Percy has a scratch on his eye...an dr gave him metacam for pain

I took Percy to a local vet (not my normal vet) this afternoon because his eye has been mildly swollen and red for the last day and a half or so.  She took a look at him and said she didn't see a scratch, but she thought that was what had happened.  She gave him neomycin (sp) for his eye, but then also gave me 3 doses of Metacam in syringes to give him over the next 3 days.  I have held off giving him the metacam because I have read on here that it can be bad...so I really wanted to get some opinions here first.

Percy is a healthy neutered male.  He will be a year old sometime in April (best estimate...I got him at 6 weeks old in early June).  He weighs 10 pounds 4 ounces, but is not fat at all...just a VERY big healthy looking kitty.

Thanks for all your help!

Rebecca

NO Metacam
What's up with vets and Metacam for everything? Gee......
Metacam is not approved by the FDA. ONE dose is approved PER lifetime of the cat during spay or for bone surgery, and NO oral dose (not one) is approved.

From the FDAhttp://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/NewsEvents/CVMUpdates/ucm231254.htm

WARNING

Repeated use of meloxicam in cats has been associated with acute renal failure and death. Do not administer additional injectable or oral meloxicam to cats. See Contraindications, Warnings, and Precautions for detailed information.

METACAM[emoji]174[/emoji] Solution for Injection is approved for one-time use in cats before surgery to control postoperative pain and inflammation associated with orthopedic surgeries, spays, and neuters. In the United States, the safety and effectiveness of more than one dose of METACAM[emoji]174[/emoji] Solution for Injection has not been shown in cats for any condition.

METACAM[emoji]174[/emoji] Solution for Injection and METACAM[emoji]174[/emoji] Oral Suspension are approved in dogs to control pain and inflammation associated with osteoarthritis. METACAM[emoji]174[/emoji] Oral Suspension is approved for dogs only. No safe and effective dose of the oral suspension is approved for cats.

Click to expand...

See this:
http://www.metacamkills.com/

OMgoodness, Carolina!  That site is SCARY.  The metacam the vet gave me is in the trash!  *shudder*

Yeah
It is scary and flabbergasting how vets, especially e-vets have the habit to prescribe Metacam SO easily...... for anything....
I mean.... for an eye scratch? That hasn't even been confirmed? That's a new one for me - never saw that one before :doh3:

I took Bugsy to the E-Vet with an UTI once - he was bleeding severely and was 2am.... The e-vet told me she was giving him and "anti-inflammatory" - I said... "NO METACAM" to which she responded: It's fine, It's Meloxicam... Well, I said - Metacam IS Meloxicam, and you are NOT giving him that. She was confused..... I asked what she was giving him that - she said for the pain, so he can pee - I told her - "Options?" A shot of a morphine derivative. Fine - give him that.

There was a kitty here on TCS just recently with kidney failure as a result of Metacam..... very sad

I guess e-vets and vets who are not really experienced with cats prescribe it much more often..... Does it work? Yes - it is a powerful anti-inflammatory.... But it also can have powerful side effects

All my kitties have in their files, in all their vets "No Metacam" In big red letters - right on the cover.

My Callie used to have eye problems from time to time and we frequently went to the vet for him to do a stain to be sure her eye hadn't been scratched.  He NEVER gave her pain meds.  We got drops and lubricating ointment. 

Regarding the metacam, I'd suggest you put on your paperwork on file with the vet NO METACAM without my permission.  I write it on any paperwork I sign when I drop my kitties off for procedures or blood work.

I am so glad you posted this question BEFORE you gave the Metacam!!! And thank goodness Carolina posted that info. for you. I cannot imagine in my wildest dreams why your vet even suggested such a drug for an eye scratch Totally unnecessary. I know you threw them out but you could return them and get a credit and maybe mention that you don't ever want your cat to have that particular pain medication in the future. Your a good meowmy :heart3: and I hope Percy's eye is better soon

I only paid $2 for the 3 syringes.  She didn't tell me what it was before I left the office (I didn't think to ask).  As I was driving home, I remembered the Metacam threads I had read here and I looke don the baggie...and whatdayaknow??!   

TBH, my regular vet does not use metacam at all (she uses tresaderm).  This just further proves to me why I drive an hour 1 way to see my vet and do not use these backwoods vets up here where I live.  I am just thanking God tonight that my babies are safe and I read about metacam and remembered it all before giving him a dose! 

Thank you all!!!

ETA:  I will not be taking another cat of mine to the vet I saw today!  If she doesn't know any more about cats than this, then she doesn't need to be treating any of mine!  I am really picky when it comes to vets - and I would rather pay out the nose for a good one than save a buck on a quack!  KWIM?

They gave me Metacam for Boots after his neuter surgery as well.

I looked it up before giving it to him, thank god. (He didn't even need it anyway.) But seriously -- WHY would vets continue to prescribe this when they KNOW it causes kidney failure??

I am in the middle of a metacam argument with my vets here. In Europe it is still used routinely and most vets have no knowledge of the US guidelines. One of the vets is more open-minded but the Head of Practice still has to be convinced. I will not allow it on my cats, though.

The dosage in the states may be higher than that in Europe. I know Canada's is lower. We have.some vets that were trained.in the u.s. and freak out about using metacam but they don't realize our dosage is a lot lower than that in the U.S. I don't believe that they would put a cat on metacam on a regular basis but using one course of it for a neuter/spay or whatever is pretty much harmless. We also have metacam that is specifically dozed for Cats but we never prescribe it on ongoing basis. Realistically, Any médication is hard on the liver as it has to break it down. Although for an eye problem I would think tramadol would have been a better choice.

Tramadol!  That is what my normal vet uses.  I have no idea where I got "Trasaderm."  LOL  oops.

My (regular) vet is super conscious of giving cats the correct medications...she even vaccinates for Rabies with a "feline" vaccine that doesn't contain mercury because of all of the stories of cancers caused at the injection site.  She also only give routine shots every 3 years for indoor only cats after the first boosters.  I love her!  I will not waste my time going to this backwoods vet in the area where I live again!

The only time I have ever been given metacam by my vet is when Fudge had her leg amputated.x