Rimadyl and Otomax.

Dr. Marie replied:

Hi and thanks for your question.

You're right, the dosage that is written on the label for Rimadyl is indeed 2mg/lb of body weight once a day (or 1 mg/lb twice daily). Your best bet here is to check with your vet as to whether or not it is safe to increase the dosage. It's possible that your vet wanted to see if 75mg would do the trick and if not, then increase it.

Another possible reason for your vet to be cautious on the Rimadyl dosing is that every now and then we can see labs who can have a strange and serious reaction to Rimadyl. Your vet may be cautious in its use with labs, for this reason. However, I'm thinking that if this was the case, they would have prescribed something else like Metacam or Deramaxx or Previcox.

I can't legally advise you over the internet about making dose changes with your medication, so the best thing here is to give your vet a call and ask what they think about upping the meds.

Regarding the Otomax, yes there is steroid in the Otomax and a small amount of it can be absorbed in the system. Generally, I am quite comfortable having an animal on Otomax at the same time as an NSAID like Rimadyl. I would have more of a concern if an animal was on Otomax for months and months but really that would be unlikely to happen.

You're right that Baytril has no steroid, but we tend to reserve Baytril for infections that really need it. It is a drug called a fluoroquinolone and if we use it really frequently there is a possibility for antibiotic resistance to form. And, in most cases for ear infections some steroid is necessary as they usually are very uncomfortable and the steroid helps with the discomfort. I would never recommend an OTC drug as they are likely not strong enough to treat an infection.

It does sound like your vet is doing the same things I would. I would give them a call and ask if they feel it is safe to increase the Rimadyl dosing. If your vet has concerns with doing this, feel free to respond to this question and let me know what he/she said and I'll give you my thoughts.

Hope Jake is feeling better on all fronts soon!

Dr. Marie.


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