Convenia - Your Thoughts?

Status
Not open for further replies.
Cavy.girl

Cavy.girl

New Born Pup
Joined
Nov 16, 2011
Messages
39
Reaction score
13
Points
145
Location
North Yorkshire, UK
Last Friday my little Stewie was put to sleep, and I worry his deterioration was due to being given the antibiotic Convenia.

A few weeks prior, Stewie had been on a 10 day course of baytril to clear up a possible UTI - he had been peeing blood, but never cried, had problems whilst peeing or had symptoms of calcification.

Stewie seemed to recover and there was no more blood in his pee. But he looked a little rough, like the antibiotic had upset him. He was however still lively, chatty, ate his nuggets, fresh veg and hay.

Lats Thursday I felt he should get checked up by the vet, in the hope they could give him a little boost or pick me up. The vet gave him 3 injections, including Convenia, which is something I've never had administered to piggies before. The day he went to the vet he was running around the living room, eating veggies and went into the carry box himself. He was bright and himself.

Later that day he showed no interest in eating, and it became worse trying to syringe feed him critical care. He became very lethargic, like he had no energy.

The following morning we woke to Stewie squeaking (that poorly, hungry squeak) and I found him in the same pigloo with his brother - something that would just never in a million years happen without a scuffle. He really wasn't well. I got him out for a feed but he was so lifeless and could barely swallow what I put in his mouth. I knew he was dying.

Seeing this before, we thought Stewie would die any moment so we lay him on the bed and snuggled. When we found we were still like this four hours on we knew we needed to get him to the vet to help him on, which after a long, torturous decision and second vet opinion, resulted in us saying goodbye.

Whilst it was obvious Stewie had something going on, I can't help but feel the Convenia totally buggered him. One minute he was eating himself and lively, then he's fading away after being given the drug. Looking around online I'm finding a lot of talk that this drug shouldn't be given to guinea pigs, that it's highly toxic, so I'm really wanting to hear from anyone knowledgeable and/or experienced with Convenia, what your thoughts are on the drug?
 

Attachments

  • stewie.webp
    stewie.webp
    36.7 KB · Views: 9
I have also seen online the same web articles as you ( on guinealynx and the american piggie forum). I have never had it prescribed myself and never seen it being prescribed for piggies before reading these online articals. I am going to tag a few knowledgeable forum members and see if they have heard of it for use in piggies...
Ps i am so sorry to hear about your poor piggie. R.I.P little one x
@Wiebke @helen105281 @Pebble
 
jenniferanneharris said:
I have also seen online the same web articles as you ( on guinealynx and the american piggie forum). I have never had it prescribed myself and never seen it being prescribed for piggies before reading these online articals. I am going to tag a few knowledgeable forum members and see if they have heard of it for use in piggies...
Ps i am so sorry to hear about your poor piggie. R.I.P little one x
@Wiebke @helen105281 @Pebble
Click to expand...

Thank you! :) Really missing him. x
 
I'm so sorry.

I too have a recollection of there being a pig on here who was very poorly after being given it but I can't find it when I search.
 
furryfriends Excellent Adventure Sanctuary said:
@Jerrybelly - Was it one of your piggies who was prescribed this antibiotic and was quite unwell after? Whoever it was I spoke with my very guinea pig savvy vet about it and he told me it wasn't appropriate at all.
Click to expand...

Yes it was. Do you remember Debbie, I was on the phone to you in a terrible state afterwards because I thought Jerry wasn't going to make it! He had gone to the vets for treatment for a UTI - he was crying when weeing, but otherwise happy enough. He was given convenia, which I was told was an antibiotic that would last for up to 10 days. I had never heard of it before, but I didn't want to question it. By the following day (I think) he had stopped eating and drinking entirely, became lethargic, stopped pooing and was clearly very very poorly. After taking him to a different veterinary practice, it took several days of round the clock syringe feeding, gut stimulants, probiotics, and high dose vitamin C to get him through it. At times he seemed like he had completely given up, and it felt so cruel to keep feeding him. He eventually turned the corner - that was around 18 months ago. His guts remained unsettled for around 2 weeks afterwards, I seem to remember.

I will never allow one of my pigs to have the injection again.

I'm so sorry for your loss xx
 
I'm sorry to hear little Stewie has gone to the Bridge.

