AT HOME PETS
  • AT Home Pets Blog
  • About
  • For Sale
    • My Animals for Sale
  • My Wee Littles
    • Expecting
  • My Rabbits
  • Mice
  • Articles
  • Information on Small Animals
    • Buying a Rabbit
    • Medical Advice >
      • Area Rabbit Savvy Veternarians
    • Caring for your rabbit >
      • Feeding Your Rabbit
      • Housing your Rabbit
      • Breeding
    • Caring for Guinea Pigs
    • Rabbit Activities >
      • The Rabbit and it's Uses
    • Articles to read
    • Rabbit Supplies
    • Forums and Organizations
  • Links
    • Clubs
    • Breeders >
      • Canadian breeders
      • Non-Canadian breeders
      • Directories of Breeders
    • Rescues
    • Forums and On-line Sales
    • Breed Information

Ivermectin and Usage

12/4/2013

 
Another post from my old blog.  Ivermectin.  
Picture
I've had friends have rabbits go blind or even die through the use of ivermectin. Is it really worth the risk for you?
 One of my pet peeves in the husbandry of rabbits is the overuse of medications OR the wrong use of medications in rabbits.   One should always breed for health and good immune systems.

One of these meds was recently discussed over at the meat rabbits board.

Ivermectin.

People use ivermectin as a wormer for rabbits.  There are better known and rabbit safe meds out on the market.   People will use it as a preventative medication.  People will use it as a first drug of choice.  It is so easy to buy as a horse wormer paste, and the dosage is simple.. a pea sized amount.

An alternative the people can use is Panacur (also known as Safeguard).  Easy to use, easy to treat, out of their system in two weeks.  There are other ones out there just ask around. :)

But no.. people like to use Ivermectin as it's an over-the-counter medication and easily available in a handy little tube for administration.   So no need for fecals, no dealing with vets, etc.

But no fecals means no certainty in what you are treating either so it's a bit of a catch 22 right?

Personally I only worm when I KNOW I have a problem, and then I get a fecal done at the local vet.  Costs me $5 for the fecal, $5-8 for the wormer.  No issues.

Ivermectin is being over used.  People use it for their dogs, their horses, their cattle.  People don't pay attention to strength differences.

So easy to over medicate.
So easy to give via the wrong methodology.
People think because it's over the counter that it's a safe medication.  It isn't.

Ivermectin overdoses can cause seizures and whole host of other issues.  Such as
  • Lethargy
  • Tremors
  • loss of coordination of the muscles, mainly in the extremities
  • Drooling
  • Tachycardia
  • Excessive dilation of the pupil of the eye
  • Stupor
  • Coma
  • Depression 
  • Death
  • Fluctuating blood pressure
  • Birth defects in kits (aka cleft palates)
  • Temporary Blindness

If you ever send your rabbits out as critter food do make sure that none of them have an ivermectin sensitivity.   OR make a point of NEVER giving your rabbits ivermectin. 

Some animals have a genetic mutation that weakens the molecular pump that keeps ivermectin out of the brain.  With this mutation, the drug freely enters the brain's blood supply and the animal seizures to death.  This can also happen with a massive overdose of the drug in an animal without the mutation.  This mutation has been found in many animals, but is mostly commonly found in some herding dogs, particularly the collies.  

The second issue is that, as with all antibiotics and diseases and dewormers and weedkillers and so forth - some organisms are more sensitive to ivermectin than others.  If you give ivermectin to an animal, particularly to a whole herd, even if given at the right dose to treat those animals, some of the parasites will survive.  The tougher ones will go on to reproduce, and pass on those ivermectin resistant genes. 

Resistance is thought to grow any time a dewormer is used, and the more often it is used, and at the lower dose, the faster the resistance grows. So if a producer is using too low a dose (half the amount, in order to save money and treat twice as many animals) and is using the formula wrong (there are pour on vs oral vs injectable solutions) even fewer of the worms will be killed and the population of resistant worms in the pasture will grow even faster. 

Rabbits have so few meds that can be used on them.  Why would you want to encourage drug resistance when there are better meds out there that do the job properly?

