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The short version: Banamine is flunixin meglumine, a prescription NSAID approved in horses at 0.5 mg per pound once a day for up to 5 days (500 mg for a 1,000 lb horse). Given into a vein for colic, the label says it relieves pain in under 15 minutes in many cases, and the paste works for 24 to 36 hours. Those strengths are also its risks. A horse with a surgical colic can look fine on it, and the emergency shot given into the neck muscle is the classic setup for a deadly clostridial infection: in a 37-horse case series, 34 cases followed an injection and colic was the most common condition before referral. Below: the forms and doses, why vets say never IM, why to call before you give it for colic, side effects, the single-NSAID rule, competition, and where hemp honestly fits.
Banamine by the Numbers
| Figure | What it measures | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 0.5 mg per lb, once daily | FDA label dose for paste, granules and injectable in horses. | 21 CFR 520.970 and 522.970 |
| 5 days | Maximum consecutive days on the label. | 21 CFR 520.970; Banamine Paste label |
| Under 15 minutes | Colic pain relief after an IV dose, "in many cases." | Flunixin injection label |
| Within 2 hours / 24–36 hours | Onset and duration of activity after the oral paste. Peak response 12–16 hours. | Banamine Paste label |
| About 72% | Average bioavailability of the injectable solution given by mouth, peak at 45–60 minutes. | Pellegrini-Masini et al. 2004 |
| 34 of 37 | Clostridial myonecrosis cases that followed an injection; 24 were IM in the neck. | Peek et al. 2003 |
| 31% to 73% | Range of reported survival for clostridial myositis. | University of Minnesota Extension |
| 84% / 43% | Right dorsal colitis cases that followed an NSAID overdose / that were fatal (35 horses). | Flood et al. 2023 |
| 3.23 times | Higher risk of a rise in an endotoxemia marker on flunixin vs firocoxib after colic surgery, with no difference in pain scores. | Ziegler et al. 2019 |
Sources: 21 CFR 520.970 · Banamine Paste label · Flunixin injection label (DailyMed) · Pellegrini-Masini 2004 · Peek 2003 · UMN Extension · Flood 2023 · Ziegler 2019
"The most common antecedent condition prior to referral was colic."
Peek et al., Equine Veterinary Journal, 2003, on 37 horses with clostridial myonecrosis. The emergency injection is often where the trouble starts.
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What Banamine Is
Flunixin meglumine: the go-to drug for belly pain in horses.
Banamine is the Merck brand name for flunixin meglumine, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID). Generic flunixin is sold under several other names. It relieves pain, inflammation and fever by blocking the cyclo-oxygenase (COX) enzymes that make prostaglandins. Like bute, it is non-selective: it blocks COX-2, which drives inflammation, and COX-1, which protects the stomach lining, keeps blood flowing to the kidneys and helps the gut wall repair itself. Most of its side effects come from that second job.
On the federal label it is approved for two things in horses: inflammation and pain from musculoskeletal disorders (paste, granules and injectable), and visceral pain associated with colic (injectable). In practice vets also reach for it for eye pain, fever and the effects of endotoxemia, the toxic shock that can follow a bad colic or a retained placenta. A 2020 review in Equine Veterinary Education describes flunixin as by far the most commonly used drug for colic pain, and a go-to not only for vets but for horse owners and non-medical equine professionals (Ziegler & Blikslager 2020).
Three legal facts. It is prescription only: federal law restricts it to use by or on the order of a licensed veterinarian. It is labeled do not use in horses intended for human consumption. And the label caps a course at 5 consecutive days (21 CFR 520.970).
