he's too busy feeding his cats chicken nuggets MIKE.

Have you told your vet what you just posted? what did he say?

I think it's good that we are getting more educated on the subject.

news:17906-464265F2-340@storefull-3258.bay.webtv.net...

Mike,

We've been using low-dose metacam for our female spays- strictly as a
*single*, *one-time* SQ injection prior to surgery.  I would not use or
recommend repeated doses of metacam in cats -- and especially not orally.
There are no studies on repeated doses and long term use of metacam in cats-
so your vet is just guessing.

If your vet blows off your concerns- find a new one.  You owe your loyalty
to your cat- not your vet.

Here's an excerpt concerning metcam from the 2006 NAVC by a Diplomate of the
American College of Veterinary Surgeons:

"Safety studies performed to assess the safety of the one time 0.3 mg/kg SQ
meloxicam dose demonstrated a narrow margin of safety.  Cats given 0.3 mg/kg
for eight days developed vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy, and decreased food
consumption.  Two of 4 cats were moribund or dead by day 9, and reddened GI
mucosa was seen at necropsy in 3 of 4 cats.  Repeated use of meloxicam in
cats in clinical settings has been associated with renal failure and death.
(package insert) Since there are no studies examining the pharmacokinetics
and pharmacokinetics of repeat dosing of meloxicam, it is not known if there
is an effective long term dose with minimal toxicity.  Thus, recommended
long term doses of 0.025 mg/kg daily or every other day are based solely on
clinician experience."  Elizabeth M. Hardie, DVM, PhD, Diplomate ACVS,
College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC
North American Veterinary Conference January 7, 2006"

Phil