Other ingredients in bicillin OK for rabbits?

Do any of you know whether any of the following ingredients would cause problems for a rabbit (the bicillin is actually labeled for cattle but is on the safe list for rabbits with appropriate dosage):

lecithin
sodium formaldehyde sulfoxylate
methylparaben
propylparaben
Tween 40
Span 40
sodium citrate (anhydrous)
procaine hydrochloride
sodium carboxymethylcellulose

The only (injectable) drug I have ever used on rabbits was Combiotic, and that was years ago. I don't even know if they make it any more. The only drug that I know is used now is some of the sulfas, and Baytril, both of which are given orally.

MeadowView just posted a link with a great site. It lists all the drugs that rabbits can recieve and the specifications. See the "MediRabbit" thread.

Can't help you, Trinity, because I know zilch about medications for rabbits.

This site looks like it might be useful to you... there is a medication section.

http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/index_en.htm

Thanks, y'all. I initially found out about bicillin through the MediRabbit site, and it lists injectable bicillin as being fine for rabbits. However, the only bicillin I've been able to find is labeled for cattle, and even though the active ingredients are ok for rabbits, I wasn't sure whether the other ingredients could cause problems.

it's a very good question

the only injectable I've used is Pen G

Brody":1pnueb0q said:

it's a very good question

the only injectable I've used is Pen G

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Bicillin is Pen G with penicillin procaine. Can you get me a list of ingredients, or do you know where I could find the list for the Pen G you were using? Was it labelled for rabbits?

just came back to this thread to do some thinking ..

__________ Sun Jan 31, 2010 3:47 pm __________

ok - google search is showing penicillin procaine as recommended for rabbits by sources I trust ...

__________ Sun Jan 31, 2010 3:49 pm __________

most medications are "offlabel" for rabbits
drives me crazy as most are originally tested on rabbits - but rabbits simply aren't worth the money to get the meds labelled for thier use at the end of the testing<br /><br />__________ Sun Jan 31, 2010 3:50 pm __________<br /><br />http://homepage.mac.com/mattocks/morfz/rx/drugcalc.html

useful website perhaps - use with caution everybody

Brody":fwdoghtu said:

most medications are "offlabel" for rabbits
drives me crazy as most are originally tested on rabbits - but rabbits simply aren't worth the money to get the meds labelled for thier use at the end of the testing

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So, based on the fact of their being tested on rabbits, you think the inactive ingredients would be ok, too?

ok - did some more googling

sodium formaldehyde sulfoxylate/procaine hydrochloride - can both be a problem for any species - but in fairly high doses

lecithin is present in muscle tissue anyhow it seems
methylparaben can be mildly irritating to the skin so be sure you are subq with doseage
propylparaben - not a likely problem in rabbits - kidneys and liver get rid of it easily
Tween 40 - found nothing of use on this ingredient
Span 40 - seems to be a vitamin d complex ... lemme come back to this.. seems to be a good thing - helps with calcification issues - so perhaps is there to help counter other ingredients
sodium citrate - be cautious in using a young rabbit - it does affect fracture healing - which suggests it affects calcium ..
sodium carboxymethylcellulose - seems to cause issues in high amounts but as the last listed ingredient there may be very little of it present ...

I should ask is the intention to consume this rabbit eventually? some antibioitcs are prohibited for human consumption - even if they fdo the rabbit no harm
also consider age and condition of rabbits you want to use it on - old young pregnant and lactating does need more caution of course

I'm not a vet so can't (and won't) advise anyone on what to do however it seems that normal bicillan works fine on rabbits - I suppose on thing I would do is weight the pros and cons of taking a bit of a chance on this drug - what was I treating? how many rabbits could be harmed by it?

then if the balance is ok - I'd probably try it too

Brody":2pi0xhiv said:

did some more googling

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Thanks! It never occurred to me to google the individual ingredients related to rabbits.

I should ask is the intention to consume this rabbit eventually?

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Depends. At this point, I'm hoping he lives a long, useful life and eventually gets retired to pet status. Bicillin labelling for cattle says not to butcher/milk for human consumption for at least 30 days. If, God forbid, we should lose him before 30-60 days after treatment, then of course we wouldn't consume him.

also consider age and condition of rabbits you want to use it on - old young pregnant and lactating does need more caution of course

Click to expand...

He's almost two years old, and has had a rapidly-growing recurrence of the abcess that we thought was completely gone after his bout last summer. Surgery isn't a good option at this point. I found several good studies and other articles that show promising results for bicillin treatment. Here are two:

http://www.ontariorabbits.org/health/healthinfo1.1.htm

http://www-unix.oit.umass.edu/~jwmoore/ ... cillin.htm

oh for an abseccess in a mature rabbit you don't need to eat?? GO for it

Lola (don't ask) had a BAD absecess behind her eye pushing her eye out of it's socket some (yah I said don't ask) - her Pen G knocked it back very quickly ...she's got other issues brewing and our battle is nowhere near done but I'd be trying it too

I use Pen G on rabbits, this link may be helpful-


http://www.lagomorphs.com/Drugsbyclass.pdf