Paracetamol use for Guinea pigs

[AidaB]

Hamish has muscular pain at the base of his spine, we have been aware of it now for over a year. He was initially prescribed dog Metacam up to 0.4ml twice a day.
Recently he has been quite low for short periods of time, and a real puzzle for us and the vet trying to work out what’s going on.
Hamish had X-rays yesterday to rule out any possible stones. None were spotted.
The X-rays showed that he is starting to have some bone deterioration in his pelvic area.
The vet talked about Gabapentin as another pain relief medication, but then said she thinks we should try paracetamol first.
She has prescribed 4ml of paracetamol at a dose of once a day initially. Saying it could be increased to twice a day. To be used only on his bad days.
Along with continuing the metacam, daily.
This is a vet who is piggy savvy and we have never felt unsure about her suggested treatment before now.
I did mention my concerns, but she said she has treated other piggies using paracetamol with no issues.

Our concern is that, is a lot of paracetamol liquid in one dose.

I have tried searching the forum for other piggies using paracetamol, but the threads are all very old.

Does anyone have any experience with using paracetamol for their guinea pigs? And does that dose sound a lot?

Would Gabapentin perhaps be a better alternative? The vet mentioned it comes in pill form- how do you administer this to a guinea pig?

 

[Bill & Ted]

I have No experience of using paracetamol but that sounds like a big dose for a piggy, I would feel a little concerned too? Maybe it’s child paracetamol and so quite weak?
Hope someone comes on who can offer advice

 

[Bradshaw Piggies]

Sorry I’m not much help. I’ve not been prescribed paracetamol for piggies as of yet. I have used Tramadol with a couple of them

It’s not uncommon for vets to prescribe human licensed meds. In fact most meds aren’t actually licensed for animal use but have excellent results. For example we often use paracetamol for the horses (but end up having to crush up packets and packets at a time - plus they are a nightmare to get hold of as the supermarket won’t let you buy 20 boxes at a time ). We also use human diabetes medication and human omeprazole, buscopan etc.

I presume if you’re buying capsule/tablet form it will be a case of crushing up and syringing? Presume the piggies (like most animals) won’t eat it in food.

I’m not sure on the dose. Could it be that it metabolises differently? Hence a large dose?
Would the vet be happy for you to call them and ask?

Sorry I can’t be of more help!
Hope your boy starts to feel better

 

[Claire W]

I have no experience of giving paracetamol to piggies but I can understand your concerns as it does sound like a big dose. You are within your rights to speak to the vet and express your concerns. But like @Bill & Ted has mentioned, May be it’s child’s paracetamol which would we weaker? I’d double check.

I once had an antibiotic that came in tablet form. We had to grind it up and then mixed with a tiny bit of diluted ribeana and syringed it to Eliza

 

[Wiebke]

Hamish has muscular pain at the base of his spine, we have been aware of it now for over a year. He was initially prescribed dog Metacam up to 0.4ml twice a day.
Recently he has been quite low for short periods of time, and a real puzzle for us and the vet trying to work out what’s going on.
Hamish had X-rays yesterday to rule out any possible stones. None were spotted.
The X-rays showed that he is starting to have some bone deterioration in his pelvic area.
The vet talked about Gabapentin as another pain relief medication, but then said she thinks we should try paracetamol first.
She has prescribed 4ml of paracetamol at a dose of once a day initially. Saying it could be increased to twice a day. To be used only on his bad days.
Along with continuing the metacam, daily.
This is a vet who is piggy savvy and we have never felt unsure about her suggested treatment before now.
I did mention my concerns, but she said she has treated other piggies using paracetamol with no issues.

Our concern is that, is a lot of paracetamol liquid in one dose.

I have tried searching the forum for other piggies using paracetamol, but the threads are all very old.

Does anyone have any experience with using paracetamol for their guinea pigs? And does that dose sound a lot?

Would Gabapentin perhaps be a better alternative? The vet mentioned it comes in pill form- how do you administer this to a guinea pig?

Hi

I frankly can't remember a paracetamol vet prescription for guinea pigs; the old threads generally refer to DIY home treating. We do not have any practical experience with it on here.
Since it is quite a weak analgesic, it would require a pretty high dosage. Guinea pigs require much higher dosages compared to their weight compared to other pet species. It is now thought that this is due to how food is processed and absorbed in the gut.

Gabapentin does specifically work on the spine and would be the recommended painkiller. Unlike paracetamol, it is used by an increasing number of vets in this country as an alternative to tramadol for severe pain.
@furryfriends (TEAS) uses medication in tablet form regularly for her sanctuary piggies and may have more practical tips for you.

