Comments on: Question of the Week: Keeping Joints Healthy

By: Lexi

Lexi — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 16:27:30 +0000

M S,
It is never too early to start your horse on a joint supplement, and it could prevent serious issues for the horse later on, as even 6 year-olds can get arthritis or other joint issues. The best preventative supplement you can give your horse is pure msm. It does not have to be expensive either; one $15 container of msm lasts me about a month for 2 horses. Glucosamine is excellent as well. I hope this helps!

By: M S

M S — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 23:12:48 +0000

My horse is only 6 years old. He gets daily exercise and is quite fit but not an extreme athlete. I would like to do preventative care for his joints but should I really start this early? Or could I wait till he is in his teens?

By: TRAIL RIDER

TRAIL RIDER — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 07:36:21 +0000

HI AGAIN, LEXI. YEP, I DO HAVE A HC PROFILE. 3 ACTUALLY. IM NOT ON THE PROFILES MUCH, JUST HERE AND THERE. I MAINLY CHECK THE HOMEPAGE OF NEWS AND TIPS. BUT HERE’S MY HORSE’S PAGE NUMBER ANYWAYS, #191394. STOP IN SOMETIME!! (DONT FORGET TO TELL ME WHO YOU ARE IN YOUR COMMENT!)

By: Emma

Emma — Sun, 19 Jun 2011 12:16:21 +0000

This is a great artical

By: Lexi

Lexi — Sat, 18 Jun 2011 16:18:34 +0000

You’re very welcome, TRAIL RIDER. Glad I could help. A lot of supplements are less expensive online than at a tack store, but you have to remember shipping costs too.
Do you have a profile on Horse Channel?

By: TRAIL RIDER

TRAIL RIDER — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 10:52:09 +0000

HI LEXI, THANKS FOR YOUR COMMENT AND EXPLAINING YOUR EXPERIENCE, AND THOUGHTS, WITH THE MSM. I SEE MYSELF STARTING MY HORSE ON A PREVENTATIVE JOINT SUPPLEMENT (BEFORE ANY JOINT ISSUES START!) IN THE NEAR FUTURE!

By: Lexi

Lexi — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 06:03:52 +0000

PKL & TRAIL RIDER:
Joint supplements such as msm and glucosamine are excellent to aid in the prevention and treatment of joint diseases, injuries, etc. and you don’t have to break your budget to get them. You can get inexpensive brands and, for prevention, feed your horse the recommended daily dose on the label. But if the horse already has a joint issue, his body may need more than the recommended dose to reverse the issue-which still does not have to be expensive. A $15 container of msm lasts my 2 horses almost a month.
I guarantee that joint supplements will work for any horse-as long as the horse is given the correct amount for his needs. For example, say you have a 1,300 pound large draft breed with arthritis and you give him the recommended daily dose on the label of a container of msm. You don’t notice any change in his arthritis since you’ve been giving the msm. That is because the recommended dosage is for an average sized 1,000 pound horse, and because you have a large horse and you are giving him msm to Treat the arthritis, he would probably need twice the recommended dosage. This can be the same with an average sized horse, because some horses’ bodies just require more of a certain nutrient to aid in the treatment of a disease or injury-the recommended dosage on the label is a General guidline for Most horses. Another example, my 20 year-old, 15 hand, between 900 and 1,000 pound horse had mild arthritis throughout his whole body. Through the use of massage, giving him twice the recommended dose of msm, and two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar (which is good for the joints) every day, it only took a few months before the arthritis was completely reversed.
As for the age to start a horse on preventative supplements, any age. The sooner the better. The amount you give them does sometimes depend on their activity level, though. For example, a barrel racer would need more msm (or whatever joint supplement you are using) than a pleasure horse.
I hope this helps you both and let me know if you have any more questions!

By: TRAIL RIDER

TRAIL RIDER — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 06:51:44 +0000

GOOD QUESTION PKL. ALSO, AT WHAT AGE IS A GOOD AGE TO START PREVENTATIVE SUPPLEMENTS? DOES IT MAINLY DEPEND ON THEIR ACTIVITY/COMPETITION LEVEL, OR IS THERE A GENERAL AGE?
IT WOULD BE NICE TO HAVE A CHART WITH RESULTS FROM STUDIES OF DIFFERENT JOINT AND JOINT/COMBO SUPPLEMENTS. THAT WAY WE COULD SEE HOW THEY PERFORM, THE TOP BRANDS AND THE CHEAPER BRANDS. NOT ALL OF US CAN AFFORD THESE TOP DOLLAR SUPPLEMENTS. (SUCH AS PLATINUM PERFORMANCE) SO SEEING WHAT LESS EXPENSIVE BRANDS DO ACTUALLY HELP WOULD BE NICE. YES, WE ALL WANT THE BEST FOR OUR HORSES, BUT WE DONT WANT TO GO MORE BROKE THAN WE ALREADY ARE TRYING TO CARE FOR THEM.

By: PKL

PKL — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 05:17:10 +0000

I did talk to my vet about this very same subject, and was told that the supplements for joints are about the same, they work on some horses and not others, so how would a person really know if the prevention supplements will work or not??