Buprenex--effects and for how long?

vince

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One of my cats hurt his foot a couple weeks ago. No broken bones (took an X-ray), but the vet gave him an anti-inflammatory shot and some syringes of Buprenex to administer orally, which I gave him as directed. He was absolutely stoned for five days. I'd give him a syringe and he'd disappear for 20 hours. He still ate, with encouragement, and went to the box, but that was it. Afterward, he seemed to be physically okay (not limping or significantly favoring the foot), but still won't do anything much, except hiss at one of the other cats, which he didn't do before.

Perhaps he still may be hurting a bit, or there are some lingering effects from the Buprenex. Anybody else had some experience with this? Vet said the side effects were normal, but he seemed so out of it, and for so long. I wonder if he should have had a smaller dose?
 

neely

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My cat has had Buprenex after several tooth extractions and, yes, the sleepiness is normal. Thankfully he never had any long lasting side effects but that's also because it is not a permanent medication. You might find the information in his thread about the drug helpful: Buprenorphine Use In Cats After Surgery
 

FeebysOwner

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Hi. I don't have any background with Buprenex, but just wanted to add that if you are concerned that he might still be experiencing some pain, you could ask the vet to switch to a small dose of Gabapentin instead of using the Buprenex.
 

abyeb

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Buprenex (brand name for Buprenorphine) has a very long elimination half-life (average of 36 hours, with a range from 20-70 hours), so I think that could be why he is still groggy days later. But, of course, you should ask your vet if you are concerned.

Buprenorphine - Wikipedia
 
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vince

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The half-life was the issue. It's probably just now getting all out of his system. If he doesn't get over it in a couple days, I'll check again with the vet. However, he seems to be doing better; he's been up and ready to eat at feeding times and has been sleeping with his "sister," at whom he'd been hissing.
 

AdrienneAlice

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My 18-year-old cat has cancer (SCC) in his jaw. It’s untreatable. I have been squirting buprenorphine .15 in his cheek once a day. At first, it seemed to suit him. Then, after about five days, he developed insomnia, restlessness, and constant howling. I haven’t slept for days. I stopped the dosing, and the effects continued for a day and a half. Now, he has finally dropped off to sleep, and I’m waiting for his vet to call. Has anyone else seen these side effects?
 

furmonster mom

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Have not had the howling issue, but several years ago one of our cats had an odd reaction to Bupe: one of her eyes remained in open dilated state. Thankfully, I had insisted on oral administration instead of injection. I was able to stop the med immediately (and this is exactly why I always insist on oral vs. injection). We ended up using a different pain med for her.
 

RainBoots

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My 18-year-old cat has cancer (SCC) in his jaw. It’s untreatable. I have been squirting buprenorphine .15 in his cheek once a day. At first, it seemed to suit him. Then, after about five days, he developed insomnia, restlessness, and constant howling. I haven’t slept for days. I stopped the dosing, and the effects continued for a day and a half. Now, he has finally dropped off to sleep, and I’m waiting for his vet to call. Has anyone else seen these side effects?
We did; our cat is being treated with medication because they cannot find a cause for his various health issues and buprenorphine is one of the meds he is on long term. He was originally prescribed 0.3 (at 17lbs) and we noticed he paced constantly and seemed very restless. After some research and a call to his specialist, we determined it was the buprenorphine. At too high a dose it can cause those very symptoms. Wit his vet's permission, we dropped him to half and slowly worked up until we found a comfortable level. Right now he is 15lbs and taking 0.2 twice a day and this seems to be working. But we always keep a close eye on him in case he needs an adjustment.
 

IslandMeg

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I asked the vet for something to help with pain and get my boy to sleep. He’s got labored breathing. Is horribly stoned and has fully dilated eyes. He’s agitated and looks like he’s hallucinating. It’s awful. I’m hoping it will start to wear off soon. And I’m going to rip the vet a new one tomorrow. What in earth made her prescribe this.
 

fionasmom

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There are a couple of links in this thread which might help you. But as I said in response to your other post, call the vet if necessary. Only you can judge the condition that your cat is in right now.
 

silent meowlook

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Buprenorphine aka Buprenex is for moderate pain in cats. We use is commonly in cats in the injectable form and send it home in syringes of a compounded version to be absorbed through the mucosal lining of the mouth. The injectable form is also absorbed through the mucosal lining of the mouth but the amount actually absorbed isn't all that accurate.

It is a very good pain medication for most cats. I have yet to see any adverse reactions to it in over 30 years. Allot of people mistake pain for a reaction to the buprenex. Often times I see Veterinarians only prescribing small amounts.

There aren't many alternatives to pain medication for cats to have at home. Gabapentin is not a pain medication. Metacam in my opinion isn't safe and has a black box warning on it for cats. Tramadol doesn't work. And that is about it for pain medications sent home with cats. Buprenex is by far the best if not the only effective pain medication sent home with cats.

Dilated eyes are a common and expected side effect of Buprenex. Sleeping allot can also be a symptom but cats do sleep allot anyway, Cats also sleep allot when they are in pain. They hide when they are in pain. I have seen it make some cats a little hyper. The effects resolve in about 6 to 8 hours.
 
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