The third problem is that ivermectin stays in an animals system for a pretty long time, from 14 to 60 days, depending on the species and the formulation used.  So care must be taken to know just how long to wait until slaughtering the animals, in order to keep the drug out of the food supply. 

If you don't know for sure how long it will be in their system (and remember, rabbits eat their fecals thereby keeping the meds in their systems longer) then how long do you know to hold back that rabbit in order to keep it out of the food system?  
 
For more information, you can check out:

American Consortium on Small Ruminants Parasite Control (discusses FAMACHA)http://www.scsrpc.org/

FARAD (Food Animal Residue Avoidance Database) - FARAD.org

Minor Species Drug Act - http://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/DevelopmentApprovalProcess/MinorUseMinorSpecies/default.htm
All pictures on this site belong to AT Home Pets. Not for your use. Taking them in THEFT. If you want a picture ask for one.
Helen
12/2/2015 06:46:14 am

Hello: what do you use for hair lose in guinea pigs? I was told Hairy had just recovered from mites before I bought him, he is losing hair on the center of his back and lost 100 grams. I'm going to pet paradise today for pellets and am looking there for something for this. Thanks for any info. Helen

Athomepets
12/2/2015 06:57:32 am

Sounds like a vitamin c deficency


Comments are closed.

    Author

    I have been breeding rabbits for a quite a few years.  I thoroughly enjoy them as animals and think they make great pets.  I also like to take some of them to rabbit shows to see how they measure up to the standards.

    Picture
    You can find me on Facebook and instagram. 
    Picture
    For the BEST rabbit forum I've ever found.  Go to Rabbittalk.com.  Good for the pet rabbit owner as well as the breeder for meat or show. 
    Follow A Net In Time's board Rabbits on Pinterest.