 

[furryfriends (TEAS)]

The Gabapentin I’ve used for guinea pigs at TEAS comes in liquid form. I’ve never heard of using paracetamol.

 

[furryfriends (TEAS)]

I administer tablets in this video, but your vet should be able to get Gabapentin in liquid form

Medicating your guinea pig - Instructional video on Facebook

 

[Qualcast&Flymo]

When Winifred's arthritis became worse and needed more than Metacam (0.2ml of dog version 2xday), our vet added first buprenorphine (which didn't seem to help) then Tralieve (crushed tablets in suspension I believe) which did make a difference. So there are plenty of alternatives to try before resorting to massive amounts of human paracetamol.
Hope you can find something that works for Hamish soon x

 

[AidaB]

Thank you everyone. I think we may need to seek a second opinion.
The amount didn’t sit well with us.
Yes, we were told the paracetamol was save for use in animals & we have liquid. I had a taste & it tastes suspiciously like calpol to me!
@Bradshaw Piggies, I feel for you that’s a lot of tablets to crush up for horses.

Liquid Gabapentin was not mentioned- that’s good to know.

 

[Eriathwen]

That is a huge dose of paracetamol for guinea pigs, compared to what my vet has prescribed. I have never seen anyone told to give more than 0.2ml, mine are on 0.04ml twice daily but are usually on other pain medications alongside.

That being said, he recently mentioned that the exotics specialist he has in said she had never seen much benefit when using paracetamol. There has been some alterations/increases in the metacam and gabapentin dose I've been using over the years as more exotic vets have been giving their input so it may be that the paracetamol dose was also conservative, but thats still a massive difference. I would maybe double check with your vet before giving it just in case they actually meant 0.4ml?

Just editing to add in as well, my vet has me go and purchase the infant liquid calpol rather than dispensing it themselves, so it will likely be calpol you are getting, especially if it tastes like it.

 

[Bradshaw Piggies]

Thank you everyone. I think we may need to seek a second opinion.
The amount didn’t sit well with us.
Yes, we were told the paracetamol was save for use in animals & we have liquid. I had a taste & it tastes suspiciously like calpol to me!
@Bradshaw Piggies, I feel for you that’s a lot of tablets to crush up for horses.

Liquid Gabapentin was not mentioned- that’s good to know.

the worst is when supplements arrive in the post and I have to transport them to the stables with me….



Call me Pablo….. swear I’ll get stopped one day!

 

[Tigermoth]

It seems a lot in comparison to a newborn dose… An average newborn would end up with about 1ml and they weigh about four times as much as a Guinea pig…

That’s my only comparison! (Calpol is 120mg/5ml) so a bit more than a fifth of a single tablet in one teaspoon.

Someone said that paracetamol is a “weak” painkiller. Be cautious with that thought, it is an extremely effective and highly under-rated analgesic and the belief that because it is routinely used and easily available must mean it is somehow sub par can lead people down the path of medication that has similar efficacy but more side effects. Blind studies when given IV show similar outcomes to morphine! (Admittedly the outcomes aren’t quite so comparable orally but morphine is heavy duty). We also know even moderately high doses can be extremely damaging to the liver so we have to be respectful of it.

 

[AidaB]

Thank you @Eriathwen
I did question the dose, yes she really did mean 4ml. Was a bit flabbergasted.
Hamish will continue with the metacam. Perhaps a smaller dose of paracetamol while we seek a second opinion. At the moment he is back to having good days without needing extra medication.

@Tigermoth I work in childcare,and am aware of children’s dosages, but yes when you put it like that it’s even scarier.

 

[Bill & Ted]

That is a huge dose of paracetamol for guinea pigs, compared to what my vet has prescribed. I have never seen anyone told to give more than 0.2ml, mine are on 0.04ml twice daily but are usually on other pain medications alongside.

That being said, he recently mentioned that the exotics specialist he has in said she had never seen much benefit when using paracetamol. There has been some alterations/increases in the metacam and gabapentin dose I've been using over the years as more exotic vets have been giving their input so it may be that the paracetamol dose was also conservative, but thats still a massive difference. I would maybe double check with your vet before giving it just in case they actually meant 0.4ml?

Just editing to add in as well, my vet has me go and purchase the infant liquid calpol rather than dispensing it themselves, so it will likely be calpol you are getting, especially if it tastes like it.

Maybe the @AidaB vet has the decimal point in the wrong place ?

 

[AidaB]

Maybe the @AidaB vet has the decimal point in the wrong place ?

No she definitely didn’t, she was repeatedly asked. Scary, and even more scary after reading everyone else’s thoughts.