Heads up on Metacam

S

sheltiemom

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Recently one of my little girls had dental surgery with several teeth removed. She did have and had had for many years an enlarged heart due to genetics and poor breeding. After her surgery she was given Metacam for pain. Normally I do not give my dogs Metacam after surgery since they normally never show signs of pain.

On the forth day she seemed to be having some chewing problems so I gave her half the dose of Matacam that was prescribed. She seemed to do alright after that dose. My vet/friend called about 9 pm just to check on her. She had shown signs of great improvement after her surgery , so I perhaps did not pay as close attention as I should have . I normally keep impeccable records on my shelties, since most of them do have many medical issues. After talking at length with my vet he suggested I go ahead and give her the remaining dose. Two hours after giving her the original half dose I have her the other half. Two hours later she passed out.

After contacting two vets, one at UC Davis Vet Hospital and University of Minnesota Vet Hospital, I was informed that dogs with heart issues like my little girl's should avoid Metacam. It can cause greater heart damage to the already existing problem. My little girl went into Congestive Heart Failure only after the Metacam. She had been improving greatly just prior to that.

I knew the surgery she underwent could exacerbate her heart condition, but tests on her heart 3 days after her surgery showed no outward signs of further damage to her heart. Both the vets I spoke with at the University's have said they have documented cases where Metacam has made certain medical conditions worse, especially heart problems.

Because I take in only the sicker and older shelties, they all have varius medical problems. I almost lost one of my dogs to a toxic reaction to the ivermectin in the larger dose of Heartgard he was put on. The vets in my area would not prescribe Inteceptor for them at that time.

I just wanted to share this with folks here. If you have a good vet they will do a very thorough exam before giving any type of medication to you little ones. n It helps to ask questions and do some research too
 
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This is more or less what I have been saying all along - that you can never be too careful when it comes to your sheltie's health. The ivermectin situation is another reason I keep stressing about MDR1 testing. One of the many! It is not just ivermectin, but other heartworm medicine can be lethal in large doses as well.

I am really sorry about your sheltie, and I really hope she gets better soon. :no:
 
Thanks for this valuable information, Sheltiemom! Metacam is something I've used in the past for my pups...none with heart issues, fortunately. But now that I know, I'll be sure to ask the question next time.

I hope your little girl recovers quickly. Thank goodness you had good vets on the case.
 
I had my MDR-1 mutant/mutant Collie spayed yesterday. When I talked to my vet after the procedure, she said it was an exercise in "what can Katie have". They did her at about 3 in the afternoon, and when I picked her up at 6:30, she was ambulatory. So yeah! to my vet, who is awesome. And the incision is less than two inches long, and only has four stitches.

Anyway, they gave me 100 mg of Rimadyl for pain, and it makes me nervous to give her that much at one time.
 
Smudge said:
This is more or less what I have been saying all along - that you can never be too careful when it comes to your sheltie's health. The ivermectin situation is another reason I keep stressing about MDR1 testing. One of the many! It is not just ivermectin, but other heartworm medicine can be lethal in large doses as well.

I am really sorry about your sheltie, and I really hope she gets better soon. :no:
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Smudge....Unfortunately she passed on 8/15. It was my little Shanny She had all the blood work done and her MDR1 were considered in the not so normal range. I need to find the test results to get the values My vet always runs one on my dogs since shelties are considered more susceptible to drug interactions
 
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Thanks for sharing this valuable information with us. Again I am sorry for the loss of your precious Shangen and Bless you for caring for the sick and elderly Shelties who need you so much and deserved to loved and cared for in their final years.
 
I am so sorry to hear about Shanjen. Deska is on Metacam for the rest of his life for his joint disease, we tried several anti-inflamms but this worked the best. It is a really hard choice to make - take the risk of medication or let them have pain. I decided quality of life was the better choice, and to see how much happier he is when he has the Metacam I know I made the right choice, but it doesnt make it any less worrying about the internal damage it can do. Atm he gets it intermittently but in the future he will need it all the time and then its going to be harder.
 
This is a drug I will avoid with a passion in the future. My Noah was put on it for a one-week course for limping. Ten days after he finished the course, he was dead from a suspected GI bleed (he vomited blood overnight his last night alive). The general surgeon I work for stated point-blank when we were talking about Noah and the metacam that this is what killed him. Meloxicam has to be used with caution even in people due to it causing GI bleeds. I would never give it to another animal.
 
My setter was on Metacam after Lymes and a back injury that caused him a lot of pain in his hind end (he was 12) and back. He was on Metacam from June - December, where he passed from what I suspect was renal failure. The Metacam gave him a quality of life he would not have without it, but not sure how the outcome would have been if he ddin't get it. So sad.

Anyway, thanks for sharing your story, and my heart continues to go out to you about your little Shanny. Losing a beloved pet is so hard.

Dani
 
Emmasmom said:
This is a drug I will avoid with a passion in the future. My Noah was put on it for a one-week course for limping. Ten days after he finished the course, he was dead from a suspected GI bleed (he vomited blood overnight his last night alive). The general surgeon I work for stated point-blank when we were talking about Noah and the metacam that this is what killed him. Meloxicam has to be used with caution even in people due to it causing GI bleeds. I would never give it to another animal.
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Ronna I'm so sorry Noah passed in such a traumatic way and of course for your loss. My heart and prayers go out to you.
 
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