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metacam dose *UPDATE*

Happy Hopping said:
but this bun is not in pain though, the metacam was meant to treat inflammation, there is no need to overdose metacam to treat inflammation.
Click to expand...

Well if 2 experienced vets have agreed that this is the right dose then I don't think we are in a position to argue :)

Plus if the bunnies nose is very inflammed and full of pus I would imagine that would be rather painful too
 
I admit I am surprised too but I am willing to defer to these very experienced vet's greater knowledge. Hopefully we will soon be updated on a happy outcome :)
 
Hugo's There said:
Well if 2 experienced vets have agreed that this is the right dose then I don't think we are in a position to argue :)

Plus if the bunnies nose is very inflammed and full of pus I would imagine that would be rather painful too
Click to expand...

I think people often don't realise that rabbits are sometimes given Metacam more for it's anti-inflammatory properties than pain killing ones....as buns are very prone to the immuno-supressant side effects from the use of steroids, which are usually given to other species instead of an NSAID, to treat inflammation.
 
hiya everyone :wave:
just thought i'd update...matt is still completely fine and happy. :)
he has had hardly any pus come out of his nose and he used to have lots all the time so i'm really happy! :)
keep you posted...
 
Hopefully this will be the final word in this debate!
I've just got hold of the brand spanking new edition of the BSAVA Small Animal Formulary and it says:
Rabbits: 0.3-0.6mg/kg s/c., p.o. q24h; studies have shown that rabbits may require a dose exceeding 0.3mg/kg q24h to achieve optimal plasma levels of meloxicam over a 24-hour interval and doses of 1.5mg/kg s.c., p.o. are well tolerated for 5 days.

It still drew a sharp intake of breath from our Vet though...:)
 
lilbun said:
Hopefully this will be the final word in this debate!
I've just got hold of the brand spanking new edition of the BSAVA Small Animal Formulary and it says:
Rabbits: 0.3-0.6mg/kg s/c., p.o. q24h; studies have shown that rabbits may require a dose exceeding 0.3mg/kg q24h to achieve optimal plasma levels of meloxicam over a 24-hour interval and doses of 1.5mg/kg s.c., p.o. are well tolerated for 5 days.

It still drew a sharp intake of breath from our Vet though...:)
Click to expand...

I think thats the trouble. So many Vets seem terrified of medicating a Rabbit to therapeutic doses. Thus Rabbits are left in pain unnecessarily and antibiotics dont work because the course is too short or the dose too low.

It makes me so cross that some Vets have a high Rabbit client base yet dont see fit to update their knowledge about the species. They are happy to take our money though.....:evil:

Sorry, rant over and thanks for copying the Metacam dosage from the BSAVA AF :)
 
Jack's-Jane said:
I think thats the trouble. So many Vets seem terrified of medicating a Rabbit to therapeutic doses. Thus Rabbits are left in pain unnecessarily and antibiotics dont work because the course is too short or the dose too low.

It makes me so cross that some Vets have a high Rabbit client base yet dont see fit to update their knowledge about the species. They are happy to take our money though.....:evil:

Sorry, rant over and thanks for copying the Metacam dosage from the BSAVA AF :)
Click to expand...

You're welcome. I'm tempted to add that some vets seem to think that the only antibiotic you can use in rabbits in Baytril but I might start a whole new argument...:D
 
Is baytrill similar to Septrin? I was very suprised when my bunny was given septrin for a bite to his leg as I remember taking it myself as a child!
 
rachie_j said:
Is baytrill similar to Septrin? I was very suprised when my bunny was given septrin for a bite to his leg as I remember taking it myself as a child!
Click to expand...

No, they are both antibiotics but from different groups. Baytril is a Floroquinolone and Septrin is a Potentiated Sulphonamide :)
 
ah right! Thank! I was just suprised to find them using childrens medicines on rabbits but i suppose infacol is also used now so it must be becomming more common!
 
rachie_j said:
ah right! Thank! I was just suprised to find them using childrens medicines on rabbits but i suppose infacol is also used now so it must be becomming more common!
Click to expand...

