Metacam Safe in Cats?

My 8 mo old kitten decided to ingest an inedible object while our family went to the beach for 3 days. Needless to say, when we arrived at home, he was showing signs of illness so we rushed him to the vet, not knowing what was wrong. They administered Cat Lax and gave him SubQ fluids to stabilize him but rapidly deteriorated throughout the day. When I called the vet back, they were unable to get us in for xrays so we went to another vet. That vet did xrays and discovered what looked to be a hair band (not the small kind, but the ones that keep your bangs from your face) blocking his upper intestines. Unfortunately, they were closing and told us that we could either go to the ER vet which they'd called ahead for us and got a quote of $3000, or we could wait in the morning and they could do the surgery for $1500 "if he made it through the night".   Things went from bad to worse as we decided to bring him to a different after hours vet who was able to do the surgery for $1606.... but they sent us home with Metacam for his pain and I've heard horror stories about the drug and its use in cats. (see www.metacamkills.com for more information). Despite my questioning the vet, who said it was safe - I'm still concerned. I'd hate to have gone through all the effort to save our kitten, only to have him die of renal failure from the treatment he's on.

Has anyone else had problems with this drug being used on their cats? His prescription says to keep him on it for another 4 days, which will total 7 days from the time he first received it at the vet clinic - far more than is deemed safe by the drug distributor's own recommendation based on the letter I read from that site.

You can see photos of Kit, and read more about his treatment plan at http://www.giveforward.com/penniesforpaws where my friend started a fundraiser for our family to help us recouperate some of the expense.

Any information on the Metacam would be highly appreciated! Thank you.

I'm sorry to hear about your cat!

My cat was on Metacam before and we had no problems from it.

Nekochan, was your kitty on it for very long? I suppose my larger concern is that Kit is young still and has been on the meds for several days already.

Both of mine have been on it, both for 5 days and were fine on it and have been after, my mams cat has been to he was on for three days and has been on it two or three times now and he's fine to.

I hope your kitty starts feeling better soon

We've discussed Metacam on this site a number of times. A lot of people here have had their cats on Metacam with no issues, and my vet pushes it on me all the time, stating that she never had one of her patients develop ARF from it. But there are still a lot of websites out there that claim it kills. A single shot of Metacam doesn't seem to be the issue, but the oral Metacam can cause ARF. I have given Metacam to mine in the past before I read about the potential harmful effects of that drug and never had issues.

My firm belief is that Metacam can cause ARF in cats, but it appears that a cat would need to be genetically predisposed to ARF in the first place to develop it from its use. I look at it this way - I'm allergic to many antibiotics because I'm genetically predisposed to that allergy. Most people have no issues with them, but some of them could kill me. There are more cats that have no problem with it than there are cats that have problems with it, but how many people know whether their cat would be suseptable? Probably none of us.

I personally refuse Metacam when my vet tries to push it on me, but I have a household of cats there were born feral and did not have a good start in life, plus because of my allergies, I'm sensitive to giving potentially harmful medications to my kids.

It comes down to a personal choice.

I am one who is opposed to Metacam.  My Callie girl got a couple of shots of metacam and shortly thereafter developed renal failure.  After doing research, I decided to put that on my NEVER give without MY permission and after all other options exhausted list at the vet's office.  If you are even one bit uncomfortable giving it, I would call the vet and ask for a different pain medication.

Kenderal, I've sent you a private message.

My cat Fudge was given it after she had her leg amputated,I was unaware back then of the risks that have been highlighted on here but she was fine.x

Most cats are fine, and you have to balance the small risk against the very real need for pain relief.  Have you discussed your worries with your vet?

I do not believe it is worth the risk since there are good alternatives. My vet knows I will not allow my cats to be given Metacam.

OrientalSlave said:

Most cats are fine, and you have to balance the small risk against the very real need for pain relief.  Have you discussed your worries with your vet?

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Having a kitty go into acute renal failure and/or develop chronic renal failure is no small risk.  It's life ending 100% of the time and can either be sudden death or prolonged (over many years).  It's expensive to care for a renal failure kitty and you never know when your kitty will die from it.  There are many other safe alternatives that have fewer risks.