IV vs Oral Paste vs Granules: The Forms Compared
Same drug, very different speed and risk depending on how it goes in.
| Form | Strength | How fast / how long | Who gives it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Injectable, into the vein (IV) | 50 mg/mL. Label dose 1 mL per 100 lb. | Colic pain relieved in under 15 minutes in many cases. Plasma half-life about 1.6 hours. | Your vet. A missed vein or an injection into the carotid artery can cause a reaction, so this is not a beginner's job. |
| Injectable, into the muscle (IM) | Same bottle. | Still on the label, but rarely recommended now. | Most equine vets advise against it because of the clostridial infection risk. See below. |
| Injectable, by mouth | Same bottle, squirted onto the back of the tongue. | Detected in blood within 15 minutes, peak at 45–60 minutes, about 72% absorbed. | Owners, on the vet's instruction. An off-label route your vet can direct. |
| Oral paste | 1,500 mg per 30 g syringe, marked in 250 lb steps (125 mg per step). | Onset within 2 hours, peak 12–16 hours, lasts 24–36 hours. | Owners. One syringe covers a 1,000 lb horse for 3 days. |
| Oral granules | 250 mg per 10 g packet. | Oral, given in a small amount of feed. | Owners. Useful for follow-up days. |
Sources: flunixin injection label · Banamine Paste label · 21 CFR 520.970 · Pellegrini-Masini 2004
The oral numbers are better than many owners expect. An older pharmacokinetic study measured oral bioavailability of flunixin at 85.8% (Soma et al. 1988), and the 2004 crossover study found the injectable solution given by mouth "suitable for oral administration to horses" (Pellegrini-Masini et al. 2004). The trade-off is speed: by mouth it takes closer to an hour to peak, and absorption can be slower in a horse that has just eaten. The paste label also allows a vet to start with an injection on day one and switch to paste or granules for days two to five.
Why Vets Say Never Give Banamine in the Muscle
The rare complication that turns a sore belly into a fight for the horse's life.
Clostridial bacteria, the gas-gangrene family, can sit as dormant spores in healthy muscle. Injecting an irritating drug damages the muscle and gives them low-oxygen tissue to grow in. The University of Minnesota's equine extension team lists Banamine among several drugs that can damage muscle when injected, and describes the result: swollen, crunchy pockets of gas under the skin at the injection site within 6 to 72 hours, followed by depression, colic, purple gums and reluctance to move as toxins reach the blood. They put survival at 31% to 73%, with months of healing for those that live (UMN Extension, reviewed 2024).
The flunixin label itself reports that "in rare instances in horses, fatal or nonfatal clostridial infections" have followed IM use, along with local swelling, sweating, hardness and stiffness, particularly in the neck (flunixin injection label). The case literature fills in the picture:
- 37 horses, two university hospitals. Cornell and Wisconsin reviewed 15 years of clostridial myonecrosis. 34 of 37 cases followed a soft-tissue injection, 24 of them IM in the neck. Colic was the most common condition before referral. Overall survival was 73%, and aggressive treatment (high-dose IV antibiotics plus opening up the tissue) was the best approach (Peek et al. 2003).
- Technique did not prevent it. A survey of 439 equine vets found 28 had seen at least one clostridial infection after one of their own IM injections, and none of the injection techniques studied, from new needles to swabbing the skin, made a significant difference (Brown et al. 1988).
- A named case. A 9-year-old Thoroughbred given IM flunixin in the neck developed clostridial myonecrosis with anemia, liver and heart complications, needed transfusion and surgery, and recovered (Anderson et al. 2013).
Put together, the risk is low per injection but the outcome is severe, and colic horses are exactly the horses getting emergency shots. That is why the standard advice from equine vets is: give it by mouth, or have your vet give it in the vein. If your horse has ever had an IM injection and you see swelling or crackling under the skin at the site, call the vet that day.
Banamine for Colic: Why You Call the Vet Before You Give It
It is one of the best colic drugs there is. That is exactly why timing matters.
For colic pain, a 2020 British Equine Veterinary Association guideline concluded that flunixin and firocoxib give more effective analgesia than meloxicam or phenylbutazone (moderate certainty), while warning that every NSAID should be used only once a vet has evaluated the horse and set a plan (Bowen et al. 2020). A 2023 systematic review was more cautious, finding only 10 usable studies and calling the evidence on which NSAID is strongest for belly pain "sparse" (Citarella et al. 2023).
