Re: Stroke & Bute

[Alice Morgan <acmorgan@gte.net>]

Dorothy--I own a boarding stable here in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area, and I have
had to administer bute to horses on a long term basis a few times.  I have a
26yr old (client's) mare who is arthritic and has been on bute for about 4
years now with absolutely no gastric problems.  My vet has me giving her 2
grams/day for 5 days , then 2 days off to give the stomach a rest.  She gets
her bute Mon - Fri, and has the weekends off.   We have had no problems with
this method.  I administer the bute by crushing it in a mortar and pestle,
mixing it with applesauce and molasses, and putting it in a syringe.  Its much
cheaper than the paste.  Hope this helps!  Alice

Dorothy Beebe wrote:

> I'm posting this for a friend--She's looking for help and opinions....
>
> She has an older (30+ I think) gelding named Dan.  In 1994 she had her
> horse checked out by a vet at UCD after being told by her local vet that he
> had had a stroke.  The UCD vet thought that Dan had some sort of
> "neurological" problem, but says that a stroke is very unusual in horses.
>
> Her questions, though, mainly concern bute.  Her horse is taking 1/2 gram a
> day, and has been for several years.  She's weaned him down that far, but
> can't seem to get him off of it all together, as the symptoms from the
> "stroke" reoccur.  She's concerned about having him on this for so long and
> doesn't want to cause any more problems with his health.
>
> Have any of you had experience with long term bute usage?  Or any
> suggestions about things she could be doing to minimize any damage it may
> cause?
>
> dorothy & elly
> taylorsville, ca