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Discussion on Reserpine and Ace
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New Member:
Equus75
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Posted on Saturday, Dec 17, 2005 - 1:12 pm:
Greetings, all.
I have a very hot mare that has become more and more difficult to manage with the onset of colder weather and the subsequent lack of turnout time. My vet has given me some reserpine to administer to her, and I'm wondering if it can be used in conjunction with Ace for days that I want to take her out on the trail to get her out of the arena.
I'd been giving her Ace when taking her out of the ring, as she tends to become overstimulated and panics and bolts at the slightest sound. Having another horse with her helps to an extent, but she never seems to relax... Ace has been the only thing to help, but I hate having to give it to her so frequently (I've been riding 3 days in the ring and 3 on the trail). At any rate, I want to give reserpine a try, but am skeptical as to how well it will help when she's out in the park.
During warmer months, when she's outside more, she tends to be very well behaved, and doesn't even need to be given Ace unless I venture out in the park alone. I'm therefore pretty confident that these behavior issues are connected with the change in weather and the lessened amount of turnout. She'd been used to getting at least 8 hrs. outside each day, but since moving to my current barn, she gets only 2 hrs out in the winter...that is, if the ground isn't frozen. :S
If any of you have any insight and advice, I'm all ears.
Thanks!
Dawn
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Member:
Twhgait
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Posted on Sunday, Dec 18, 2005 - 10:23 am:
Hi Dawn! Sounds like you answered your own question, at least behaviorally! You mentioned lack of turn out during the winter months and that's what I also focused on instantly. Is this a necessity? Also, how much is she getting in the way of concentrates? If she needs to be stalled now, can you cut back on her concentrate (assuming she keeps well and has no weight issues and you can feed plenty of hay)? She might benefit from 24hr turnout and limited concentrated energy. I'm just speaking from my experience. I had a horse that was similar to yours (bolting, spooking, etc from the minute the stall door was opened. She was a wide-eyed psycho-dangerous too) and at that time she was getting almost 10lbs a day of straight oats and stalled more then not. If she DID go outside, which was rare, it was only for a few hours. We moved her after not getting the barn manager to work with us on a more appropriate diet/turnout schedule and took her to a friends where she only got grass hay and 24/7 turn out. She never acted spooky again, but her bolting behavior continued. At that point I think it was more of a training issue vs. a feeding issue although some mares are just like that  . Just my 2 cents and experience with mares! If it's at all possible, I'd start with that first and then address medications.
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New Member:
Equus75
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Posted on Sunday, Dec 18, 2005 - 11:53 am:
Right now she's on 1/4 scoop alfalfa pellets (approx 1 1/2 cups) and supplements (Dynamite Plus, Recovery, 1 bute, Mare Magic, and selenium). She's also fed timothy hay. I may cut her pellets down to a handful so that she gets something to mix with her supplements.
Unfortunately the turnout has been very limited since the ground has frozen in 2 of our 3 paddocks, so there are 11 horses rotated through the one paddock each day (although horses that have been ridden get less priority than those that haven't - my mare goes out for as much time as possible regardless of how much she's ridden). Thankfully, it's supposed to warm up this next week so the turnout should improve to where she can get 3 to 4 hours out minimum.
Unfortunately, I don't feel I can move her to another barn, as I'm working at my barn to cover board costs, and can't really afford to pay board elsewhere (I'm in an area where $500 / mo is CHEAP, unless I want to drive an hour each way to see her). I also just love my barn (with the exception of winter turnout issues)...it's a weekend co op so all of the boarders pitch in to help on the weekends and thus know each horse's individual needs and works hard to accommodate them. There are 4 paddocks with loafing sheds, but unfortunately they're occupied (although I've put myself on the waiting list in case something opens up).
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Member:
Twhgait
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Posted on Sunday, Dec 18, 2005 - 10:46 pm:
Hopefully something will open up for you soon! You've done all you can in regards to turn out, so let's see what others have to say about the medicines (I don't know anything about that!).
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Monday, Dec 19, 2005 - 8:48 am:
Though I do not know of any reports or work on your specific question I think it could be risky to use acepromazine and reserpine together. The problem is that they both cause vasodilation and low blood pressure. Together they reduce it so far that the horse faints and if it gets low enough, long enough could cause death.
DrO
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New Member:
Equus75
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Posted on Monday, Dec 19, 2005 - 10:40 am:
Thanks, Kim and Dr. O for your input! I'm definitely not going to take the risk...I'll just keep it to arena work until the weather improves! 
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Member:
Twhgait
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Posted on Monday, Dec 19, 2005 - 6:16 pm:
Dawn, can you free lunge her in the arena? Just let her haul around the arena for awhile to get her excess energy out? Maybe that will help?
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Member:
Mrose
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Posted on Monday, Dec 19, 2005 - 7:28 pm:
You might look at your supplements also. I'm not familiar with the contents of them, but perhaps they are adding to your problems.
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New Member:
Equus75
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Posted on Monday, Dec 19, 2005 - 10:56 pm:
Kim- I have done some freelunging, although there are days when jumps are set up and I can't...so I just lunge her on a 25-30m circle and that seems to help. When I do free lunge her, I notice that she calms down pretty quickly, and she definitely seems to enjoy it.
Sara- I looked at the Dynamite Plus ingredient list per your suggestion https://dynamite.mystateusa.com/Dynamite_plus.htm, and it looks like it has 11% protein per pound (she gets 3 oz per day)...but I'm not sure how that translates as far as energy goes. I do know that Dynamite Plus is designed for less active and/or excitable horses, and I've been giving her that amount for about a year without much noticable difference in her behavior. I've started to give her only a handful of alfalfa pellets per day to mix with her supplements, so I'm hopeful that having less concentrated energy will help.
I have to say that I noticed an improvement with the reserpine already. We administered it to her on Saturday, and I hadn't ridden or lunged her since Thursday. I was worried that she'd be a holy terror today, but I started out lunging her and was able to ride in the ring without her getting too excitable. Fortunately, it looks like we'll have some warmer weather over the next week or so, so she'll get around 3 or 4 hours out each day.
Dawn
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