What no one disputes is how well it works, and how that can hide things. Heart rate, pain behavior and response to pain relief are among the main signs a vet uses to decide whether a colic is medical or surgical. A full dose of Banamine can make a horse with a strangulated loop of intestine look quiet for hours. Researchers studying endotoxemia in the 1980s showed the point from the other side: a low dose (0.25 mg/kg) blocked inflammatory markers "without masking all of the physical manifestations" needed for accurate assessment, while the effect on clinical signs grew with the dose (Semrad et al. 1987). That low "anti-endotoxic" dose is still used in practice today (Flood & Stewart 2022).
There is a second reason for caution in serious colic. In horses recovering from intestinal ischemia, flunixin slowed recovery of the damaged gut lining while firocoxib did not, and both controlled pain (Cook et al. 2009). In a blinded trial of 56 horses after colic surgery, pain scores were the same on flunixin and firocoxib, but flunixin carried a 3.23-fold higher risk of a rise in sCD14, a marker of endotoxemia (Ziegler et al. 2019). This is a hospital decision for your vet, not an owner's, but it explains why some vets now choose differently for the worst colics.
So the rule in our barn, and the one most equine vets give, is simple: call first. Your vet may tell you to give a set dose by mouth while they drive over, or to hold it so they can see the horse untreated. Either way, write down the time and amount so the vet knows exactly what the horse has had. Our guide to colic in horses covers the signs and what to check before you call.
Dosing Banamine by Body Weight
The label dose, translated into the forms you actually have in the barn.
| Horse weight | Label dose (0.5 mg/lb) | Injectable 50 mg/mL | Paste syringe mark | Granules (250 mg packets) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 500 lb | 250 mg | 5 mL | 500 | 1 packet |
| 750 lb | 375 mg | 7.5 mL | 750 | 1½ packets |
| 1,000 lb | 500 mg | 10 mL | 1,000 | 2 packets |
| 1,250 lb | 625 mg | 12.5 mL | 1,250 | 2½ packets |
Calculated from the label dose in 21 CFR 520.970, the injection label and the paste label. Your vet's prescription overrides this table, and vets sometimes prescribe split or lower doses.
Two details catch owners out. The label dose is once a day, so giving another tube "because he still looks uncomfortable" is how overdoses happen. And the paste syringe has a dial that is easy to knock; check the mark against the barrel each time.
Side Effects of Banamine in Horses
Most short, vet-set courses go fine. These are the ones that don't.
| Side effect | What you might see | Who is most at risk |
|---|---|---|
| Stomach and intestinal ulcers | Going off feed, girthiness, mild recurring colic, sometimes nothing visible. | Longer courses, higher doses, and horses on two NSAIDs. Bute plus flunixin for 5 days increased gastric ulceration in one study. |
| Right dorsal colitis | Diarrhea, colic, fast heart rate, swelling under the belly or legs from protein loss. | Overdosed horses above all: 84% of cases in one 35-horse series. |
| Kidney damage (renal papillary necrosis) | Usually nothing early; rising creatinine on bloodwork. | Dehydrated horses, which describes many colic cases. The label names dehydration as the top kidney risk. |
| Clostridial infection at an IM site | Hot, swollen, crackling area at the injection site within 6–72 hours, then a very sick horse. | Any horse given flunixin into the muscle, especially in the neck. |
| Injection reactions | Local swelling, sweating, hardness and stiffness at an IM site; brief excitement or weakness after an accidental injection into an artery. | Horses injected by someone without practice at IV technique. |
| Slower gut-lining repair | Not visible to owners. | Horses with severe, ischemic colic. A hospital consideration. |
Sources: Flood & Stewart 2022 review · Flood et al. 2023 · flunixin injection label · UMN Extension · Cook et al. 2009
A 2022 review from the University of Queensland names the three main NSAID side effects in horses as gastroduodenal ulceration, right dorsal colitis and renal papillary necrosis, and notes that dehydration, kidney disease and liver disease all raise the risk (Flood & Stewart 2022). The same review points out that newborn foals clear flunixin much more slowly than adults; foals given six times the dose developed gastric and intestinal ulcers. Foals, ponies, seniors and any horse that is dehydrated or off water need extra care and a vet's dose.
