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Meloxicam too high dose?

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quicklies

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Got prescribed 0.8ml twice a day of dog meloxicam after a dental under GA. Seems like a bit too high dose, is it possible it's a mistake? He seems very sleepy after administering.

EDIT: He weighs 1kg
 
My piggy who has Interstitial Cystitis currently takes 1.2ml Loxicom 2x a day. She used to be on 1.4ml 2x a day. My piggy weighs 1.35kg though. Our guinea pig vet said that she can take 1ml/1kg depending on how it's needed. We do try out to lessen or tweak the dosage though to see at which dosage she would feel comfortable. She managed to get to 0.8ml 2x a day during the past week but she had a really bad weekend with pain, to the point that she completely stopped eating, hence we put the dosage back up again. Ask your vet regarding dosages and such to make sure you are giving your piggy the right amount.
 
anyar.dris said:
My piggy who has Interstitial Cystitis currently takes 1.2ml Loxicom 2x a day. She used to be on 1.4ml 2x a day. My piggy weighs 1.35kg though. Our guinea pig vet said that she can take 1ml/1kg depending on how it's needed. We do try out to lessen or tweak the dosage though to see at which dosage she would feel comfortable. She managed to get to 0.8ml 2x a day during the past week but she had a really bad weekend with pain, to the point that she completely stopped eating, hence we put the dosage back up again. Ask your vet regarding dosages and such to make sure you are giving your piggy the right amount.
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Is your Loxicom a cat or dog version? Because the dog version is 3x stronger
 
It does seem quite high - how long is he on it for? My vet offered this once a day but we negotiated a bit as I felt my arthritic old boar would do better long term on twice a day and thus it was a lower dose. They do have a high tolerance but we did go over once with a little sow trying to pass a bladder stone and she looked very rough and stopped eating... on the plus side if you do OD them they do recover pretty quickly as they burn it off. It doesn't make them sleepy I don't think - that's more likely to be the GA. Is it definitely ml? The Dog Metacam we have comes in a bottle with a special syringe marked in units (clear plastic, purple plunger). 1 unit is not the same as 0.1ml... I think I worked it out previously as 1 unit dog about 0.07ml so 8 units would be roughly 0.56ml. Just speculating...
 
Veggies Galore said:
0.8 ml Dog strength meloxicam is acceptable for a 1kg guinea pig for short term pain relief

this is a useful thread


Pain relief query
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Ok, good to know.
Free Ranger said:
It does seem quite high - how long is he on it for? My vet offered this once a day but we negotiated a bit as I felt my arthritic old boar would do better long term on twice a day and thus it was a lower dose. They do have a high tolerance but we did go over once with a little sow trying to pass a bladder stone and she looked very rough and stopped eating... on the plus side if you do OD them they do recover pretty quickly as they burn it off. It doesn't make them sleepy I don't think - that's more likely to be the GA. Is it definitely ml? The Dog Metacam we have comes in a bottle with a special syringe marked in units (clear plastic, purple plunger). 1 unit is not the same as 0.1ml... I think I worked it out previously as 1 unit dog about 0.07ml so 8 units would be roughly 0.56ml. Just speculating...
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I assumed until I finish the bottle off. 10ml bottle will give 12 doses of 0.8ml - 6 days, twice a day

Yes it definitely says 0.8ml twice a day, not 0.08ml, not 0.08mg or anything else. We were given a 10ml bottle of dog meloxicam.

I will call tomorrow to make sure they did not make a mistake with the dose and ask how long to use it for. So far I've only given one dose as I picked him a few hours ago.
 
Good luck with your syringe feeding (I'm assuming you're doing a bit of this after a dental!) and with the call tomorrow!
 
Sounds fine to me, especially as it’s only for a week. My girl is on it now for stiffness/arthritis. Same dose as your piggy. Hope that helps. Never any harm double checking though if it will ease your worries.
 
It’s absolutely fine for short term pain relief. Good to see a vet recognise that a decent amount of pain relief is needed post dental surgery.
 
Thanks everyone your answers have been reassuring.

It has been over 24hrs and hes still not eating or drinking. He's not a fan of critical care but it has to be done. How long after the surgery is he supposed to be eating hay again?

Prior to the dental he wasnt drinkning or eating either, which is why he was brought to the vet in the first place. But my worry is that not eating and having overgrown teeth is a symptom rather than cause as the surgery has not helped...
 
One of my piglets is on 0.4ml twice a day long-term, though the highest she's ever been administered post-surgery is 0.6ml (when she came home 5 days later, at least; she may have had higher while at the vets).

