Got refill for Sahra Jane today and I am MAD!!!!!

[kimberly]

I went to my vet today to get refill for Sahra Jane for her pain meds for her back! The HOSPITAL she spent the week at sent home Rimadyl 100 mg. They said I could just get it refilled at my local vet. So that's what I was doing.
Well my vet looked at bottle and looked Rimadyl up and showed me confirmatin that this particullar pill is a good pain pill but is fatal to Labs in particular!!!! It attacks thier liver! Man am I &*^(^(%%$#
She said it's ok for other dogs not Labs though.
She gave me Preivicox. It's about a year old, came out last summer. So we are gonna try that!
Has anybody experienced Previcox?
I am deffinetly gonna bring this up to the Hospital when Sahra Jane has her monthly check up!!!! GGGRRR!!! I will take what vet showed me.
Thanks for letting me vent!!!!! LOL Kimberly

[Nightrise]

It's bad for labs? Some people overlook the smallest of things that can lead to major misdiagnoses or major incorrect perscriptions. Medcine scares me...

[Luvmyjob]

Rimadyl caused my Border Collie mix to go into liver failier She had bad hips and was on it for about 3 months, she died. Yeh, scarey meds, ya just never know!

[mara]

Sorry, Kimberly. I have no experience with these medications. I sure hope Sahra Jane is OK.

[weezyNollie]

Rimadyl is safe when used sparingly. Any long time use Rimadyl can cause liver damage and GI ulcers.

Sorry nobody informed you of this!

Sounds like you are now giving Piroxicam? Piroxicam comes with its own set of side affects as well, and is a bit stronger than Rimadyl.

[mara]

weezy, in your experience is Rimadyl especially harmful to Labs as compared to other breeds?

[weezyNollie]

I haven't seen too much of it. However, we do have a LOT of labs on either Rimadyl or Deramaxx. They seemed to be proned to arthritis, and we have an orthopedic surgeon who prescribes it quite often.

I'll start paying closer to attention if more are on Deramaxx then on Rimadyl. But the majority of the dogs on these types are definitely labs.

Here are the side effects of Piroxicam:
As with other NSAIDs, side effects include GI ulceration, prolonged bleeding, and potential for kidney insufficiency. This medication should not be used in patients where such conditions are pre-existing.

AND I found this RE: Labs and Rimadyl

The Hepatopathy Side Effect (usually occurs within the first 3 weeks of use)

A carprofen reaction that has received special attention is hepatopathy, a type of liver disease. When carprofen was released in 1997, it had received its FDA approval based on 400 or so test dogs. Since 1997, carprofen has been used in 4 million dogs. With these larger numbers, a very rare syndrome (one in 5000 dogs) became evident. Symptoms include nausea, appetite loss, and/or diarrhea as well as marked elevations (3-4 times higher than the normal range) in liver enzymes measured in the blood.

Dogs with this syndrome show improvement with support 5 - 10 days after discontinuing carprofen. It is important that carprofen be discontinued and the patient evaluated in the event of upset stomach signs in case of this syndrome. Even though this is a rare syndrome (one in 5000), it can become life-threatening if ignored. Appetite loss or other intestinal signs do not necessarily indicate a hepatopathy but since they might, it is important not to ignore these signs should they occur.

Initially, the Labrador Retriever appeared to be over-represented but this may actually reflect the overall popularity of the breed and/or their predisposition to musculo-skeletal problems requiring carprofen therapy.
Found that part especially interesting.. which is what I have found in my experiences.

[mara]

Thanks weezy. That's interesting that the incidence of more problems in Labs is probably directly related to more Labs being treated than other breeds.
Kiimberly, have you ever looked into giving Sahra Jane Glucosamine?

[kimberly]

Then why the **** did they give to her knowing she would be on it for awhile? Doesn't make sence to me!!!
But no, she is now on Previcox. I bought a k9 drug book today!!!!
I will carry it with me evertime I have to go to vet knowing one of my kids has to have meds!
I am just glad my vet pointed it out to me!!!! Kudos to her!!! LOL

Originally Posted by weezyNollie

Rimadyl is safe when used sparingly. Any long time use Rimadyl can cause liver damage and GI ulcers.

Sorry nobody informed you of this!

Sounds like you are now giving Piroxicam? Piroxicam comes with its own set of side affects as well, and is a bit stronger than Rimadyl.

[kimberly]

Sue I am going by what my vet said about it being prone to labs. But LMJ is saying her pup died from it also. So I am just saying in my opinion I don't think it is safe for any pup. I think it should be taken off shelf!!!! My opinion!!! LOL High Mara! Your other Mommy loves you! And Harley sends kisses and hugs!!!!!

Originally Posted by mara

weezy, in your experience is Rimadyl especially harmful to Labs as compared to other breeds?