Ivermectin proper dosage discussion

[ladysown]

Did you know that the amount of Ivermectin in a "pea-sized amount" of standard apple-flavored Ivermectin horse wormer paste is approximately enough to treat a 50 to 100 lb. animal at the dosages recommended for rabbits?

The recommended dosage for rabbits is generally 0.2 to 0.4 mg (200 to 400 mcg) of Ivermectin per Kilogram of body weight. Buy the injectible form and a syringe with 1/10 cc markings, and you won't be overdosing your rabbits by many times the recommended dose. Ivermectin for rabbits is most reliable and most well-researched when given as a subcutaneous injection (and not hard to do), but even giving the correct measured amount orally would be safer than the "pea sized amount of horse wormer paste" method so often recommended.

Also, Ivermectin has been shown by research to be effective for treating external parasites (fur mites, and at the higher dosage ear mites) in rabbits when given correctly, but it is not effective for treating most internal parasites typical to rabbits. Ivermectin has specifically been shown *not* to be effective for treating rabbit pinworms (Tsui and Patton, 1991), and is competely worthless for treating coccidia, for instance.

Please, do yourself and your animals a favor and use the proper medication type, formulation, dosage, method and duration/repetition specific to whatever issue and type of animal you are treating.

http://wildpro.twycrosszoo.org/S/00Chem/ChComplex/Ivermectin.htm

 

[majorv]

We keep the liquid Ivomec 1% on hand. We also have liquid fenbendazole (Safeguard). I'm hesitant to use any paste wormer because it's harder to dose accurately.

 

[missyscove]

This is why I don't feel comfortable recommendig dosages of ivermectin to folks.

Well, that and the fact that, in the US, using any medication in an animal that is not specifically labeled for that species and that condition is extra-label usage and legally requires veterinary supervision.

 

[tonyshuman]

Thanks for posting this. I had a horrible experience with the "pea-sized" dosing of horse ivermectin. In hindsight, the bunnies had been over-dosed by 50-100x. It caused serious problems in my Dutch rabbit, as it wasn't clear at the time that they often have a sensitivity to ivermectin, and he nearly died. It is irresponsible to advocate this method of treatment. If someone has to treat their bunnies with ivermectin and cannot have a vet prescribe it, it's best to get the liquid form, do the calculations, and dilute the liquid enough to get the right dose.