Spoilage & Joint Health

Toler got the day off today, and he'll get tomorrow off, too, probably. I did stop out to give him grain (*ahem* his joint supplement *ahem*), which meant I also had to give him a carrot. Yes, he's so spoiled that I can't even stop out to feed him without treating him. Rough life, eh?

He was full of dried mud, of course, and actually sighed when I didn't put his halter on and instead produced his pre-mixed supplement food to dump in his bucket.

Toler gets grain morning and night in a usual ration (it's actually quite a bit). I also give him ~5 oz of Nutrena Empower and ~5 oz of Nutrena LifeDesign Senior feed after every ride, with a scoop of Farnam MaxFlex XR and a scoop of powdered Yucca mixed in with a splash of water. I used to have to mix it with molasses or he'd either refuse to touch it, or he'd spit the supplements out. I slowly weaned him off the molasses and onto the water, which makes me feel a little bit better in the spoiling department. XD Toler keeps like the typical Thoroughbred. His weight and muscle fluctuates at the swish of a tail--especially his top-line, which creates a lot of problems in the saddle department. As it is, he eats a ton of food (even for his body mass) and I still think he could use more weight on his top-line and over his ribs.

It took me a long time to decide on a joint supplement for Toler. I wanted to put him on something now that I'm no longer away for college and work him pretty much every day. We also thought it would help with his hip(s) and overall comfort, considering he's a big boy. Remember, bigger horse doesn't necessarily mean denser bones! I actually did quite a bit of research into the key ingredients of actual joint supplements.

There are a lot of marketing ploys out there--especially where equine joint health is concerned. A lot of people these days are hopping onto a bandwagon of using Omega 3 oils as the sole joint supplement. Omega 3 oils mostly supports skin, coat, hooves, internal tissues, etc. Yes, it does play a role in healthy joint tissues, but as far as my research has turned up (I could be wrong, after all, as I am neither a vet nor an equine nutritionist), Omega 3 isn't specifically geared for joint health. Just because you play football doesn't mean you're the quarterback. (And I can't believe I just made a football analogy...)

When I was looking into local products (I really didn't want to be buying things online every month), I focused the "key players" (in my opinion--again, me =/= expert):
+Yucca: Helps inflammation and joint pain & is safe enough for everyday dosage (note, you do have to be careful if you need to start using Bute/etc for a few days).
+Glucosamine: Helps lubricate the joints and maintain healthy cartilage.
+MSM: Provides sulfur, which is a vital building-block for joints, cartilage, coat, hooves, and many biochemical processes.
+Chondroitin sulfate: Helps joint lubrication and maintain/repair healthy connective tissue.

My breakdown/thinking process:
+I really wanted to give him once-a-day supplements. That way I could add it to the grain that I give him as supplement. Twice a day means that I have to rely on someone giving it to him. Yes, I trust the stable and the people there, but it's easier to just deal with it myself.
+Dosing: Toler is a BIG horse. I usually end up adding an extra half or whole dose just because the dosing instructions on most labels are figured for the weight of an average horse. Toler is not an average horse in any way, shape, form, or, especially, weight. (Toler generally weighs in at 1700 lbs. Average dosing is made for a 1000 lb horse, usually.)
+I liked the idea of buying the individual ingredients and balancing them myself. I wanted to get him on something with MSM, Chondoirin sulfate, and Yucca. It seems to me that Glucosamine and Ch. Sulfate do the same thing, but Ch. Sulfate seems to be more highly regarded as it plays more of a role in the repair as well as maintenance field. I might someday break it down further and buy everything separately and mix it myself (which actually might be more cost-effective).

In the end, I thought it would be fine to go with the MaxFlex XR and add in my own Yucca--it is locally available and more cost effective considering the range of ingredients. MaxFlex contains a balance of glucosamine, chondroitin sulfate, hyaluronic acid, and MSM. My other top contender was Absorbine Flex Plus, which contains a balanced amount of MSM, Glucosamine, and Yucca. The problem with the Absorbine was that it was more expensive, and dosed to be given twice a day, not to mention it has 3 ingredients whereas MaxFlex has 4 (and I add in Yucca). I did initially give Toler twice the dose. Most joint supplements advise a "loading dose" for four weeks to get the supplements readily available in the system, then lowering to a "maintenance dose" to keep things in check. MaxFlex didn't indicate anything like that on it's own label, nor did they indicate what weight their dosage was calculated for (which still annoys me), but I assumed an "average" horse of 1000-1200 lbs. I kept him on my own calculated loading dose (two scoops) for about a month and a half, then lowered it to 1.5 scoops for about a week, and finally down to 1 scoop where he's at right now.

I have noticed a change in Toler since he's been on the supplements--which started Feb. 1st, as we had to wait for him to recover from a Strangles vaccine reaction (which I will post about someday). His hocks creaked less when I was warming up, he seemed to warm-up faster/smoother, he had a bit more spring and power to his step, he did generally seem happier, and he was more willing to work at lateral movements and other more joint-stressing movements. There wasn't a miraculous change, but it was noticeable to me, and my trainer has commented a few times that he's moving more freely.