The label's own safety data is reassuring for short courses: healthy horses given oral doses two to three times the label dose for 15 days showed no adverse effects (Banamine Paste label). The real-world problems come from sick, dehydrated horses, repeat doses, long courses and stacking.
Never Stack Banamine With Bute
Two NSAIDs do not add relief so much as add toxicity.
Giving two NSAIDs together is called "stacking." The Queensland review explains why it is contraindicated: the effects add up, so two NSAIDs at their normal doses act like double the dose of one. Bute plus flunixin at standard doses for five days lowered plasma protein and increased gastric ulceration compared with bute alone (Flood & Stewart 2022). In a University of Missouri treadmill study of 29 lame horses, the bute-plus-Banamine combination did reduce lameness more than bute alone, but one horse on the combination died of acute necrotizing colitis (Keegan et al. 2008). The flunixin label says use with other NSAIDs or corticosteroids "should be avoided or closely monitored."
The show world codified this years ago. US Equestrian limits competition horses to one approved NSAID at a time, and has never permitted bute and Banamine together. We cover the single-NSAID rule in detail in our bute for horses guide. If your horse is on bute, Equioxx or any other NSAID and starts to colic, tell the vet before anyone reaches for the Banamine.
Banamine Withdrawal for Competition
Know the rule before the show, not in the trailer.
Flunixin is one of the NSAIDs US Equestrian allows with quantitative restrictions, but only one NSAID may be present at a time. When the single-NSAID rule took effect, USEF also added a provision for emergency flunixin given by a licensed vet for colic or an eye emergency, with a signed Medication Report Form and a 24-hour withdrawal from competition after treatment (Chronicle of the Horse). Equestrian Canada's recommended limits, as summarized in the 2026 Calgary Stampede medication guidelines, say no part of a flunixin dose should be given in the 12 hours before competition and cap the daily dose at 500 mg for a 1,000 lb horse.
Rules differ between USEF, FEI, racing jurisdictions and breed associations, and they change. Check the current rulebook for your discipline and ask your vet for a detection time for your horse and dose. Detection time is not the same as the 24 to 36 hours the drug keeps working.
Giving Banamine Safely: What to Do
The dose is your vet's call. Everything around the dose is yours.
- Call before you give it for colic. Report heart rate, gum color, manure and behavior first. Give it only if your vet says so, at the dose they set.
- Weigh the horse. A weight tape beats a guess. The label dose is 0.5 mg per lb once a day.
- Never inject into the muscle. Use paste, granules or the injectable by mouth, or have your vet give it IV.
- One NSAID at a time. No Banamine on top of bute, Equioxx or another anti-inflammatory unless your vet directs it.
- Keep water in front of them. Dehydration is the biggest kidney and colitis risk multiplier, and colic horses are often dehydrated.
- Write it down. Time, product, amount, who gave it. Most double doses in shared barns are two people treating the same horse.
- Stop at 5 days unless your vet extends it, and ask about bloodwork (albumin, total protein, creatinine) for anything longer.
- Take extra care with foals, ponies and seniors. Foals clear flunixin more slowly; ask for a specific dose.
- Store it right. The paste label says store below 77°F and do not freeze. Check expiry dates on the emergency kit.
- Check the rulebook before showing. Detection times and single-NSAID rules apply.
When to Call Your Vet
Call the same day for any of these.
- Any colic signs: pawing, rolling, flank-watching, no manure, a heart rate above normal for that horse.
- Colic signs that come back as the Banamine wears off, or that never fully go away after a dose.
- Swelling, heat or a crackling feel under the skin at any injection site, especially in the neck.
