Alternatives to bute

[Nevenka van Niekerk]

My filly sprained her off-fore quite badly on Monday. I called out the vet as I knew that she would be needing anti-inflammatories. She could hardly put any weight on it. The leg was so swollen that the vet suspected that she had injured the deep flexor tendon. Now that the swelling has gone down it looks more like the suspensory ligament. Well she had a shot of Fynadine and was a different horse by the next morning and the vet gave me 4 days worth of Bute. By Wednesday you could hardly see anything wrong with her. I have been bandaging her for extra support. But yesterday when I arrived at the yard she had done herself in again as she was quite lame again. I cannot keep her on box rest. She is a 2 year old and gets very upset when seperated. I have put her in a small paddock 20x 40 with an old mare. They behave themselves very quietly, but when she sees me for example put feed out for the geldings she will canter over and have a look. Drives me insane. Now her Bute is finished and although she has shown a marked improvement it worries me that she is still lame. Will this take time? Can I give her some Devil's Claw. Can anyone suggest any other treatment. We also had her Bemered for 3 days after the accident. Just paranoid as I hate seeing her in pain. Although I think I am in more pain than she is as she is quite perky.

[Andree Lewarne]

Dalene gave me Pharmacalm to use with my old Arab mare as an alternative to Bute, as she was worried about the effect on her kidneys. It worked very well when the farrier had to lift the very sore back leg to do the hoof, and also when she went and fell down and re-hurt the hip. It is most definitely far less "dangerous" than bute. Also, keep in mind that if there is still discomfort, then she will be less likely to fling herself about. If you mask that, then the natural inhibitor to excess movement is removed, and that is when they really do stupid things. Good luck! Maybe you need some strong drink for your pain!

[Debbie Marshall]

I think Andree has the answer!! Make it a triple.

On a serious note the wisdom with regards to the use of anti=inflammatories and pain killers for such an injury is very debatable as they certainly can do more damage when not in such discomfort - just as Andree says. Box rest to my mind is a no-no but then I am completely anti stables anyway.

Cold water, cold water and more cold water, bandage for support as you have done and then let nature do the rest. You could give some Devils Claw if you really have to but it is a health tonic too so may cause some high jinx.

Their response to pain never ceases to amaze me - they just carry on.

Maybe - have some more wine - smile and do the same!!!!

[Andree Lewarne]

On a completely different track to your filly, but also with regard to Bute : I correspond with a friend who lives in the UK and has a very aged ex-hunter/ TB who chews his joints. He is on 2xBute daily, as the vet says he is in pain. When he is on the Bute he stops chewing at his legs. Has anyone ever heard of anything like this? I was quite shocked when I read this, and of course my first reaction is - why keep him going if he is in such obvious pain? But I ca'nt really tell someone I only know through e-mails she should put her horse down.... Any comments, please?

[Debbie Marshall]

This is quite shocking as Bute only masks the problem. One would think that in the UK more could be done to discover the 'whys' of the problem.

Whilst I am not in any kind of hurry to ever use Bute unless it is essential and there is no doubt at all that any kind of drug is detrimental to the system, we would do well to remember (particularly if we don't wish to be driven to drink!!!!) that before Bute became a forbidden substance many horses lived on it and competed on it for a good portion of their lives without showing the side effects we are worried about after two or three doses.

Perhaps we need to remember to keep things in perspective a little more than we do.

When we are ill and we take a trip to the doctor we don't think twice about staying on the prescribed medication for a week or more.

Chemicals are no good for any creature but many times we are grateful for their existence and are willing to pay the price for the comfort that they bring.

As the horse in question is elderly, the quality of his life has been improved. The 'quantity' of his remaining life is likely to be affected little by the Bute.

[Nevenka van Niekerk]

As far as my filly goes, I am absolutely distraught. Going to try get a 4x4 paddock up today to try contain her a little more. She is in a paddock of about 20x30 and as soon as she feels better then she motors around and we are back to square one. Got Traumeel to feed her yesterday. But when I got there last night I just couldnt cope. She is VERY lame. The vet is convinced it was just strain to the ligament (the extent of the strain we don't know) because after 2 days of but she came right sound. But as I say she must have re-injured it and we are back to square one. He has given me some more Bute and DMSO. So I left the bandages off last night and put the DMSO on. The leg looks fatter to me this morning although she is way more comfortable. I try to not give her the Bute on an empty stomach (like us when we take anti-inflammatories), but I feel I can't wait and watch until the Herbals kick in. I am feel sick I am so upset. Does the DMSO aggravate the situation to draw out the inflammation or is the swelling supposed to go right down quickly? I don't know the stuff. Also how long will she be so terribly sore for. I feel like she is suffering and I cant bear it. I don't care if her leg stays fat, I just want her well again. Otherwise she feels well. She calls when she sees me, her appetite is very good and she still bullies the old mare out the way to get to her haynet. I just feel awful. What would you do? Please help!

[Debbie Marshall]

Silly filly!!!

The Traumeel is a great start. I would use Arnica rather than the DMSO but that is the anti chemical me speaking. I would get her some Rus Tox and Ruta Gravis for ligaments and tendons and hose three or four times a day.

She will be well and she will stay well because as far as she is concerned there is nothing wrong with her. So her leg hurts a bit! Think of yourself in a similar situation. You have the understanding that the limb needs to rest but as far as the rest of you goes you are just fine and often as frustrated as can be because of the stuff you can't do. She doesn't understand the rest bit and so experiences no frustration.

Because she is so young her healing ability is phenominal. It's almost as tho they just remake the bit that they have damaged. I have had youngsters do similar things. The healing process can take quite a while. Some are sorted in a couple of weeks while others linger for much longer - up to three months some times. The fabulous thing about it is that once they are healed there is nothing to see or feel in the area of injury. There have been times when I have thought that the injury was so severe that the horse would be lucky to have a hacking career and every time they come 100% sound and pass vettings with flying colours.

My treatment for these injuries is always: Cold water, Rus Tox, cold water, Ruta Gravis, cold water, more cold water and time. I avoid changes in routine and very rarely use anti inflammatories.

The most important thing for you to do is to stay positive about the situation. Your positive energy is a very important part of the healing process. Your worry sends out the wrong vibration.

Best of luck from the strange lady in Knysna!

[Nevenka van Niekerk]

We actually had a Boerboel who had arthritis and used to chew her joints as well. She was permanently on MSM and a joint supplement to help her. And while on these supplements she no longer did this. Definitely a sign of pain. Sometimes I tend to think that quality of life is better than quantity. So I think that if this helps him get through the day and he is totally well otherwise, give it a bash.