    Categories

    All
    2012
    2013
    2014
    2015
    2016
    2017
    Abuntay
    Acorn
    Aero Bar
    Aida
    Akara
    Alice
    AliceCherry
    Animal Management
    Animal Management
    Animal Rights
    Animal Welfare
    Aold
    AppleBlossom
    Aria
    Arrow
    Article
    Ascot
    Asia
    August
    AutumnAid
    Baby
    Baccia
    BandAid
    Bandit
    BandSaw
    Basic
    Beamer
    Beethoven
    Bella
    BellaStrand
    Benito
    BerryNose
    Billie
    Birdman
    Biscotti
    Biscuit
    Blaze
    Blaze (LH)
    Blogging The Alphabet
    Blossom
    Blue Lagoon
    BluePond
    BlueStone
    BonFire
    Bonnet
    Branchnook
    Breed Information
    Breeding
    Briarlight
    BrightSong
    BrightSparrow
    BrookAsh
    BrookPond
    BrownBand
    Buck
    Bumblestripe
    ButterBall
    Butterscotched
    Button
    CallsPlay
    CallsTimer
    Calypso
    Camden
    Captain Crunch
    Carina
    Carma
    Cheeko
    Cheeky
    Chesstine
    Cheta
    Chinpin
    ChocoBane
    CinderFlame
    Cloudtail
    CoalDust
    Companion Oriented
    Companion-oriented
    Contest
    CookieDough
    CookieSprinkles
    Copper
    Corbin
    Creamsicle
    Cross
    Customer Service
    Customer-service
    Cyan-lh
    Daisy-gp
    Daisyhawk
    Daisy-hl
    Dancer
    DanceStep
    Dayle
    Diablo
    Dj
    Dovewing
    DropPatch
    Duskpoppy
    DustDrop
    DustMite
    Dusty
    DustyMIller
    Echo
    Education
    Elsa
    Endorsements
    E Rosie
    Eureka
    Feeding
    Flash Mouse6aab2a8f36
    Flemish-giant
    Footsthebill
    Forest City Rabbit Club
    For Sale
    For-sale
    Gemma
    Georgia
    German
    Gerry
    Gina
    Gogo
    Goldenflower
    GraceBell
    Gregory
    Guinea Pigs
    Hailey
    Hairy-spike-gp
    Hallowflight
    HareWing
    Harlequin
    HashBrown
    Health
    Heart's Cry
    Henna
    Holland Lop
    Holland-lop
    Holly
    Hollyleaf-gp
    Honeyfern-gp
    Horatio
    Housing
    Introductions
    Ivypool
    J
    Jack-hl
    Jackson
    Jewel
    Jill
    Jill Jill
    Jolea
    Joyce
    Keener
    Kettle Gpb8ee2be3ac
    Kit-care
    LatteBranch
    Leafblossom
    Lem
    Lena
    LightCinder
    Lil-angel
    LilyBane
    Lilyflower
    Lionstripe
    Lisa
    Litter Born
    Little-dawn
    Logos
    Marbles
    Marie
    Marilla
    Marilyn
    Marilyn'sCharm
    Maximus
    Meat Rabbit
    Meggie
    Merlo
    Merlo-hl
    Mice
    Midnight
    Milkshake
    Mini Rex
    Miscellaneaous
    Miss Q
    Mistyfoot
    Mitch
    Mittens
    Mixed Breed
    Mocha
    Moose
    Mop
    MossBelly
    Mousewhisker
    Natural Feeding
    Nero
    News
    New Zealand
    Nicholas
    Nicky Mouse3df29cf56e
    Nightlily
    Nights-cry
    Nookncranny
    Nutmeg
    Olivia
    OpalBerry
    Oreo
    Oscar
    Peach
    Pearstar
    Peek A Mommy
    Peekamommy2150c5dcc8
    Penny
    Pepper
    Peppin
    Peske
    Petey
    Pet People Pictures
    Peyton
    Pie
    Pinpin
    PistolKeeper
    PistolPete
    Pj
    Poco
    Polish
    PondFlower
    PondPuddle
    Popper
    Poppet
    Potter
    Questions Asked
    Rabbit Show
    Rain
    RainBerry
    Ranger
    RavenSpeck
    Reacher
    Redblaze
    Red-max
    Red-pete
    Rena
    Rescue
    Return
    Risensun
    Rizzo
    Rockfall
    RockSpirit
    Rodney
    Roger
    Rosepetal
    Rosewood
    Rosie-sp
    Rustic
    Sable
    Safety-issues
    Sage
    Sally
    Sandie
    Sandstorm
    Sarge
    SBerry
    Ser-bogs
    Shade
    ShadyBreeze
    Shaya
    SheerTangle
    Shiloh
    Shows
    Sienna
    Silverfrost
    Skipper
    Skitter
    Slip
    Sneak-thief
    Snow
    Snowpelt
    Snow-polish
    Snowshade
    Sold
    Soldier
    Sparkle Eyes
    SparksBranch
    SpeckDrop
    Spice
    SpiceBlossom
    Splash
    SplashHawk
    SplatterBush
    Spotlight
    Spots
    Spottedleaf
    Spottednose-gp
    Sprite
    Standard Rex
    Starburst
    Starflower
    Stevie
    Stolen
    StormLight
    StormSparrow
    Stormy
    Stream
    Summer
    Sundrop
    Sunnyrock
    Sunshadow
    SunShine
    TangleFoot
    TangleHeart
    TangleWebb
    Tanner
    Tansy
    Tava Gp
    Tawnypelt
    Teddy
    Temp Gp
    Tempy
    ThistleStripe
    Tilly
    Tinker-gp
    Tiny-tim
    Tipper
    TipTop
    Tm-polo1
    Tmueka03-nellie
    Toadfoot-gp
    Toffee-gp
    Toffee Gpafa704b3dc
    Tommy Tit
    Tommy-titpeter
    Tommy Titpeter2ddcb0e531
    Tory
    TraceElement
    Tracey
    Training
    Trebel
    Triscuit
    Usefulness-of-rabbits
    Varia
    Varmints
    Vena
    Vicki
    Violet
    Vivian
    Wafer
    WebbsBeauty
    Website News
    Whiskerheart
    Whiskersong
    William
    Willowsong
    WingFlight
    Winters-coat
    Youtube

    Picture
    Click me to learn more about Rabbits and Guinea pigs

    Archives

    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.