[Gpdd] HEALTH Metacam

[DFHAKES at aol.com]

Kelly, Pancake & Waffles,
 
Virtually every medicine available to vets was either developed to treat  
humans, cats, dogs or horses.  Exotic vets have to use the medications "off  
label" for their other patients.  Meaning, the label won't specifically say  that 
you can use it for rabbits, guinea pigs, etc.  That means that the  exotic vet 
has to use his/her expertise and research to determine what medicines  and 
what dosage is appropriate.  There are whole books & entire lecture  series 
devoted to veterinary pharmacology plus most vets I know consult with  their 
colleagues, so the vet has lots of guidance.  Metacam is a wonderful  product and 
Pancake & Waffles do should do just fine on it.
 
I hope this answers your question.
 
By the way, many human medicines are used for exotics.  My guinea pig  Penny 
gets urisidol, which is the same medicine humans take  for gallstones.  You 
would think that she would get a teeny tiny dose  because she's not a 150 lb 
human.  However, the metabolism of rabbits &  guinea pigs is so fast that her 
dose is quite large.  Not at all what  you would expect for a 2 1/2 lb pig!   


 
Regards,

Dana F. Hakes
Chapter Manager
Tampa Bay House  Rabbit Society

Please check out our rabbit information and lists of  adoptable rabbits at:
_www.tampabayhrs.org_ (http://www.tampabayhrs.org/) 
http://wwww.tampabayhrs.petfinder.com  (check out our new Petfinder address!)


"It doesn't matter what  the kids say. Rabbits are not disposable like a box 
of cereal or a Disney video.  They WILL get tired of the rabbits and go on to 
the next toy. YOU will have to  deal with the consequences. Unfortunately, 
most people deal with the situation  by DUMPING their rabbits on someone else. 
Ultimately, it is the bunny that pays  for your inability to say NO."