Glucosamine

[Saudade]

So been chatting with Bec (luvr of polar bears + rabbits) about her poor Monster's deteriorating hind legs and the pain she is going through.

My mother suffers from osteoarthritis and so does our dog, they are both taking glucosamine tablets. It helps both of them greatly, it is a visibly noticeable thing when my dog is being given the Glucosamine.

Now I'm nowhere near a vet, or that knowledgeable about rabbits, however from the research I've done Glucosamine does help. So I've suggested to her to try giving it to her Monster (who is 12 years old might i add) a small suplement with her current diet of glucosamine, it's commonly used as a supplement by some breeders i know.

Any mods out there have any opinions, or anyone have any questions?

 

[Maureen Las]

I know that it's given to rabbits but I'm not sure of the dosage

let me look around

 

[Luvr of Wabbits and Polar Bears]

Yes tonight her hind leg is really bothering her. She can only hop a few steps before falling over and can't get up I would defiantly look into giving her glucosamine if you think it will help. We are not giving up on this girl yet.

 

[ra7751]

I have used itin rabbits with pelvic issues. Don't know if it helps but certainly didn't hurt either one of them. Like so many of these treatments, there isn't really any proof one way or the other. The rabbits I used it on were about 2.5kg and I gave them about 50mg per day. I had tablets...crushed them and put them in food and/or treats.

If she has a vet....this might be a good case for a low dose NSAID or even something like Tramadol. In reality, at this rabbit's age it sounds like a quality of life issue. While we don't generally use NSAIDs long term due to liver issues.....it might be the lesser of the evils and will allow Monster some relief. And in this case, I would have no problem using the Glucosamine with the drugs (and it is safe to use Metacam and Tramadol at the same time).

And while this is something I have a tough time with....it might soon get to a point that a difficult decision might need to be made based solely on quality of life. I just made that difficult decision on a very special rabbit. But she was miserable and couldn't move on her own.

Randy

 

[Luvr of Wabbits and Polar Bears]

ra7751 wrote:

If she has a vet....this might be a good case for a low dose NSAID or even something like Tramadol. In reality, at this rabbit's age it sounds like a quality of life issue. While we don't generally use NSAIDs long term due to liver issues.....it might be the lesser of the evils and will allow Monster some relief. And in this case, I would have no problem using the Glucosamine with the drugs (and it is safe to use Metacam and Tramadol at the same time).


Randy

My girl is already on Tramadol, I have Metacam but didn't know if I could still use it. The last weight I have on Monsters is 1.61kg in March, but I wouldn't be surprised if she's lost more weight .

 

[Maureen Las]

I'm sorry about Monsters ; I wouldn't use tramodol and metacam together unless Randy indicates otherwise.

 

[ra7751]

Make sure the Tramadol dosing is correct.....and I would add the Metacam. The problem is that it's a double edged sword here since the Metacam can impact the liver. But at this point in Monster's life, I think I would be giving him every opportunity to live pain free as much as possible. I would use low end dosing for the Metacam. But for any major pain issue, still subject to normal cautions, Tramadol and Metacam make an excellent pairing for pain and inflammation controlwith acceptable risks.

Randy

 

[Luvr of Wabbits and Polar Bears]

ra7751 wrote:

Make sure the Tramadol dosing is correct.....and I would add the Metacam.

Her Tramadol dosing is .06ml every 12hrs
Tramadol 50mg/ml (1 x 15 ml)

Her last Metacam dosing was .13ml
Metacam 1.5 mg/ml (1 x 10 ml)
Haven't used the Metacam since March when we switched to the Tramadol

 

[ra7751]

If I were treating this condition, I am OK with the Metacam at .13cc once a day. I would either up the Tramadol to .09cc twice a day or do the .06cc three times per day. Of course, I am not a vet so I would run this by the doctor first. The dosing protocols you are using are high end Metacam and low end Tramadol....within normal ranges. I really like the narcotic type pain management with Tramadol as it's safe, effective and not very expensive. If the pain continues, it might take a step up to Buprenorphine (Buprenex). This is a much more expensive....and powerful.....drug and in the US is a scheduled controlled substance if I remember correctly.

Randy

 

[Luvr of Wabbits and Polar Bears]

Thanx Randy. I will try and email the vet this week if I get time.

 

[Maureen Las]

Thanks Randy !

 

[tonyshuman]

Lots of great info here--will have to remember this thread in the future.

I am sorry Monsters is feeling bad lately. Huge hugs from me to you and your crew.

 

[Luvr of Wabbits and Polar Bears]

Thanx Dave for thinking of my girl Monsters and Thanx Claire for the hugs.

I can find Glucosamine in a health food store right.
We have our hearing in the morning then we can stop by the mall which I believe has a health food store there. Then come home and finish packing our lives up...

 

[Maureen Las]

Someone on another forum (etherbun)found glucosomine in a berry flavored liquid form ; her vet told her to give 0.6 ml 2 x per day for a 6.1 lb rabbit

http://www.target.com/dp/B001JS5WTQ/sr=1-1/qid=1243206893/ref=sr_1_1/188-7534336-7712424?ie=UTF8&frombrowse=0&rh=k%3Aliquid%5Fglucosamine&page=1

maybe you can find something similar but we don know the amount of mg per dosage or in the bottle

 

[Luvr of Wabbits and Polar Bears]

angieluv wrote:

http://www.target.com/dp/B001JS5WTQ/sr=1-1/qid=1243206893/ref=sr_1_1/188-7534336-7712424?ie=UTF8&frombrowse=0&rh=k%3Aliquid%5Fglucosamine&page=1

I saw this at Walmart today. So i know they have it. The bottle is 480 ml.

 

[Luvr of Wabbits and Polar Bears]

My friend Arlette who some of you may or not know recommend that I get Jasmieson Liquid Glucosamine as there's no sugar in it and her Cocoa loved it.

I picked some up. Lets assume Monsters weight has gone down a bit 1.50 judging my chart every 3 months her weight drops about .10kg.
How much do you think I should give her?

 

[Saudade]

I'm pretty sure a dosage of .2ml twice daily will cause no harm.
A mod could probably confirm this.
You can't overdose the animal on glucosamine. It's an amino sugar, and if there is no sugar added i'm pretty sure it wouldn't have any other effects.

If anyone has any questions about glucosamine i can answer them.

 

[SOOOSKA]

OK so I was forwarded this blog. I'm going to go see if I can find this stuff.

My sweet little Buttercup is 1235 grams or 2 1/2 pounds. What dosage would I give him?

Thanks

Susan

 

[tonyshuman]

http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Bone_diseases/Osteo/arthritis.htm

Adequan is more like plain old glucosamine. Cosequin is glucosamine and chondroitin.

http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/fulltext/110438387/HTMLSTART
That article used 20mg/kg glucosamine, which would be a dose of about 25mg for Buttercup. It's similar to the human dose.

 

[SOOOSKA]

Claire, Buttercup is so small that seems like a large amount to give. I guess i'm just being over cautious.

Thanks

Susan