- Diarrhea, going off feed, or swelling under the belly or down the legs during or after a course.
- Dark or tarry manure, or dullness and depression.
- Any chance the horse got a double dose, or Banamine on top of another NSAID.
In the Australian right dorsal colitis series, a higher heart rate and abnormal gums at arrival were linked to lower survival (Flood et al. 2023). Early beats late.
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Where Hemp Fits — and Where It Doesn't
We sell hemp oil for horses, so here is the honest version.
Hemp has no role in a colic emergency. It is not a pain reliever for a twisted gut, it will not lower a fever, and it is no substitute for Banamine or for your vet. If your horse is colicking, put the hemp oil down and pick up the phone. Nothing on this page is a reason to skip, swap or delay a prescription.
No study has tested CBD together with flunixin in horses. We looked and found none, so we cannot tell you the two are safe to combine. For a short Banamine course, the simplest answer is to wait until the course is done.
Where hemp may fit is the daily routine of older or retired horses, alongside the plan your vet sets. The best equine study so far, from the University of Messina, gave horses with mild joint osteoarthritis five days of bute with or without a low dose of CBD for 14 days. By day 14 the median Horse Chronic Pain Scale score was 3 in the CBD group against 7 on bute alone, with lower heart and respiratory rates (Interlandi et al., Frontiers in Veterinary Science 2024). It was small, joints only, and the control horses got no placebo oil. It tells you nothing about colic or about Banamine.
Our own equine formula was studied at Tarleton State University. A single serving lowered stereotypic stall behaviors compared with the control oil (P = 0.03), and a dose study recorded no adverse effects at 0.3 or 0.6 mg/kg (Turner et al., J Anim Sci 2021). Five days of daily dosing showed no behavior difference, and the transport arm found no significant change in cortisol, so we do not claim it lowers stress hormones. More on what was measured is on our equine study page.
The cautions are real. At higher doses, CBD raised liver enzymes in 8 of 12 horses, all normalizing within 10 days of stopping, and caused mild low calcium in every horse (Yocom et al. 2022). A pony study flagged an increased insulin response, so take care with EMS-prone horses (our write-up). And cannabinoids are prohibited under FEI, USEF and HISA rules with no published withdrawal time, so hemp is for pleasure, rehab, retired and rescue horses only. If your vet agrees, start at the low end of 0.3–0.6 mg/kg: about 7 pumps for a 1,000 lb horse. Our dosing guide has the full chart, and Is CBD Safe for Horses? covers the safety data.
Questions to Ask Your Vet About Banamine
- If my horse colics, do you want me to give Banamine before you arrive, and how much?
- Should I keep paste, granules or injectable for oral use in my emergency kit?
- My horse is already on bute or Equioxx. What do I do if he colics?
- How many days should this course last, and do we need bloodwork?
- Is my horse a higher risk because of age, size, kidney history or ulcers?
- What detection time should I plan for before my next show?
Frequently Asked Questions
What does Banamine do to a horse?
Banamine (flunixin meglumine) is a prescription non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug. It blocks the COX enzymes that make prostaglandins, which reduces pain, inflammation and fever. It is FDA-approved in horses for musculoskeletal pain and inflammation, and the injectable form is also approved for the visceral pain of colic. It does not fix the cause of the pain, and it does not get a stuck gut moving again.
Are bute and Banamine the same thing?
No. Both are non-selective NSAIDs with similar side effects, but they are different drugs. Bute (phenylbutazone) is used mostly for lameness and musculoskeletal pain. Banamine (flunixin) is the usual choice for colic, belly pain, eye pain and fever, and the flunixin label calls it four times as potent as bute on a milligram-for-milligram basis. Never give them together unless your vet specifically directs it: two NSAIDs at once roughly double the toxic load.
How much Banamine can you give a 1,000 lb horse?