Firstly please be reassured that you acted in good faith and did all you could for your little man

Without a full post-mortem, it is not possible to say for definite whether it was the antibiotic ..sadly some infections/conditions can literally kill a guinea pig within 24hours. However the fact he was fine up until the antibiotic was given, and then deteriorated rapidly within the time frame you describe following it's administration, means it certainly needs to be considered. Sadly we had another similar situation on the forum 2-3 years ago (Little Thorns Rescue)

Convenia is marketed for cats and dogs (not guinea pigs) by the manufacturers. It belongs to the class of antibiotics known as cephalosporins.......which are generally considered to be completely unsuitable for guinea pigs and rabbits because they knock out the beneficial gut flora found in the herbivore digestive system, permitting life-threatening overgrowth and toxin production by e.g. Clostridial species.(often with diarrhoea) . Some vets make the mistake of thinking that if it is given by injection rather than orally then it will not have the same side effects on the gut. This is in part due to the fact that penicillin, once a no-no for rabbits and guinea pigs for the same reason, is now being given by injection to rabbits and is proving a successful method of treatment.when baytril has not worked.

Your vet has clearly prescribed the drug "off-licence" and you should therefore have been asked to sign a form accepting that you understood this and the risks.(Did the vet give their reasons for precribing it as opposed to an alternative?) Prescribing off-licence is not a bad thing. .Most drug companies will not spend the money on trials/testing for any species other than cats and dogs, so can only "market" the drug as licensed for cats and dogs
The Small Animal Formulary provides information for vets on how drugs marketed for some animals can be prescribed "off-licence" (and at what doses and routes) for other animals....If vets were not happy to do this, albeit they have to follow something called the "Cascade" system (selecting appropriate drugs with least risk first), then the only antibiotic that could ever be given to guinea pigs is baytril and most of my own pigs wouldn't be alive today.

In the case of treating a guinea pig UTI, the next most common choice by vets is normally Septrin..(unless a wee culture is done to identify the bugs and their drug resistance tested)....Convenia is a rather drastic leap up the Cascade system. It doesn't help that last time I looked into this situation, I spoke to both Simon and my own exotics vet about it (who both said it was inappropriate), but surprisingly. when we checked the Small Animal Formulary. it was still stating that injections of cephalosporins were suitable for guinea pigs. I'm guessing this is still the case with the most recent edition of the publication (I think it is produced annually?) otherwise your vet would not have prescribed it.

Were both vets at the same practice? If not, I suggest you send a letter to the first vet, copied to the second vet, (pointing out if you were not asked to sign an "off-licence" form), and ask them to consider sending in an adverse reaction report. If both vets were at the same practice then you should send a complaint to the Practice Manager. indicating your concern at the use of this drug when other more suitable ones may have been available under the Cascade system...

I know this won;t bring your little Stewie back.......but unless and until the Small Animal Formulary amends the entries for these drugs and Vet awareness is increased, regrettably you will not be the only person who will be left wondering "what if". in this sad situation.

Popcorn-free little Stewie - hugs to your mummy.
x
 
It might be helpful to inform the vets that this is not the first recorded case of this happening....I am happy to help draft a letter for you including details of other case histories if you PM me your email address.
x
 
Pebble said:
It might be helpful to inform the vets that this is not the first recorded case of this happening....I am happy to help draft a letter for you including details of other case histories if you PM me your email address.
x
Click to expand...

Thank you Pebble, that would be a good idea and certainly give me some back up. I'll pm you. x
 
Jerrybelly said:
Yes it was. Do you remember Debbie, I was on the phone to you in a terrible state afterwards because I thought Jerry wasn't going to make it! He had gone to the vets for treatment for a UTI - he was crying when weeing, but otherwise happy enough. He was given convenia, which I was told was an antibiotic that would last for up to 10 days. I had never heard of it before, but I didn't want to question it. By the following day (I think) he had stopped eating and drinking entirely, became lethargic, stopped pooing and was clearly very very poorly. After taking him to a different veterinary practice, it took several days of round the clock syringe feeding, gut stimulants, probiotics, and high dose vitamin C to get him through it. At times he seemed like he had completely given up, and it felt so cruel to keep feeding him. He eventually turned the corner - that was around 18 months ago. His guts remained unsettled for around 2 weeks afterwards, I seem to remember.

I will never allow one of my pigs to have the injection again.

I'm so sorry for your loss xx
Click to expand...

Hi Jerrybelly, thank you for sharing your experience.

It does sound strangely similar which makes me more convinced it was the Convenia that finished Stewie off.

I'm so glad Jerry made it though, that was a close call. I would hate anyone else to go through it. x
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top