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URGENT! - Chlorphenamine aka piriton - safe for rabbits?

Tinsel

Wise Old Thumper
Just had a long chat with a pharmacist about symptomatic relief for Drusilla and he suggested this. Am waiting for out-of-hours vet to ring back, but does anyone here have any thoughts/experience? It's an anti-histamine that he said would reduce the swelling in her nose and mouth - exactly what she needs. He says rabbits metabolise it safely and it's compatible with all the other meds she is on. This pharmacist has given excellent advice in the past.

Any thoughts much apreciated...:wave:
 
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:wave: yes, quite right, sky-o. I used the Piriton liquid, the children's version. There is a dosage listed somewhere in the fhb textbook of rabbit medicine, we based it on that, I don't remember how much it worked out at each dose, think it might have been 1 or 2ml for Santa, but if you get a bottle of the children's version, your vet should be able to work out the dose.

My vet wasn't sure even with the reference in fhb, but I mobbed Richard Saunders at the last rwa conference and asked him, and he confirmed that yes it's safe, so we went for it after that. It made a huge difference to Santa, she got the normal pinkness back to her nasal passages within a couple of weeks of using it. Santa was on it constantly for about 8 weeks before she died; I'm pretty certain that her passing wasn't related to its use, but it definitely made a big difference to her comfort during those couple of months.

Good luck xx
 
:wave: yes, quite right, sky-o. I used the Piriton liquid, the children's version. There is a dosage listed somewhere in the fhb textbook of rabbit medicine, we based it on that, I don't remember how much it worked out at each dose, think it might have been 1 or 2ml for Santa, but if you get a bottle of the children's version, your vet should be able to work out the dose.

My vet wasn't sure even with the reference in fhb, but I mobbed Richard Saunders at the last rwa conference and asked him, and he confirmed that yes it's safe, so we went for it after that. It made a huge difference to Santa, she got the normal pinkness back to her nasal passages within a couple of weeks of using it. Santa was on it constantly for about 8 weeks before she died; I'm pretty certain that her passing wasn't related to its use, but it definitely made a big difference to her comfort during those couple of months.

Good luck xx

Awesome :D :thumb:
 
Santa - ignore my pm and thank you SO much. The dose the pharmacist gave was right then - he said 2-2.5 mls 3 times a day for a 2 and a half kilo rabbit - it just sounded so much it made me nervous. I've been desperate for symptomatic relief for Drusill and it looks like this could be it!

Thank you so much and Sky-O too and Jane - I know the emergency vet is likely to say no because they never think outside the box! My faith in my pharmacist is justified....:love:
 
:wave: no worries - good luck! Fortunately it seemed to be delicious too, so hopefully no struggles at medicine time! I really hope that it helps Drusilla x x
 
Thank you! Luckily she's a meds junkie :wave:

Have given her a dose - now praying it will do the trick. If it enables her to eat for herself again it could literally be a lifesaver.... x x
 
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Wow Tinsel thats great - can I give this to Crunchie? If so as he is approx 2.5 kg (weight last week) can he have the same dose - is it via syringe?
 
I've given 1 ml so far - the pharmacist said 2-2.5ml but he vet said 1. I'm seeing my rabbit-savvy vet Monday and will double check with him. The strength I have is 2mg/5ml - they decanted it so it may not be the same as shop bought piriton. :? See what's on the label? It hasn't got her eating but she did just have the liveliest exploration of the kitchen I've seen since she was ill, so it's done some good. It may do even more for Crunchie as he's more snuffly... I really want to know if the 2 ml dose is safe..will try to find out asap but 1 ml was recommended by my vet at the strength I gave....
Yes it's syringe fed. :)

Sarah, do you remember the dose for your mouse? :wave:
 
It was years ago with the mouse, so I don't remember clearly, but I think it was a case of going for the smallest dose possible, ie one drop from a 1 ml syringe on a biscuit . This was the children's Pririton syrup.
 
No, I never knew Boots was open till midnight anywhere :shock:
Even Tesco which is usually open 4 hrs - closes at midnight here and the pharmacy at like 6 :(
 
I've given 1 ml so far - the pharmacist said 2-2.5ml but he vet said 1. I'm seeing my rabbit-savvy vet Monday and will double check with him. The strength I have is 2mg/5ml - they decanted it so it may not be the same as shop bought :

I've looked at the data sheet on the boots website and the Piriton syrup us 2mg/5ml. The fhb book gives a dosage of 20,000-40,000 micrograms per kg twice daily, so that would make 1ml 0.4 - which ties up with the dose that Santa was given. So based on that, I think your pharmacist is probably right, but of course I totally understand why you'd want to wait and talk to your own vet if you can. I also remember at the time with Santa, finding a pharmaceutical study where huge, huge overdoses (like 50 times) were being given to lab rabbits, and I seem to recall that the results were that it was ok, so that also reassured me at the time that even an accidental overdose probably isn't harmful.

Good luck xx
 
I am a complete idiot at things like this and rely on my vet pointing at what nimber on a syringe...eg, crunchie has 1.5ml of 2.5% baytril daily
what dosage in mls is it of piraton or does that depend on the % n whatever is given by the pharmacy?
 
Yes it will depend on the actual product given, as the concentration may vary, and of course it depends on the size of the bunny, as the dosage is related to the weight of the bunny. Your vet should be able to work it out for you (I went and bought the children's syrup version and then read the leaflet out to my vet over the phone so we were both absolutely clear that she was calculating the dosage based on the product I had in my hand) and its best to check with them anyway just in case there are any other interactions. If your vet just isn't sure about using it, you can refer them to the Frances harcourt brown book, where there is a dose rate listed in the safe drugs section.

Good luck x
 
I've looked at the data sheet on the boots website and the Piriton syrup us 2mg/5ml. The fhb book gives a dosage of 20,000-40,000 micrograms per kg twice daily, so that would make 1ml 0.4 - which ties up with the dose that Santa was given. So based on that, I think your pharmacist is probably right, but of course I totally understand why you'd want to wait and talk to your own vet if you can. I also remember at the time with Santa, finding a pharmaceutical study where huge, huge overdoses (like 50 times) were being given to lab rabbits, and I seem to recall that the results were that it was ok, so that also reassured me at the time that even an accidental overdose probably isn't harmful.

Good luck xx


So 2mls should be fine - knowing that helps me and Happybun too! :wave: I spoke to the out-of-hours vet who dismissed it totally then turned very meek when I mentioned Richard Saunders :D Drusilla has been very lively since she had it, exploring the kitchen much more than she has since she's been ill although still not able to eat independently. She will sometimes lick food off the spoon though. She is currently on day 12/13/14 or 15 so it must be a good sign that she's getting better not worse. Just looked and she's grooming again :love:

Thank you so much for all the help with the piriton....:wave: xx
 
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