Well think what the drugs are tested on before they are licenced for human use.......:cry:
 
lilbun said:
I've just got hold of the brand spanking new edition of the BSAVA Small Animal Formulary and it says:
Rabbits: 0.3-0.6mg/kg s/c., p.o. q24h; studies have shown that rabbits may require a dose exceeding 0.3mg/kg q24h to achieve optimal plasma levels of meloxicam over a 24-hour interval and doses of 1.5mg/kg s.c., p.o. are well tolerated for 5 days.
Click to expand...

You're reading Ch. 15 of the book, I assume. So let's use the max. amt. from the above, i.e., 0.6 mg/Kg

using simple dimensional analysis to work out the dosage in ml, we have:

(0.6 mg/ KG x 2.4 KG ) / 1.5 mg/ml = 0.96 ml PER 24 HR.

So as I was saying, giving 0.8 ml EVERY 12 hr. is way too high
 
Studies have shown that doses of 1.5mg/kg (3 times 0.5mg/kg) were eliminated by rabbits after 24 hrs. the half life was shown to be roughly 8 hours and repeated daily dosing of 1.5mg/kg for 5 days lead to no accumulation of the drug in the rabbits bodies (so their system was not saturated and could have taken more) and no abnormal biochemical changes with regards kidney parameters etc. Rabbits are able to clear meloxicam faster than other mammals so twice daily dosing of 0.5mg/kg is a sensible way to keep the dose at a thereputic level. So I give 0.4-0.5mg/kg twice daily and have done so for years without negative effects. For rabbits with terminal conditions eg cancers, I will go for 1mg/kg if required and monitor blood changes periodically. This thread highlights some of the issues with exotic medicine and its rapid progression in that we have to keep abrest of the most up to date data available. For rats the dose is 2mg/kg is an example. This also highlights some of the pitfalls for vets who naturally err on the side of caution without the proper advice available to them and may inadvertantly end up giving "homeopathic" metacam
I have more or less given up reading textbooks for things like drug doses and prefer to paw through scientific papers and conference proceedings
Hope this helps
 
rodneyvet said:
Studies have shown that doses of 1.5mg/kg (3 times 0.5mg/kg) were eliminated by rabbits after 24 hrs. the half life was shown to be roughly 8 hours and repeated daily dosing of 1.5mg/kg for 5 days lead to no accumulation of the drug in the rabbits bodies (so their system was not saturated and could have taken more) and no abnormal biochemical changes with regards kidney parameters etc. Rabbits are able to clear meloxicam faster than other mammals so twice daily dosing of 0.5mg/kg is a sensible way to keep the dose at a thereputic level. So I give 0.4-0.5mg/kg twice daily and have done so for years without negative effects. For rabbits with terminal conditions eg cancers, I will go for 1mg/kg if required and monitor blood changes periodically. This thread highlights some of the issues with exotic medicine and its rapid progression in that we have to keep abrest of the most up to date data available. For rats the dose is 2mg/kg is an example. This also highlights some of the pitfalls for vets who naturally err on the side of caution without the proper advice available to them and may inadvertantly end up giving "homeopathic" metacam
I have more or less given up reading textbooks for things like drug doses and prefer to paw through scientific papers and conference proceedings
Hope this helps
Click to expand...

its good to have a vet on the forum... so should metacam be given twice daily instead of the once a day most vets reccomend then? coco has been on the cat version of metacam and on the 2.5kg dosage.. the syringe is in kg dosages?(unusual i know) he has it once a day. in his case it seems to be enough. but for some buns this isnt then? x
 
The answer is to treat the rabbit, not go blind with the dose. If your rabbit is fine at the dose you are on at that frequency then stick with it. I often give twice daily because as I mentioned the meloxicam is COMPLETLY eliminated at 24hrs, I prefer to try to keep the dose at a therapeutic level so give repeated doses
Goodluck
 
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