Abstract
Background
In the last 20 years, two studies on the veterinary use of perioperative analgesia in small mammals reported a limited use of analgesics in rabbits but suggested an increasing use over the years. The aim of this study was to better understand how pain is treated and ameliorated in rabbits while under veterinary care.
Methods
An online survey of 60 questions was developed and advertised at national and international veterinary conferences, in veterinary publications and on social media.
Results
In total 94.3% of the respondents routinely administered NSAIDs to rabbits undergoing surgical procedures such as neutering, 71.4 % administered an opioid and 70.3 % routinely administered multimodal analgesia, although dosages do not always match current consensus opinion. Buprenorphine and meloxicam were the most common analgesic drugs prescribed by the respondents. The dosage of meloxicam administered both parenterally and orally varied widely.
Conclusion
Rabbit analgesia has improved over recent years similarly to the trend seen in other companion animals. However, overall it seems that pain assessment is still limited in rabbits. The lack of multimodal composite pain scales specific for rabbits makes this task even more challenging.
In the last 20 years, two studies on the veterinary use of perioperative analgesia in small mammals reported a limited use of analgesics in rabbits but suggested an increasing use over the years. The aim of this study was to better understand how pain is treated and ameliorated in rabbits while under veterinary care.
Methods
An online survey of 60 questions was developed and advertised at national and international veterinary conferences, in veterinary publications and on social media.
Results
In total 94.3% of the respondents routinely administered NSAIDs to rabbits undergoing surgical procedures such as neutering, 71.4 % administered an opioid and 70.3 % routinely administered multimodal analgesia, although dosages do not always match current consensus opinion. Buprenorphine and meloxicam were the most common analgesic drugs prescribed by the respondents. The dosage of meloxicam administered both parenterally and orally varied widely.
Conclusion
Rabbit analgesia has improved over recent years similarly to the trend seen in other companion animals. However, overall it seems that pain assessment is still limited in rabbits. The lack of multimodal composite pain scales specific for rabbits makes this task even more challenging.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Number of pages | 8 |
| Journal | Veterinary Record |
| Early online date | 17 Apr 2020 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | E-pub ahead of print - 17 Apr 2020 |