Iron Supplements

[Linda_Merims@ne.3com.com]

Katdandu" <katdandu@ici.net> said:


> I had blood drawn on one of my horses and my vet told
> me that his red blood count is low.  He suggested
> Red Cell but I was wondering if anybody uses some
> other Iron supplement.

I just went through this last month.  Even asked about it
on Ridecamp.  In the first place, several of the vets who
read here maintain that many vets overdiagnose iron deficiency
as the cause of anemia, particularly in horses conditioned
for distance riding.  They say the red blood cells are there,
they are just camping out in the spleen until they are needed.
See Sarah Ralston's post of March 25:

http://www.endurance.net/RideCamp/archives/past/99/12/msg00270.html

In any event, I didn't go with Red Cell because it contains
yucca, which may or may not be a forbidden substance, in
what may or may not be unacceptable quantities.  It also
contains lots of other supplements that I get to my horse
in other ways.

Instead, at the advice of several people here on Ridecamp,
including one who was kind enough to actually go out
and write down the ingredients for me, I have started my
horse on Lixotinic.  It costs about 4x what the others
do (from $50 to $60 per gallon, depending on where you
buy it) but it is strictly iron, plus the B vitamins that
specifically aid iron usage.  Lixotinic is made by Pfizer.

Too early to report on results, if any.  Despite the stinky
smell, my horse eats it without objection.

I see you are an ici.net person, like me.  Anywhere in
SE Massachusetts?

Linda B. Merims
lbm@ici.net
Linda_Merims@ne.3com.com
Massachusetts, USA




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