Metacam - Poop

[Guest Tess32]

Has anyone who has had their dog on metacam found it causes soft stool?

Noah's been off it since thursday but his poo has been soft since then and one was orange! He's fine in all other ways though but just had another less than solid one..

Anything to do to harden up the poops?

[Guest Tess32]

Forgot to add he also vomited a little bit twice.

[lucknow]

Metacam (meloxicam) should always be used with caution. I would not give any more, take the dog and medication to the first thing and let them check your dog over. Pulled the following info off Google, it pretty much sums up what we were taught but goes into much more detail than I can ever remember!

Gooduck, I hope it just a coincidental tummy upset.

Side Effects

The side effects of concern are the same with all NSAIDs: stomach ulceration, loss of kidney function, and inappropriate bleeding. These are dependent on the dose of medication used and on risk factors of the host (for example: an aged pet may not efficiently clear a dose of medication from its body leading to stronger and longer activity of the drug). There is also a particular idiosyncratic reaction for NSAIDs that has received a great deal of press. An idiosyncratic reaction is one that is neither dose-dependent nor predictable by any apparent host factor; it simply happens out of the blue. This particular idiosyncratic reaction is a liver toxicity that is rare enough that it did not show up in any of the initial 400 carprofen test subjects, nor in the U.K., and was not recognized until carprofen was used in over a million dogs in the U.S. after its release as the first NSAID. This reaction is reviewed below. While originally it was carprofen use that led to the recognition of this reaction, it is now felt that all veterinary NSAIDs have potential to cause this reaction.

The most common side effects of meloxicam are nausea, appetite loss, vomiting or diarrhea. If any of the above are noted, meloxicam should be discontinued and the pet brought in for a liver enzyme and renal parameter blood test. In most cases, the reaction is minor and resolves with symptomatic relief, but it is important to rule out whether or not the patient has more than just a routine upset stomach.

If a patient has borderline kidney function, NSAIDs should not be used as they reduce blood flow through the kidneys. It is also important that NSAIDS not be given to dehydrated patients because of this potential side effect. This is particularly true in cats.

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. 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. The question of whether other veterinary NSAIDs share this reaction has arisen. At this time, it is generally felt that the hepatopathy idiosyncratic reaction is not unique to carprofen and should be of concern with any veterinary NSAID and this includes meloxicam. This reaction seems to be a canine issue only.

Dogs with hepatopathy show improvement with support 5 to 10 days after discontinuing medication. It is important that the NSAID 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. There is no way to predict which dogs will experience this side effect.

The hepatopathy reaction usually occurs in the first 3 weeks after starting carprofen but could theoretically occur later.

All NSAIDs are removed from the body by the liver. If the patient’s liver is not working normally due to another disease or if the patient is taking other drugs that are also removed by the liver, it is possible to “over work” the liver and exacerbate pre-existing liver disease. If there is any question about a patient’s liver function, another class of pain reliever should be selected.

It is important to realize that COX-selectivity is not the sole factor in safety. In humans, the incidence of kidney function-related side effects was unchanged by the development of COX-2 preferential NSAIDs, such as meloxicam, and we expect the same is true with dogs. Still, these drugs have an excellent track record for safety. The important issue is to recognize risk factors for adverse reactions and take preventive steps (see the Concerns and Cautions section below).

One might wonder how this is possible given the COX-2 selectivity and the answer is complex. While it is easy to think of COX-2 as the “bad” enzyme, COX-1 as the “good” enzyme, and COX selectivity as seeing that only the "bad" enzyme is suppressed, this kind of thinking would be a drastic over-simplification. In fact, COX-2 is important in activities involving the healing of stomach ulcers and other important processes. There is also a COX-3, of which very little is known, and studies show there may very well be a COX-4. Further, at higher doses, meloxicam and other COX-2 selective NSAIDs will lose their COX-2 selectivity and significantly inhibit COX-1 as well.

As with all veterinary NSAIDs, periodic monitoring tests are important to check liver enzymes and kidney function, and to generally screen the patient's health. Typically a schedule of every 6 months is recommended for dogs. There is no general consensus on what is appropriate for cats but because of feline sensitivity towards NSAIDs, feline monitoring is especially important. If you are using this product in a cat, be sure you understand what monitoring schedule your veterinarian is recommending for your specific pet.

[Poodle wrangler]

I'd have a chat to your vet about it.

It can be a very good drug, but all drugs can have side effects .

If you look up all the side effects of medications routinely given to humans, most people would never take anything ever again- but it's benefit vs. risk.

Are you giving the metacam with food? (needs to be given with food as can cause upset stomach).

[Guest Tess32]

Yep was with food.

Last two poops have been normal, so maybe it was just some slight side effects. I won't use it on him again just in case.

[InspectorRex]

Ah the deadly Metacam- one dose of it nearly killed my Phoebe( avatar) and she was on a drip at the Vet for nearly 3 days. I found out later that dogs that are Ivermectin Sensitive should really not be given drugs such as Metacam.Rimadyl etc

What Noah is havig is an adverse reaction to the Metacam( Phoebe's diarrhoea was very severe). This adverse reaction needs to be reported by your vet or you, go to www.avpma.gov.au- they will follow it up believe me.

You need to advise our Vet that this has happened and he/she can note it on Noah's file etc and also do the blood tests that Lucknow has pointed out

also if you read.www.dogsadversreactions.com you will be mortified of how many dogs have side affects to these types of drugs

No dog of mine will ever have a non-steroidial anti-inflmmatory again- too damn dangerous IMHO