How much work on bute?

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elsielouise

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Just wondered if anyone keeps a horse going on bute? I've been offered a 6 year old that has arthritic hocks but the vet says can probably be kept fit enough to hunt on bute?


Is this a recipe for heartache do you think?
 
D*** shame. Is a fantastic horse and I suspect the owners will 'get rid of it' if they can't find it a home. Vet did say that stgeroid injections into the hock can often keep them sound for years but I am no expert on this kind of treatment so just researching

I couuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuld take this horse and it couuuuuuuuuuuld live out as a companion for one of mine but... what to do for the best. don't really want another pet so would love it to be able to work.
 
I have a 19 year old HW hunter - given to us when he was 13 as his owner was dying and wanted Bruno to have a good hunting home for life! He's NOT a horse who would retire well!

He already had arthritic changes and I started him on a good joint supplement. He stayed sound and hunting 3 days a fortnight on that - until he was 17 when he went very lame with high articular ringbone in a hind fetlock.

That was treated with high level bute for 6 weeks - plus a change to an even better joint supplement. After 6 weeks I started reducing the bute - down to 1 a day.

Two years on, he is still hunting one day a week on one bute a day and his joint supplement. I never let him right down - through the summer he hacks out quietly 6 days a week. He has a LARGE stable to minimise the risks of him stiffening up (15' x 23'). With any luck, he'll do another couple of seasons.

Sensible daily work is the BEST treatment for arthritis - and chances are that with a good joint supplement, and sensible management, he could hunt on one bute a day or less. Obviously, it's a risk - if the arthritis got worse, you'd have to up the bute which MIGHT cause kidney problems eventually.

I don't see a problem with using bute to give a horse a chance at a useful job and a good life. After all, what is the alternative for these horses. Retirement generally doesn't help an arthritic horse - they move around less and less, and get stiffer and stiffer!
 
If you take him and accept that he's a companion, then you could alway view anything else you get from him (i.e. hunting) as a bonus, and then you wont be disappointed when you cant hunt him anymore.

If that makes sense? But i wouldnt buy him as your dream hunting pony because you'll be so upset when he cant do it anymore

xxxxx
 
Thank you that is interesting to hear. This horse is due to have x rays tomorrow to confirm the diangosis and plan treatment so I am waiting to talk to the vet. If they seriously think the horse could be managed I will likely give it a go. It is a super little thing and so willing.

Any one else with any experience?
 
My mare is LOU due to bone spavin in her hocks and I'd have no qualms about using bute to keep her hacking out happily - she's not a horse who would take retirement well either and I fully agree that gentle exercise is best for arthritis. My mare is sound without any painkillers so far but it is something I'm bearing in mind for the future.

However, taking on a horse who's only six and already needs bute to work is another matter IMO. I'm not going to go into the rights and wrongs of whether its fair to hunt a horse on bute - I'm just saying that at such a young age and already with problems starting, it does sound, in your words, like a recipe for heartache. If the horse is free and you have a bottomless purse, maybe....
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Mmmmmmm its a tricky one.

My 22 year old pony has a bute a day to keep her ticking over but she's only light hacking.

I think i'd be very wary about taking on a 6yr old who already needs bute. Having said that my pony has been on a bute a day for about the last 15 years with no issues (touch wood!!)

I think the best thing to do is take the vets advice and weigh up whether you think this horse is for you.

I hope ti all works out for you!!
 
There are many situations where an older horse can be kept comfortable and useful on bute but I'd be somewhat suspicious of a horse having that much trouble, that young, especially if there is no particular reason i.e an injury, for that level of damage.

However, it might be a situation where the horse is being worked on bute to fuse the joint, in which case he might go on to be perfectly fine for your purposes. You're really going to have to discuss the situation with your vet and decide on the pros and cons for this particular horse.
 
The horse is free yes and although almost no one has a bottomless pit of money the cost isn't too much of an issue if maintenance is bute and or steroid injections. My considering taking it is really only because I would hate to see this horse shot IF it can work and do my job as I'm looking for something to hunt for my husband anyway and he won't want go more than once a fortnight at the most and I'll end up keeping it fit.
 
If as flamehead says you are happy to take him on as a companion with a view to anything else you can do with im being a bonus then I would gofor it.

On the otherhand, maybe you could throw him out to the field for a bit and see if he comes right. Often with arthitic hocks, horses bacome sound once the joint/s fuse but in the intervening time may be quite lame. Some of course will always be unsound. Working a horse during the fusing period susually helps to speed up the process. you could maintain him on bute until the end of the hunting season (providing he is very comfortable when on bute) and aim to inject his joints at the end of the seaon and turn away for a few months. Or inject his hocks now and you will lose a minimum of 2-3 weeks of the season )providing he actually becomes sound afterwards).
Obviously the most important thing is his welfare. If you have the facilities to turn him away shpould be become too lame to hunt etc then Id go ahead (with careful consideration of course).
 
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There are many situations where an older horse can be kept comfortable and useful on bute but I'd be somewhat suspicious of a horse having that much trouble, that young, especially if there is no particular reason i.e an injury, for that level of damage.



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I agree. At 6 years old it is less likely as a result of wear and tear and more likely to be genetic. Joint supplements dont repair damage but can help minimise further deterioration. And bute doesnt treat the cause either, it treats the symptoms.
If a horse is genetically diseased then there is only so much you can do. Sounds like you are doing your homework though so at least you can make an informed decision and weigh up the risks. Some horses are worth risking
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My horse got diagnosed with bone spavin in one hock at only 8 years old. I kept him in work with one bute, no jumping, but hacking and schooling including dressage. We then think his other hock went too (but we didnt have that confirmed by xray as vet said no point). He was lame unless he was on bute for a while, he didnt come right for a year or two but now touch wood hes been sound for a long time and hes no longer on bute, just keep him on cortaflex daily just to be on safe side.

I think it could be worth giving it a try especially if you would have him as a companion otherwise. I chucked mine out in the field for 3 months and that did him the world of good, so that could be worth a try as others have said.
 
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