Fatty acid supplementation

Cocosoya

So we've all heard about fatty acids, right? Omega-3, omega-6, omega-9... Fatty acids have been shown to reduce inflammation (good for joints as well as other issues), help with skin issues, and to boost health in a myriad of ways. We can take them as fish oil, but I'm hesitant to give any animal-derived products to my herbivores, and really, that would be a lot of fish oil tablets.

The cheapest way to supplement fatty acids that I've found is Cocosoya, a delightful-smelling supplement made of coconut and soy oils. In 5-gallon jugs, it will last one horse for months (so much cheaper than the majority of supplements out there) and you can buy a handy pump that dispenses the oil in convenient one-ounce increments. Pump one (or two, or four...whatever would be good for your horse) squirt over your horse's meal, and you're done.

You can find it here:
http://cocosoya.com/

and they'll even send you a free sample to make sure your horse will eat it, before you invest in a jug. Just so you know, though, I have a really picky off-track TB, and she doesn't object to Cocosoya, so I bet most horses will eat it too.

Ordering Generic Dewormer

Online/Catalog Ordering of Cheap Dewormer
Pour-On Dewormer
Syringe Bits
Tube Deworming Desensitization

Many of us follow a deworming plan as laid out by our vet. The vet knows what worms are likely to be in our area, the best season to attack those worms, and also knows the likely worm risk to our horses. A closed herd has much less risk than a horse at a boarding barn with a frequently-changing clientele, or a horse who does a lot of traveling.

Ordering Dewormer Cheap

Once we have a good deworming plan in place, the obvious next step is to acquire the dewormer. The most expensive source of dewormer will be your vet, followed by local feed and tack stores. However, ordering dewormer through a catalog or online can be downright CHEAP. If you buy the generic instead of the brand name, it's tremendously inexpensive--sometimes the brand names go on sale, too.

Prices do fluctuate, but as of this posting, Country Supply (horse.com) has:
* Fenbendazole (Panacur, Safegard) for $5.98/tube
* Ivermectin (Zimectrin, Equell) for $2.29/tube
* Moxidectin (Quest) for $8.59/tube (there's no generic for Moxidectin yet; I can't wait until they can put out a generic!)
* Oxibendazole (Anthelcide) for $5.79/tube
* Pyrantel (Strongid, Exodus) for $2.99/tube

I can sometimes stock up on really cheap dewormer, and dose my horses for less than $3 each time, year round.

Short Dates

Cheap dewormer may not always be the best option, though. Sometimes dewormer on sale is short-dated: it's going to expire soon. So you can't stock up and have enough for the whole year, you should only buy enough to give right away. Before ordering, check to see if they say the dewormer is short-dated, or call and ask.

Pour-On Dewormer

Depending on the horse and the owner, you may find it worth the price to give pelleted/pour-on dewormer, instead. There are daily dewormers (such as Strongid C) and there are also "regular" dewormers, given like paste, that you can mix in with your horse's feed. They're typically flavored with alfalfa, so horses will eat them much more readily than they will take a paste in a tube. These pour-on dewormers are 2 or 3 times the cost of paste...but the convenience can be worth the cost, especially if you have a horse who doesn't tube easily.

Deworming bit

If you have a horse who doesn't tube easily, it may be worth buying a deworming "bit" such as the "Easy Horse Wormer" to make tubing easier. These aren't expensive, and over time will cost less than continuing to buy pour-on dewormer. The convenience of the pour-on dewormer, though, really can be worth the cost!

Desensitization

You can also desensitise the horse to tubes, to make it easier to give him paste dewormer. Take a clean deworming tube or a new large syringe, and fill it with a tasty thick liquid, like watered-down applesauce or alfalfa slush. Squeeze a little bit out so it's sitting on the outside of the tip. Offer it to your horse, trying to get him to taste what's on the tube. If he gets a taste or two, eventually he should be much more cooperative about taking that tube.

If you bring him a tube of something tasty every day, he'll get into a habit of sucking down the tube of tasty stuff and swallowing without hesitation. You can eventually sneak a dewormer tube in among the treat tubes--it may help to give him a tube of good stuff just before and after the dewormer tube.

Vaccines

Ordering Vials of Vaccines
Giving IM injections
Using the vial before it expires
Keeping the vial safely refrigerated
Considering giving different vaccines a week or two apart

This is a pretty simple tip for saving money, but it can still save quite a lot. You can buy and administer most vaccines yourself, for a much lower cost. There is, however, a lot to consider when doing so.

Even if you don't have your vet administer vaccines, it's still a good idea to discuss a vaccine program with them. They may have some valuable input; for example, here in Florida, it's better to vaccinate for diseases carried by mosquitoes early, perhaps February or March. And then we revaccinate 6 months later, because there is just THAT much exposure to mosquitoes and mosquito-borne diseases.

Your vet will be able to advise you on regional timing for your vaccinations, to make them as effective as possible. Your vet will be also aware of regional issues for which you may/may not need a vaccine, like Potomac Horse Fever.

The absolute cheapest way to give vaccines is to buy a vial of 5 or 7 way vaccines, measure out the right dosage, and administer to your horse (as an intra-muscular injection). There are a few issues, though:

* Some people aren't comfortable giving IM injections. Your vet may be able to help teach you.

* If you have only one horse, the vial may expire before you use it all. The vial needs to be refrigerated; if you're in an area with frequent power outages, you may end up with a bad vial. (Don't guess--if you lose power and anything in the fridge goes bad, assume the vial did too.)

