My Horse Has Lyme Disease (Part 2)

Thank you, thank you, thank you readers, for your support and your research and your advice after I blogged last week about how my horse has lyme disease.  Many of you have emailed and asked for an update, so I thought I would share what we are doing now.

The preferred treatment for lyme disease in horses is doxycycline, but due to recent HUGE hikes in prices, it was not an affordable option for us.  I looked into ordering the medicine from another country, but there were a lot of obstacles and I finally realized it wasn't very feasible.  So I started doing a little more research on lyme disease. 

Ironically, my husband and I had just watched this documentary on lyme disease called Under the Skin, the night before Phoenix's lyme disease test came back positive.  One thing that struck me in the film was that people may look like they are doing just fine, but might be in a lot of pain.  I worried that Phoenix was in a lot of pain and I didn't know it - his only symptom being mild lameness at the trot.  My vet tried to reassure me, saying that Phoenix would let me know if he was in pain, but I wasn't so sure.

I discovered when doing my research that amoxicillin is the second drug of choice for treating lyme disease.  It's what they gave Pierce last summer when he developed a bulls eye rash on his leg.  And I met someone who is allergic to doxycycline that has lyme disease, and she said they treated her with amoxicillin.  I called my vet again (I hope he's not getting sick of me!) and he agreed to do his own research to see if it made sense to treat Phoenix this way.  In the end, we decided to give it a try.

Sneaking 16 amoxicillin pills into a horse twice a day isn't easy.  First I tried mixing the capsules with applesauce.  No way.  Then I tried adding maple syrup and alfalfa pellets.  Phoenix gave me a look of disdain, and then kicked over the feed tub!  Then he turned his butt to me!  Hmmm.  I got that message loud and clear.

I then went to the feed store and purchased some extra yummy sweet feed for him - full of grains and molasses.  That worked for two feedings and then he was over it. 

I guess I'm going to have to stop playing nice.  I bought a large syringe (no needle), and am going to try making a paste of the pills mixed with water and molasses, and shoot it into the side of his mouth in the same manner you would deworm a horse.  I hope this method will work.  Obviously, the antibiotic treatment won't work if I can't get the medicine in him.  I guess you can lead a horse to grain with sneaky meds in it, but you can't make him eat it.

Thanks again, readers, for all of your support.  The whole situation has been so distressing, but your kind words and emails have meant the world to me!  Thank you.