Has anyone here had their cat on Cosequin? Has anyone gotten it from the vet in a bulk powder instead of a capsule? Our vet gave it to us in a container that was not from the manufacturer with their own instructions on it for our cat. Now I am seeing that Cosequin does not make it for cats in a bulk powder - only for horses! I called the company and they definitely do not recommend using the one for horses for cats due to dosing issues. Has anyone else had a vet give them bulk powder?
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Cosequin in bulk powder?
- Thread starter Anne2021
- Start Date
I've not heard of such a thing 
There's no way you can be 100% sure that it is Cosequin in the bulk container and not something else. Out of curiosity, what did the vet's instruction on the bulk container say? Did it have a dose of how much of the mystery power you had to give? Have you discussed your concern about the bulk container with your vet and his / her reasoning why a bulk container of powder is offered instead of actual bottles of Cosequin capsules?
There's no way you can be 100% sure that it is Cosequin in the bulk container and not something else. Out of curiosity, what did the vet's instruction on the bulk container say? Did it have a dose of how much of the mystery power you had to give? Have you discussed your concern about the bulk container with your vet and his / her reasoning why a bulk container of powder is offered instead of actual bottles of Cosequin capsules?- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #3
LTS3, it says "Cosequin Powder per 1/2 cup" and "Mix 1/4 tsp into food once daily for joint support." It also has their usual label info like address, phone, etc. When I called the manufacturer, we estimated that 1/4 teaspoon has 450 mg of Glucosamine. One capsule for cats has 125 mg and a cat over 10 lbs can have two capsules, so 250 mg. The container the vet gave my daughter doesn't give any dosages. I called today to ask and the person who answered said she would have to leave a message for a vet or vet tech.I've not heard of such a thing
My daughter had to take the same cat back in last evening because she won't eat, is vomiting and has diarrhea (but so does another cat in the household, but much milder than this cat). They sent her home with some meds, including a Cerenia tablet that clearly says for dogs only. I had the second cat (the less sick one) in this morning and asked about that and the vet said it's fine, we use those for cats. Is that commonplace? This vet is one of the most reputable and highly rated ones in town and I switched to them last December after my previous vet wouldn't do ear swabs on my cat who had a raging ear infection. This new vet office handled everything impeccably with the ear situation and I was so pleased, and now all this has me wondering.
FYI - the cats live with me, but my adult daughter is very bonded with the one - (her baby from childhood) - and when that kitty is sick, my daughter likes to be there, but the vet won't let in more than one human so I can't go in, too.
Yes, the Cerenia pills are FDA approve for use in dogs but can be used off-labeled for cats and is safe to do so with veterinary supervision and advice. There is an injectable form of Cerenia that is approved for use in cats but that's for vets to give in the office, not prescribed for clients to give at home.
The Cerenia pills are small and even more so if only half or less of a pill is needed. You can use a Pill Pocket to get the pill into the cat or trying crushing it up a little and mixing into a small amount of yummy canned food or lickable treat.
Cosequin for horses contains oat fiber which won't harm the cat but it's unnecessary in the diet. I would hold off on giving this mystery powder to the cat until you speak with the vet and discuss your concerns.
The Cerenia pills are small and even more so if only half or less of a pill is needed. You can use a Pill Pocket to get the pill into the cat or trying crushing it up a little and mixing into a small amount of yummy canned food or lickable treat.
Cosequin for horses contains oat fiber which won't harm the cat but it's unnecessary in the diet. I would hold off on giving this mystery powder to the cat until you speak with the vet and discuss your concerns.
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #5
Okay. That makes sense about the Cerenia because they gave each cat an injection of it and wanted me to give it to my sicker kitty tonight and tomorrow night in tablet form.
I definitely think I will hold off on the Cosequin and if we resume it, I will only use the labeled capsule form and get it that way. She's not eating anyway so I couldn't mix powder in with her food. Also, the dosage is quite high for a cat and not in the same proportions of glucasomine:chondroitin:manganese at all. I'm just so frustrated at this point. She went in for arthritis two weeks ago and now she won't eat, is vomiting and has diarrhea. They said her stool sample was clean of worms and parasites, but they want her on amoxicillin and metronizadole for a week, which have stomach upset and diarrhea as adverse reactions. They admitted they don't know what's wrong.
I would get a second opinion from another vet and / or insist that the current vet consult with a veterinary school or other vet hospital for more ideas on what your cat's issue may be.
Cosequin also comes in a chew treat form if your find that the cat won't eat "tainted" food.
Cosequin also comes in a chew treat form if your find that the cat won't eat "tainted" food.
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #7
LTS3, the vet called me today to answer my question about the Cosequin bulk powder. She told me that 1/4 teaspoon is 450 mg of Glucosamine, which matched what the manufacturer said about the horse product. So, I told the vet that I did not see bulk powder for cats, but did see the only bulk powder they made was for horses. She confirmed that, yes, it was the powder that the manufacturer makes for horses. I've got to say that really shocks me that they would do that. I don't think they even see horses. This is not a rural community and nothing on their website indicates treating horses. I'm even more shocked they would pass it along to cat owners without explaining what it is or how strong the dosage is. I guess it's not supposed to be very toxic, but if we re-start it later, I will buy the product made for cats.
I wonder if the bulk product for horses is somehow cheaper for the vet to buy since it's technically the same product with the addition of oat fiber in the horse product? I would definitely question the vet's practices, especially not informing owners that the product is actually for horses and what a cat-safe dose might be. If the situation makes you feel uncomfortable, you can seek out a new vet.
Chewy.com and other web sites sell Coesquin for cats.
Chewy.com and other web sites sell Coesquin for cats.
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #9
LTS3, I did see online that the maximum dose of Glucosamine for a cat is 500 mg. Even so, I'm not comfortable with giving more than what is in the recommended dosage for the product made for cats. We may pick it up in a few weeks after I give it some time now that my cats seem well again. The vet did a great job on my other cat's ear infection last December after a different vet blew us off, so I hate to switch again, but we'll see.