The FDA label dose is 0.5 mg per pound once a day, which is 500 mg for a 1,000 lb horse: 10 mL of the 50 mg/mL injectable, the 1,000 lb mark on a paste syringe, or two 250 mg granule packets. The label limit is 5 consecutive days. Your vet may prescribe a different dose, such as a lower split dose in a colic case. Weigh or weight-tape the horse rather than guessing.
How does Banamine make a horse feel?
Less sore and less feverish. It is not a sedative, so a horse should not look drowsy on it. Given into a vein for colic, the label says pain is relieved in under 15 minutes in many cases. That comfort is the problem with giving it before the vet sees a colic: a horse with a twisted gut can look better for hours while the real problem gets worse.
How long does it take for Banamine to wear off in horses?
The effect lasts much longer than the drug stays in the blood. The paste label puts the duration of activity at 24 to 36 hours, with peak response between 12 and 16 hours, even though the plasma half-life is only about 1.6 hours. Flunixin lingers in inflamed tissue. Drug-test detection times are a separate question; ask your vet before any show.
What will too much Banamine do to a horse?
Overdosing raises the risk of stomach and intestinal ulcers, right dorsal colitis and kidney damage. In a 2023 study of 35 horses with right dorsal colitis, 84% of the cases where the dose was known had been overdosed, and 43% of the horses died. Signs to watch for are diarrhea, colic, going off feed, a fast heart rate, and swelling under the belly or down the legs. Call your vet if you think a horse has had too much.
How long can you keep a horse on Banamine?
The FDA label limit is 5 consecutive days for the paste, granules and injectable. Longer courses happen only under a vet's direction, usually with bloodwork, because the risk of ulcers, colitis and kidney injury builds with time. For chronic joint pain, vets more often move a horse to a drug and plan designed for longer-term use.
Can you give injectable Banamine orally?
Yes, and many vets prefer that to an owner giving it into the muscle. In a crossover study of six healthy horses, the injectable solution given by mouth was detected in the blood within 15 minutes, peaked at 45 to 60 minutes, and had an average bioavailability of about 72%. The study authors concluded the injectable preparation is suitable for oral use. Ask your vet for the dose and whether oral injectable makes sense for your horse.
Can you give Banamine in the muscle (IM)?
The injectable label still lists intramuscular use, but most equine vets now advise against it. The label itself reports rare fatal and nonfatal clostridial infections after IM flunixin. In a 37-horse series of clostridial myonecrosis, 34 cases followed an injection, 24 of them in the neck muscle, and colic was the most common condition before referral. Give it by mouth, or have your vet give it into the vein.
Should I give my horse Banamine for colic before the vet comes?
Call your vet first and give it only if they tell you to, at the dose they set. Banamine can make a horse with a surgical colic look comfortable for hours, which can delay the decision to refer. Your vet may want to see the horse's untreated heart rate and pain level, or may ask you to give a specific dose by mouth while they are on the way.
Can you give CBD with Banamine?
No study has tested CBD together with flunixin in horses, so no one can say it is safe to combine. CBD has no role in a colic emergency. For horses on a short Banamine course, the simple rule is to wait until the course is finished and talk to your vet before adding hemp. CBD at higher doses has raised liver enzymes in horses, and it is prohibited in competition under FEI, USEF and HISA rules.
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The Short Version
Banamine is one of the most useful drugs in the barn: fast, strong, and the vet's first choice for belly pain. Use it the way the label and your vet intend. Call before you give it for colic, give it by mouth or have the vet give it IV, never into the muscle, stick to one NSAID at a time, keep the horse drinking, and stop at five days unless your vet says otherwise. Hemp has no place in that emergency. It may have a place in the quieter daily routine afterward, with your vet's agreement.
Colic in Horses · Bute for Horses · Equioxx for Horses · Omeprazole for Horses · Laminitis in Horses · Is CBD Safe for Horses? · CBD for Senior Horses
Marc co-founded HempMy Pet in 2016 with his business partner Natalie Mondine, the company's COO. HempMy Pet breeds its own hemp genetics, grows them on its own Colorado farm, and formulates every batch in-house under human-grade standards — seed to sale, nothing sourced overseas. Every batch is third-party tested and the certificates of analysis are published. More about us.
