Peppermint Makes the Medicine Go Down

I don't know about a spoonful of sugar, but I do know that Peppermints are great for getting the medicine to go down.

Have you ever tried to get a horse to eat any medications in their feed, or medicine into an apple, carrot, molasses, applesauce, peanut butter, and any other palatable food stuff your horse would normally love to eat, but find your horse now spitting out this expensive medicine and deciding he doesn't like your treat today. Well I may have a solution for you.

Most horses like the taste of peppermint. Probably more than like the taste of apples..hard to believe I know. I give my horses peppermint candies sometimes as a treat. I have given them everything from the red and white Starlight mints, to old fashioned peppermint sticks, to dinner mints, and even candy canes.

Yes, I am aware they have a lot of sugar in them, but I think the benefit outweighs the risk.

Here is why: Most medicines have a bitter taste to them so putting them in sweet foods like carrots and apples, doesn't hide the bitter taste. It just makes the apple or carrot taste bad to the horse. Peppermint, on the other hand, has a very strong flavor and can mask the taste and smell of most medications.

So by giving my horse all types of peppermint treats, when I need to medicate them, I add ground up peppermint candies to the medicine and a little grain and they eat it like they just got the best treat of all

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