1/8 Rex Bupe question

Discussion in 'Lantus / Levemir / Biosimilars' started by Mandy & Rex (GA), Jan 8, 2019.

  1. Mandy & Rex (GA)

    Mandy & Rex (GA) Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Mar 22, 2017
    Last condo

    I got a 77 yesterday. I skipped the bupe last night and gave just the antibiotic.

    This morning, I decided to give both medicines and Rex clamped his mouth shut so the bupe didn't make it inside his mouth. :facepalm: I remember when I had to give bupe to my GA Tanner and he would run out of the room like it was the most foul thing he ever tasted. Is this a normal reaction for you all who has given bupe? The vet clinic mixes up the bupe and gives me a tiny bottle that I have to draw up from with a small syringe. They don't give me bupe in prepared syringes like I saw @Jan Radar mentioning in her condo.

    Is it worth giving bupe if Rex despises it? He's eating pretty well, but he is not licking his dish clean like he used to. He's back to normal in every other aspect. He isn't limping anymore.
     
  2. Crista & Ming

    Crista & Ming Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jun 10, 2018
    Bupe tastes bad. The injectable even worse when given orally :nailbiting: but I doubt your vet has given you the injectable version.

    Are you giving it in the pocket of the cheek/corner of the mouth? Then you don’t have to open Rex’s mouth. And it’s better absorbed there.
     
  3. Mandy & Rex (GA)

    Mandy & Rex (GA) Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Mar 22, 2017
    I count it as a victory if I get it in anywhere inside his mouth. :joyful: But I will definitely think more about the placement next time.
     
  4. Kris & Teasel

    Kris & Teasel Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Aug 17, 2016
    Yes, to bupe tasting bad. Teasel is easy to give meds to and he acts like I've poisoned him with bupe. :confused:
     
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  5. Crista & Ming

    Crista & Ming Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jun 10, 2018
    And it is! I’m so bad at pilling and giving meds and I work at a vet hospital so... lol! :oops: It’s a good thing I have coworkers I can rely on and Ming is very easy to give meds.. sometimes. :rolleyes:

    As for how it’s given to you, in syringes or in a bottle are both okay ways to give. I prefer in a test tube with a needle so I can suck up every last bit of it out and make up my own doses. As long as it’s protected from light.
     
  6. Susan&Felix(GA)

    Susan&Felix(GA) Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Sep 4, 2017
    Felix got four predrawn syringes of bupe, of which he has had two now. So Rex apparently was given a longer course of bupe than Felix was. I'm surprised to hear it tastes bad; Felix has taken it so easily that I was thinking it must be yummy!

    It could be the antibiotics that have Rex's appetite down a bit. Glad he's feeling like himself. In a few days he should be feeling like himself but even better!
     
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  7. Mandy & Rex (GA)

    Mandy & Rex (GA) Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Mar 22, 2017
    His dose is 0.25 cc (have to look again to see what the strength is). They gave me enough for up to 20 doses.. on paper. I don't think I have that many doses left. I have given 7 doses so far. He had severe gingivitis in addition to one extraction.
     
  8. Camille and Cyclone

    Camille and Cyclone Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Dec 29, 2009
    Whether bupe tastes bad seems to depend on the bupe. I've had cats accept it easily while others have run for the hills. Finally, over time I tasted a few samples myself. Some were like water, virtually no taste. Others had a nasty bitter taste. I even tasted a big difference between individual syringes in the same prescription. What I've done is mix it about 50/50 with tuna water for a cat who hated it and struggled so hard half would land on the floor, and she willingly lapped it up. (Yes, I know that's not the right way to give it but it seemed to help.)

    IMO I think it depends on how it's formulated.
     
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  9. Susan&Felix(GA)

    Susan&Felix(GA) Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Sep 4, 2017
    Felix's was prescribed .20 cc per dose (weight 11.6 pounds). He had nine extractions, plus both his upper canines had fallen out probably in the last few weeks and had some infection there. I would think the procedure itself, the way the mouth is held open, would make their jaws ache, too, and that probably lasts awhile. I'm getting the impression that your vet is trying to get Rex through the whole thing with the pain managed, while my vet is trying to get Felix through the roughest part. Maybe tell your vet you think Rex is ready to come off the pain medicine unless they think it would be better not to?
     