Our own 5,000mg equine formula was the oil studied in a research program at Tarleton State University by Dr. Kimberly Guay, Ph.D., with Trinette Jones, Ph.D. and William B. Smith, Ph.D. In a single-dose study published in the Journal of Animal Science (2021), stereotypic stall behaviors were lower on CBD than on the control oil (P = 0.03), and a dose study recorded no adverse effects at 0.3 or 0.6 mg/kg. The transport-stress arm found no significant change in cortisol, and we report that too. Read what was measured.
Our canine research: HempMy Pet also ran a 90-day study of 37 dogs with chronic joint discomfort, overseen by Dr. Robin Downing, DVM, MS, with Lori Kogan, Ph.D. and Peter W. Hellyer, DVM of Colorado State University. Of the 32 dogs that completed it, 30 (93%) showed a benefit and 94% of owners reported improved quality of life. In 2005 Dr. Downing became only the third veterinarian in the world credentialed as a Diplomate of the American Academy of Pain Management; she founded the International Veterinary Academy of Pain Management and was the AVMA's 2020 Bustad Companion Animal Veterinarian of the Year. See our clinical trials.
This article is general information for horse owners, not veterinary advice. It is reviewed and updated as new peer-reviewed evidence is published, and where the evidence is thin or negative we say so.
How We Sourced This Article
Every figure above comes from one of these. Where we could read the full paper or label we did; where only the abstract is public we used the abstract.
- 21 CFR 520.970 and 522.970, Flunixin. eCFR 520.970. Supports: paste and granule strengths, 0.5 mg/lb once daily for up to 5 days, indications, prescription-only and not for horses intended for human consumption.
- Banamine (flunixin meglumine paste) label, Merck Animal Health. FDA SPL label. Supports: 1,500 mg syringe, 250 lb dial steps, onset within 2 hours, peak 12–16 hours, duration 24–36 hours, 5-day limit, 15-day oral safety data, storage.
- Flunixin meglumine injection label. DailyMed. Supports: 50 mg/mL, 1 mL per 100 lb, colic relief under 15 minutes, half-life 1.6 hours, four times bute's potency, intra-arterial warning, IM clostridial reports, NSAID and corticosteroid caution, dehydration risk.
- Pellegrini-Masini A, Poppenga RH, Sweeney RW. Disposition of flunixin meglumine injectable preparation administered orally to healthy horses. J Vet Pharmacol Ther, 2004. PubMed 15189304. Supports: oral injectable absorbed within 15 minutes, peak 45–60 minutes, 71.9% bioavailability.
- Soma LR, Behrend E, Rudy J, Sweeney RW. Disposition and excretion of flunixin meglumine in horses. Am J Vet Res, 1988. PubMed 3247913. Supports: 85.8% oral bioavailability.
- Peek SF, Semrad SD, Perkins GA. Clostridial myonecrosis in horses (37 cases 1985–2000). Equine Vet J, 2003. PubMed 12553469. Supports: 34 of 37 after injection, 24 IM neck, colic the most common antecedent, 73% survival.
- Brown CM, Kaneene JB, Walker RD. Intramuscular injection techniques and the development of clostridial myositis or cellulitis in horses. JAVMA, 1988. PubMed 3192440. Supports: 439 vets surveyed, 28 cases, technique not protective.
- Anderson SL, Secombe CJ, Lester GD. Clostridial myonecrosis after intramuscular injection in a Thoroughbred gelding. Aust Vet J, 2013. PubMed 23614516. Supports: the IM flunixin case.
- Teixeira R, Valberg S. Risks of giving intramuscular Banamine to horses. University of Minnesota Extension, reviewed 2024. extension.umn.edu. Supports: signs within 6–72 hours, 31–73% survival, oral or IV advice.
