Cat's leg X-rays are clear, but she's still in pain. Is buprenorphine enough?

Hello and thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. You can give Blackie maximum of 2 days with rest indoor and oral administration of buprenorphine. If it is only muscle or joint pain, he should be much better by Sunday. If there is no improvement in 2 days time, you should get Blackie seen at your local vets, possibly to x-ray the leg. Also, transmucosal buprenorphine lasts about 6-8 hrs in cats. You can increase the dose to 0.2ml 3 times a day.

Have you been giving him the buprenorphine? This could be making him very lethargic. If he doesnt seem really painful, you may consider stopping the pain meds or giving him a half dose to see if they helps to perk him up a bit. But if he is continuing to be lethargic despite not being on pain medication then I believe he needs to follow up with your vet to ensure nothing else is wrong. I hope he starts to feel better!

Sounds like Garth is still experiencing quite a bit of pain. While there may not be any clear fractures, other injuries involving soft tissue structures such as ligaments, tendons, and muscles can be equally painful. There are also injuries to nerves that can result in pretty severe pain. Lastly, dislocations can also occur (particularly in the hip) that are extremely painful. However, that should have showed up clearly on the x-ray assuming they shot all the way up to hip joint. I would continue to give him his medication as prescribed and make sure he is rested and confined. However, if matters are not any better by the time the prescribed course of meds is complete, he will need to be brought back in to the veterinarian for reassessment.

Hello, its difficult to assess if he will recover from this injury as there are no x-rays to evaluate. If his does have a fractured back, and currently is unable to move legs then his prognosis for recovery may not be great without surgery. Buprenorphine is great pain medication for cats. Sorry to hear about Little bit, I hope he recovers well!!

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Eevee! How do you know her leg is broken? Sadly cats are special, unique creatures that can not metabolize human medications like we can or even dogs (some medications). They are missing an enzyme needed to break down drugs like aspirin, Tylenol and advil. Giving them those drugs will cause them to become very sick and even die. There is no safe drug you can give Eevee that will not cause more harm than good. She needs to see a vet to be diagnosed with the fracture and be prescribed medications for pain that is safe to give a cat (onsior, buprenorphine or gabapentin). She needs to be crated in a large dog crate for 6-8 weeks for the fracture to heal. Letting her walk around and go outside will not allow for healing if her leg is broken. At a minimum confine her and see how she heals. Cats are amazing in that way. Good luck!

I am sorry but we at Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach are unable to prescribe or recommended medications, this can only be done by your treating vet who knows and has recently examined your pets. Rest and confinement will help prevent further injury but I strongly recommend a full physical exam to determine the type of injury and the options to manage it and reduce pain

She probably has a wound from the cat fight. I recommend checking her carefully and clean any scab you find with hydrogen peroxide. It’s best to keep the wound open so the infection can drain. If she stops eating or is too painful then please take her in for a veterinary exam and treatment. They may need to sedate her to clean the wounds and will give her antibiotics to fight the infection. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Bubbles.