Jasmine was spayed, so I don't know closely our piggies' situations will correspond, but it took 10-14 days for me to feel I could stop syringe feeding her altogether. For about 7-9 of those days, I was syringe feeding her 4-5 times a day. It can definitely take them a while to pick up again, in case that reassures you!
 
You are right in that it could be a symptom but when we had molars ground we had pain relief for a week and they told me how important it was because the mouth can be really sore for some time after. I wouldn't be fretting quite yet anyway. How is he in himself... sniffing about or just laying there. Sleeping a lot or back to normal? Weight gain/loss? Mine disliked the aniseed CC in the green packet but the papaya 'fine grind' CC in the brown packet was much more popular and also easier to syringe. I had to send off for it though and then wait a few days. They usually get Science Selective 'Recovery' which has also been deemed acceptable. My vet supplies the Recovery but when I was trying to find an alternative i just phoned round other vets until I found one that sold green CC over the counter. Should have saved my 6 quid - she looked horrified! Have you tried a little grass instead of hay? Is he trying to pick up food and failing or just not interested in anything. And btw I never syringe plain fluid anymore because of the inhalation risk - I just make the slurry a bit sloppier.

The other thing is how much was he eating before his op. If his appetite had slowed right down and he wasn't producing much in the way of poops perhaps he would benefit from a gut stimulant like emeprid - we were given this after our dental and we were also given antibiotics. We threw the kitchen sink at it. Ours wasn't a happy ending - teeth it seemed were a symptom not the cause in the end. But it wasn't for lack of trying. My girl took about 40ml Recovery per 24 hours - we tried more than this but she wasn't happy - however she maintained her weight for some weeks. It was always an uncomfortable compromise and she never welcomed the syringe but apart from not eating she behaved exactly like a piggy - sniffing around, lying out in the sun, enjoying some lap time, napping and hanging out with her cage mate. It was such a shame we couldn't find out what happened - the vet was completely baffled. I hope you have better luck. Come on little fella, we're all rooting for you x
 
I received a taster pack from haybox and he's eating hay, for the first time in a week or so. I guess the 6 different meadow/timothy/orchard hays we have at home (and he previously enjoyed) are so bad that he'd rather not eat them and die lol.
 
Well he ate very little of the new hay and now he doesnt want it anymore. So I dont think hay quality is the issue. He's either still sore from the dental or has a lack of appetite due to some completely different issue. :(
 
Well at least he showed some interest and had a little go. I would think he is still sore but stay positive - there's time yet. Were you able to get him to try any grass? One of my piggies who couldn't eat was tempted by the insides of a cucumber - just the soft seedy bit broken into little lumps that she could slurp up and swallow with very little chewing. It helps with water intake too.
 
Free Ranger said:
Well at least he showed some interest and had a little go. I would think he is still sore but stay positive - there's time yet. Were you able to get him to try any grass? One of my piggies who couldn't eat was tempted by the insides of a cucumber - just the soft seedy bit broken into little lumps that she could slurp up and swallow with very little chewing. It helps with water intake too.
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He does eat cucumber and lettuce, also tomato - just soft stuff it seems, so he might be sore still, he used to enjoy harder veg before

I don't have access to my own grass and don'tt rust the one in parks - how can i get some safe grass?
 
quicklies said:
He does eat cucumber and lettuce, also tomato - just soft stuff it seems, so he might be sore still, he used to enjoy harder veg before

I don't have access to my own grass and don'tt rust the one in parks - how can i get some safe grass?
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Grow some from seed in a tray! (deep window ledges useful but non-essential)
 
Coriander is also a popular and 'safe' herb to give... I tempt mine with parsley in times of low appetite but we have to be careful with that because, like spinach, it's higher in calcium so I do just a few sprigs at a time. It's good he's eating something by himself even if it's just the soft stuff. You are quite right not to trust grass from parks - the only suggestion I have - and it really does depend on your local area(!) is to check out graveyards as many churches are trying to go 'eco' and often leave a bit uncut. Either that or if you know of any vegetable allotments have a nosy round for an abandoned one. Dogs are not always banned from these areas but they are often discouraged! If you can't find any you're happy with stick to soft veg and supermarket herbs x

My girl with incisor problems couldn't eat carrot but if I cut it very thin like spaghetti or peeled a strip off she could just about manage it.... she had a bowl of short thin veggie strands. I had to take the skin off the sweet pepper though!
 
quicklies said:
He does eat cucumber and lettuce, also tomato - just soft stuff it seems, so he might be sore still, he used to enjoy harder veg before

I don't have access to my own grass and don'tt rust the one in parks - how can i get some safe grass?
Click to expand...
I think HayPigs sells grass trays? You could try one of those.
 
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