especially for horses that go a bit mad or depressed with their allergies?
 
Just got a call from the pharmacy who have confirmed with pill manufacturer that cost for 2 weeks worth at prescribed dose is £305!! I've asked them to hold fire on ordering til I've checked with my vet if different medicine might work. I'd be bankrupt half way through summer at that rate.
 
KatPT said:
Just got a call from the pharmacy who have confirmed with pill manufacturer that cost for 2 weeks worth at prescribed dose is £305!! I've asked them to hold fire on ordering til I've checked with my vet if different medicine might work. I'd be bankrupt half way through summer at that rate.
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jesus wept. Nothing useful to add, but I do feel for you, seems to be just endless bills :(
 
Thank you. It's handy that I used to have a healthy savings account (I'm sure my gran won't mind her inheritance being spent on the pony) I think a second job is in order soon. Waiting for nose nets to turn up so I can try them in the field for him.
 
I've not seen any seen any side effects from the cetirizine and it really helps our two with bad sweet itch and cost about £12 each for the whole season. It helped my friend's headshaker too.
 
I use piriton at 10 tablets twice a day although can increase to 15 if needed. There is a marked difference if I run out. I buy online at chemist4u, 500 tablets for about £10 delivered. Ceterezine didn't work as well as piriton for my cob. He is a sweetitch pony with multiple allergies.
 
Thanks. Did you try them on your own initiative or on vets recommendation?

Pony was really tense to ride yesterday...but to be fair when I untacked a big spider fell out from under the saddle pad, it must have been hiding in the fleece, so maybe it was tickling him?! Will try again now minus spider and see if it's spider or allergies to blame.

He doesn't have sweet itch or other allergic reactions and isn't a manic head shaker but gets really over reactive and looks like he has a banging headache all the time. Rubs his nose a lot. It's a bright still sunny day today so we will see how he gets on.
 
Vets recommendation. We keep him on them now as otherwise he ends up on steroids.
Vet also recommended aloe Vera which I'm very impressed with and aqueous horse shampoo has really proven it's worth
Not sure what works how but combined I have a much happier pony then without. X
 
Another one it that uses ceterizine. 450kg pony on 10 tablets a day. Started them in Feb will probably finish about Oct. Horse geys really really sore weepy eyed nut is easily managed with antihitamines and a fly mask when turned out. I pay 89p for 30 from B and M xx
 
Great, thank you. Even without spider things were not good today and he came back a sweaty stressed mess, headshaking even with a nose net on. The stress of allergy I think sets off his stress triggered muscle myopathy which makes him more stressed and leads to vicious cycle.
 
I also always keep certrizine in my first aid kit as when my old mare came up in what looked like nettle rash spontaneously on several occasions vet told me to use those! 1 or 2 doses usually sorted her out so always keep it to hand now!
 
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