- Bowen IM, Redpath A, Dugdale A et al. BEVA primary care clinical guidelines: Analgesia. Equine Vet J, 2020. PubMed 31657050. Supports: flunixin and firocoxib preferred for colic analgesia.
- Citarella G et al. Analgesic efficacy of NSAID therapy in horses with abdominal pain: a systematic review. Animals, 2023. PubMed 38003065. Supports: 10 studies, sparse evidence.
- Semrad SD, Hardee GE, Hardee MM, Moore JN. Low dose flunixin meglumine in experimental endotoxaemia. Equine Vet J, 1987. PubMed 3608957. Supports: low dose without masking all clinical signs; dose-dependent effect on signs.
- Cook VL, Meyer CT, Campbell NB, Blikslager AT. Effect of firocoxib or flunixin meglumine on recovery of ischemic-injured equine jejunum. Am J Vet Res, 2009. PubMed 19645580. Supports: flunixin slowed mucosal recovery.
- Ziegler AL, Freeman CK, Fogle CA et al. Flunixin meglumine vs firocoxib in horses with small intestinal strangulating obstruction. Equine Vet J, 2019. PMC6788450. Supports: 56 horses, equal pain scores, 3.23-fold sCD14 risk.
- Ziegler AL, Blikslager AT. Sparing the gut: COX-2 inhibitors herald a new era for treatment of horses with surgical colic. Equine Vet Educ, 2020. PubMed 34305336. Supports: flunixin as the most-used colic drug, including by owners.
- Flood J, Stewart AJ. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and associated toxicities in horses. Animals, 2022. PMC9655344. Supports: the three main side effects, stacking as double dosing, bute-plus-flunixin findings, foal clearance, anti-endotoxic dose.
- Flood J, Byrne B, Bauquier J et al. Right dorsal colitis in horses: 35 cases. J Vet Intern Med, 2023. PubMed 37800408. Supports: 84% overdosed, 43% fatal, survival factors.
- Keegan KG, Messer NT, Reed SK et al. Phenylbutazone alone or with flunixin to alleviate lameness. Am J Vet Res, 2008. PubMed 18241011. Supports: the combination death from necrotizing colitis.
- Chronicle of the Horse. Changes to USEF drugs and medications rules. chronofhorse.com. Supports: single NSAID, emergency flunixin provision, 24-hour withdrawal.
- dvm360. U.S. Equestrian Federation modifies veterinary rules on NSAID use in competition horses. dvm360.com. Supports: flunixin among the seven NSAIDs approved with restrictions, one at a time.
- Calgary Stampede 2026 Therapeutic Medication Control Guidelines. PDF. Supports: Equestrian Canada's 12-hour and 500 mg per 1,000 lb flunixin limits.
- Interlandi C, Tabbì M, Di Pietro S et al. CBD oil in mature horses with osteoarthritis. Front Vet Sci, 2024. PMC10876772. Supports: pain-scale medians of 3 vs 7.
- Turner PL, Guay KA, Jones T, Smith WB. The effects of feeding cannabidiol oil on behavior of stalled horses. J Anim Sci, 2021. doi 10.1093/jas/skab235.008. Supports: the Tarleton findings on our formula.
- Yocom AF, O'Fallon ES, Gustafson DL, Contino EK. Pharmacokinetics, safety and synovial fluid concentrations of oral CBD in horses. J Equine Vet Sci, 2022. PubMed 35307550. Supports: liver enzymes in 8 of 12, low calcium.
Disclosure: HempMy Pet funded the Tarleton State research on our equine formula and sells the product linked on this page. We had no involvement in any other study cited above. Equestrian Canada's flunixin limits are taken from the Calgary Stampede 2026 Therapeutic Medication Control Guidelines. Spotted an error? Email support@hempmypet.com and we will correct it.
These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. This article is general information, not veterinary advice. Never start, stop or change your horse's prescription without your veterinarian. Consult your veterinarian before use, especially if your horse is pregnant, nursing, competing, or taking medication.