To use a vial more quickly while still getting the lower cost, it may be worth splitting a vial with one or several friends.

* Recent studies suggest that giving multiple vaccines at the same time may not be as healthy. If you're giving all your own vaccines, you can buy them individually, and give the various vaccine a week or two apart. This is more expensive--buying individual vaccines instead of a 5-way or a 7-way--but may be much more healthy for your horse.

Sand Colic

Psyllium: "Equate" type Metamucil or unflavored plain psyllium

My vet tells me that, of all the products on the market, the one with the highest actual psyllium content is generic Metamucil from Walmart. She says the sand colic prevention products we buy at feed stores mostly contain fillers and flavoring. If you get the sugar-free, there's even more psyllium per volume.

If you're going to be feeding a psyllium product for sand colic prevention, why not just go ahead and feed the highest psyllium content, and skip the additives? As a matter of fact, if you look around, you can even find unflavored straight psyllium, which might be even cheaper in bulk. "Equate" sugar-free psyllium is pretty darn cheap, though, and easy to go pick up when you're about to run out.

Should you feed a sand colic preventative? How much should you feed? Well, for these questions you need to talk it over with your vet. No matter how much you save on other expenses, your horse does still need a rabies booster and Coggins test once a year, and only a vet can do that. It's good to have a relationship with a veterinarian, so you can discuss things like deworming programs and sand colic prevention at your yearly exam/rabies/Coggins visit. You should acquaint your vet with your horse's living conditions and feeding programs, so they can properly advise you on things like sand colic prevention.

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In addition to sand colic prevention, we find all sorts of uses for psyllium.

My OTTB mares developed chronic diarrhea 5 or 6 years ago. The vet said it looked like a mild case of food allergy, and that she had success with using psyllium for such cases. Following her nstructions, we also had tremendous success. The mares' diarrhea cleared up in a few days, and as long as they stayed on it they were fine. Incidentally, I mix soaked beet pulp into every meal, which makes the supplements stick to the feed and ensures they eat it.

Once the allergen was gone (apparently, something in the grass or even a weed that one year) we took them off it and they stayed fine--but now I use it for EVERYthing. I give the horses psyllium twice a week for sand prevention (generally Sat and Sun). I give them psyllium if something is changing in the feed regimen and I want to make sure their tummies are settled. I have a 2-yo filly prone to gas (yes, lots of discussions with the vet, no permanent solution yet) and I give it to her if she's acting gassy. One of my mares seems to develop diarrhea off and on every winter, for no discernible reason, and psyllium typically clears it up (otherwise it will just keep on until the end of winter).

If the grass sees to be growing a bit fast, or I'm going to start them back on a rested pasture, I dish it out. If we have to change hay suppliers, I dish it out. If the weather is likely to be disruptive to their grazing, if they need more hay than usual, if the latest bag of feed seems a little more heavy on one of the ingredients (oil, corn, whatever), I dish out the psyllium. It's so CHEAP, so easy, and won't do them any harm, to just grab the jar and give them a scoop if things seem questionable. This is so much cheaper than a vet visit for a gas colic would be.

I go through a lot of this stuff! But it really helps keep the sensitive tummies a little more stable.

For more information about sand colic, you can check out my article: Sand Colic.

Injuries

Welcome to the first post on Cheap Horse Stuff! I'll discuss ways we can make our horsey dollars stretch farther while still doing the best we can for our four-hooved friends. Let's talk about what's cheap, what works without having to spend our whole paychecks on a tiny amount that'll last half a day, oh, and what's WORTH spending that extra few dollars to get the name brand or really good stuff.

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Triple Antibiotic Ointment
SWAT
Hydrocortisone cream

Horses are walking self-destruct machines. Many of us have a well-stocked first aid kit, and, among other things, we have a million varieties of first aid creams and ointments. Most of these are pretty expensive. Since a horse is pretty much guaranteed to slice himself up at least one day out of three, we go through a lot of those creams and ointments.

You know, after a while, I just started using Triple Antibiotic Ointment--you know, the stuff you get at the drug store. The generic is cheap, it's quite effective, it's easy to store and to use (unlike, say, a tub of Furazone--oh, and it's not carcinogenic either). Clean the wound with something (Betadine, hydrogen peroxide, Nolvasan) and slap the antibiotic ointment over the whole thing. If it doesn't need stitches (or other veterinary attention), it's fine!

I do still use SWAT on any injury that isn't covered by a bandage. Here in Florida, year-round, we need that bug repellent to keep the nasties out of open wounds. SWAT is gentle enough to be applied directly on wounds. (I also use it around eyes, to keep the flies and gnats away, if the horse won't be wearing a flymask.) SWAT is such nice stuff, and what a delightful scent.

If proud flesh is a concern (very moist wounds, wounds below the knee, etc) we horse people often use Wonder Dust. Wonder Dust is *such* a pain to apply; there's a lot of waste too. Did you know you can use hydrocortisone cream instead, and it's more effective? Yes indeed, and CHEAP too.

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Of course, there are injuries that require a vet. They might be serious wounds and need checking out, they might need stitches, the horse might be lame and need other attention over and above the visible injury. But as horse owners, we're all too familiar with the minor cuts and scrapes that every horse can acquire in day-to-day living.

It's easy to take GOOD care of these day-to-day injuries, without breaking the bank.

For more discussion of first aid kits, you can check out my article: The First Aid Kit.