  10. Crista & Ming

    Crista & Ming Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jun 10, 2018
    Ouch!

    0.25 cc seems like a good dose considering his weight. Ming has been prescribed 0.2 cc for pain management but in times of great pain, my vet has said it was okay to give as much as 0.4 cc. In hospital when Ming was going through pancreatitis and DKA, he was getting 0.38 cc of bupe every 8 hours. Ming weighs 16 lbs.

    In my experience, we give bupe pretty generously and sometimes it acts as a sedative. If you can get it in Rex, it would be good to see if it makes a difference in his behaviour. I'm sure he's painful in the mouth because of the extraction.
     
  11. Mandy & Rex (GA)

    Mandy & Rex (GA) Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Mar 22, 2017
    The instructions for both the antibiotic and the pain medicine are a little fuzzy. For the antibiotic, it says 5-7 days and for the bupe, it says 7-10 days. I'm not sure why they did that instead of giving me a firm deadline to finish both.

    I have gotten some, but maybe not all in. I haven't seen a big difference before and after administration. This morning, I failed 100% to get any in.

    I haven't updated my signature in a while, but Rex is actually 14 pounds now. With or without bupe now, he is happy to give you a full rub from his mouth to his ears. I didn't think much about it before, but he did just head butts, but no real rubbing in the past.
     
  12. Crista & Ming

    Crista & Ming Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jun 10, 2018
    Bupe can be given as needed so if you think he's not in pain, then you can stop or just continue giving it the full 10 days as it won't hurt. Or in Rex's case, whenever you're successful enough to give. I can't say much for the antibiotics so I would call your vet to confirm.

    In the past, I used to keep unused bupe for surprise vomiting/panc attacks. Vet would give me quite a bit of it and then they'd call to follow up and I'd say Ming is doing great! Then they would tell me to discontinue meds to see how he does without it. There was one time when Ming had another panc attack and my vet just casually said, "You still have some bupe right? Give him some and then bring him in." LOL!
     
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  13. Susan&Felix(GA)

    Susan&Felix(GA) Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Sep 4, 2017
    I guess that means that if part of it ends up in his ruff (on the floor, on the walls, on the ceiling), you don't need to go pick up more.
     
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  14. Wendy&Neko

    Wendy&Neko Senior Member Moderator

    Joined:
    Feb 28, 2012
    Neko liked her bupe, though she preferred the chicken soup flavour to the roasted chicken one. I had it compounded cause she was on it long term for her severe arthritis. Her dose was 0.22 ml, 0.3mg/ml solution bid, for a 14 ish lb cat.

    I found it easiest to be behind Neko when giving the bupe. First reason, a cat’s natural reaction is to back up, and that’s where I was. :) Second, I could just curl my hand in from behind where she wouldn’t see me coming, and insert the syringe at the corner of her mouth and aim for the cheek pocket. Easy peasy.
     
  15. Olive & Paula

    Olive & Paula Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Sep 6, 2015
    Olive's takes her oral bupre with no problems.
     
  16. Mandy & Rex (GA)

    Mandy & Rex (GA) Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Mar 22, 2017
    I tested Rex and he was at 66. :) I decided to do just the antibiotic tonight and he protested with all his might. :rolleyes:
     
  17. Jan Radar (GA)

    Jan Radar (GA) Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jun 27, 2015
    The previous vet that I used did give me bupe in syringes. It made him really loopy and disoriented and more of it got on me than made it into the cat. :blackeye: My new vet gave me 100 mg of Gabapentin in capsules so that I could adjust the dose as needed. Radar also had a 5 day pain patch this time. So the Gabapentin I gave was on top of the pain patch. I really really really liked the pain patch because I knew it was just there doing it's job without me having to wrangle the kitty who'd been through a lot and was not too keen about me administering meds. :eek: He also had several extractions including the upper canines along with a raging infection so his mouth must have been really sore. I can't really blame him for not wanting to be touched much those first few days. I will say that he improved significantly on the third day after surgery.

    Sending lots of healing vines to Rex. These are for you :bighug::bighug:
     

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