I think Buprenex is a safer and better alternative to Metacam.

yes .metacam is safe for cats . it was prescribed to my cat who had major surgery and with no side effects. my cat is as healthy as can be and responded very well with metacam. it is not tested and regognised in all countries for the use on cats but it is definetely regognised by vets for use on cats

tertia said:

yes .metacam is safe for cats . 

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Not always. In fact, the FDA has put a black box warning on the use of Metacam on cats: http://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/NewsEvents/CVMUpdates/ucm231254.htm

FDA asked B.I.V.I. to add the boxed warning based on FDA’s review of reported adverse drug events for METACAM[emoji]174[/emoji]. FDA identified many cases of kidney failure and death in cats associated with repeated use of METACAM[emoji]174[/emoji].

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.

tertia said:

yes .metacam is safe for cats . it was prescribed to my cat who had major surgery and with no side effects. my cat is as healthy as can be and responded very well with metacam. it is not tested and regognised in all countries for the use on cats but it is definetely regognised by vets for use on cats

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IMHO.... not really.... I wouldn't call a medication with a very known risk of ARF "Safe".....

Sugarcatmom said:

Not always. In fact, the FDA has put a black box warning on the use of Metacam on cats: http://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/NewsEvents/CVMUpdates/ucm231254.htm

[TD]

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.


[/TD]​

FDA asked B.I.V.I. to add the boxed warning based on FDA’s review of reported adverse drug events for METACAM[emoji]174[/emoji]. FDA identified many cases of kidney failure and death in cats associated with repeated use of METACAM[emoji]174[/emoji].



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.

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Hopefully the OP already trashed this medication..... and did not give it :cross:
In every file, of every cat of mine, they have marked in red letters - NO METACAM. I will not give it. Once a vet tried to trick me into giving it to Bugsy, at the ER, by calling it the generic name "Meloxicam" - I said no - At first she said "I will give him a shot of anti-inflammatory"... I asked which one.... She said Meloxicam- I said, sorry, no Metacam. She said, Don't worry, it's meloxicam -it is safe - I said, nope,hear me -I do NOT want him to receive metacam, and Meloxicam = metacam. Then I discussed alternatives. That was for an UTI.

Metacam injections are approved for one time use in cats during orthopedic surgeries, spays and neuters..... So keep in mind, that if you got your kitty from a shelter or a rescue, or even got it neutered/spayed at a vet, it might have received that shot already at that procedure..... I certainly do not want to gamble with a second one....
Sure, doesn't happen to everyone..... But IMHO, why take the risk?
I get pain killers for them instead - either Buprenex, or if the issue is worst, there are stronger ones available too..... Alternatives are out there for sure....

Meta cam is not safe in cats at all. My cat was placed on this medication for "short term" 20 days and i was told he would be fine. 5 days after ending this medication my cat is in ARF and having a very hard time bouncing back. Do not let the vets fool you in saying it is ok. I have done a lot of research in the past week about this medicine and I have seen posts on cats that have died even after 3 days. I am a strong advocate that  metacam should not be used. It also caused liver cancer in my dog who was on this medication long term. It hard to loose one animal in December and if my cat doesn't turn around another in May all from the same medication. Please spread the word.

@Jessd82009, I'm sorry you and your kitty are going through this.  It's not an easy battle.  My kitty was given Metacam twice and as a result, suffered from chronic renal failure for about 5 years. 

I didn't read all the posts.

Metacam  does or did have a black box warning for cats.

It can damage the cat's kidneys. It should never be used for more than a couple of days if at all.

The thing with kidney damage is that you need to have 70% loss of function before it shows up in the blood work. So you could have damaged the kidneys and not even know it until much later in life.

Also just because one cat may have dodged the bullet or one family of cats did doesn't mean all will. Also a cat with already compromised kidneys will or can go into acute renal failure

Or if something lowers the cats blood pressure such as anesthesia or shock, then the kidneys do not get enough blood and that alone can send a cat into renal failure.

I would not use metacam on my cat or any cat if I had the choice.

Oh and Buprenex is a much better pain reliever for cats. You can give the injectable as an oral treatment allowing them to absorb it through their cheek or gums. It works much better as well.

Thank you for your input.  Since this is an older thread, I'm not sure how many people will respond.