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The subject of intentional breeding or meat rabbits is prohibited. The answers provided on this board are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet.  It is your responsibility to assess the information being given and seek professional advice/second opinion from your veterinarian and/or qualified behaviorist.

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Forum THE LOUNGE Small rant; Dog/cat clinic suggested I use Frontline on Zeus.

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    • bunnnnnnie!
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        My family’s dog had a bald spot on his back, that he had chewed.  Brought him to the vet, and they thought it might’ve been a flea bite that he was mildly allergic to.  Couldn’t find any fleas or evidence of them, and none of the other pets we have in the house are showing any signs of fleas.  But just to be safe the vet suggested a flea treatment.  She listed out the few choices and sent us up to the front desk to choose, with the help of a vet tech.

        I immediately let my mom know to just NOT choose Frontline as I was worried I’d pet the dog then pet Zeus.  With other, safer products I just thought it’d be best to avoid it entirely, because I explained Frontline can be fatal and cause seizures in bunnies.

        The vet tech matter of factly corrected me that Frontline is “completely safe” and “we use it on bunnies all of the time and NEVER have problems”.

        I didn’t even respond.  We got Advantage instead, in either case.  But this makes me so ANGRY.  I know it’s a dog/cat vet, but having a vet tech say something blatantly wrong that can cause the death of an animal, particularly a species they know obviously nothing about?  .

        I’m always stunned at how little a dog/cat vet (or their staff) knows about rabbits.  Heck, even Zeus’s vet, a small exotics clinic, has a vet tech that told me Zeus is a rodent.  Um, no. .  It makes me glad we have resources like BinkyBunny… if I wouldn’t have joined here, I would’ve never known Zeus needed a specialized vet.  And apparently dog/cat clinics will claim to be knowledgeable and able to treat rabbits but that’s VERY far from the truth!  If you don’t know about a species, just say so.  Don’t make unsubstantiated claims that endangers pets!

        Sorry, rant over!  It’s just I really wish “regular” vets would at least know the VERY basics about other, common animals.. or be honest if you DON’T know the basics of that species!  Heck, it even says RIGHT ON Frontline packaging it’s for dogs & cats only!!!


      • bunnnnnnie!
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          Oh, and just in case I wasn’t clear… this was NOT Zeus’s clinic. This was the dog/cat clinic my family uses for the other pets.


        • LittlePuffyTail
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            That is upsetting. Especially since we just had a member within the last few weeks lose her bunny due to Frontline. I would have told them that it causes seizures and death in rabbits. They should not be giving out information like that. Maybe you could call or e-mail the vet with your concerns. Maybe what the vet tech said is not the opinion of the vets. Like in any job, some vet techs are “know it alls”. I certainly hope no one has to go through the death of their bunny because they were given false advice. People should be able to trust their vet.


          • LBJ10
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              Yes, someone just lost their bunny because of Frontline. I agree, perhaps you should say something to the vet. I find that vet techs tend to not know a whole lot of stuff. Nothing against them, but if they don’t work in an office that takes small animals/exotics then they might not know about these things. Heck, even my vet’s office has a few vet techs that don’t know what rabbits need. The vet is very good, but some of the vet techs are not very knowledgeable.


            • Sarita
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                Well, I would just educate them and speak with the vet rather than the vet tech. In my experience vet tech’s aren’t always the best source of medicine for animals – nothing against them either – they are doing what they know, but they aren’t the vet.


              • Sarita
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                  And I don’t really understand how a dog/cat clinic can use it on rabbits if they don’t see them…they just seem misinformed and the vet is the person who oversees the staff and I would just go directly to the vet.

                  And if you read Advantage or Revolution they aren’t really marketed for rabbits either and don’t really recommend that but they are proven safe – I do believe though that on the inside of the Frontline’s warnings they may say not for use with Rabbits…but I’m not entirely sure. So there is that as well, the rabbit safe treatments are really off market treatments for them.


                • Stickerbunny
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                    Important thing to remember with vet techs is they are NOT that well trained. They go through a certification course, much like a nursing assistant, but it is short compared to an actual vets training. Often, they know little but what they learned at the office/basic care requirements they need for their job. But yeah a lot of the dog/cat vets will claim knowledge of exotics they don’t have.


                  • kinggoblin
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                      I’m glad the vet techs at my vet office know a little about rabbits and even know how to handle him really well which surprised me because he is a brat about being picked up and held ( but they see a lot because there is only ONE exotic vet in this whole area ).

                      I don’t even put any topicals on my dog though, I just use the trifexis pill for her. Its safer for my bunny and my couch ( that now has a big splotch on it from my dog rolling on it after putting advantage on her. GRRR!!! )


                    • LBJ10
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                        kinggoblin – My rabbits are notorious for being terrible little turds when it comes to holding them still for something. They get to the vet’s office and they magically turn into little angels. The vet looks at my like I’m crazy when I say whatever was just impossible to do myself at home.


                      • bunnnnnnie!
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                          I do understand and totally realize that vet techs aren’t as well trained. But you’d think the vet would tell them or there would be some policy against making suggestions for treatments, ESPECIALLY on species not often seen in the clinic.

                          Sarita; The clinic does see rabbits, they’re just primarily a dog/cat vet. I don’t take Zeus there because they’re not a small exotics vet, but they will see rabbits.


                        • MimzMum
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                            Just another reason to be well informed ourselves and ALWAYS advocate for your rabbit.
                            I’ve just been thinking of you bunnnnnnie! and wondering how you and Zeus were getting on.


                          • bunnnnnnie!
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                              Posted By MimzMum on 10/15/2012 02:28 AM
                              Just another reason to be well informed ourselves and ALWAYS advocate for your rabbit.
                              I’ve just been thinking of you bunnnnnnie! and wondering how you and Zeus were getting on.

                              Most definitely, 100% agreed on that!

                              And thanks for the thoughts!  Zeus is well.  We’ve moved and he loves the new house… his “domain” is my bedroom which has a walk-in closet.  The closet = the COOLEST room he’s EVER SEEN!  LOL! .

                              The best part is he, for some reason, thinks he’s not allowed in the closet.  So when I walk in he takes off out of it and into the bedroom waggling his tail at me as if I caught him doing something bad.


                            • LBJ10
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                                I was just thinking about this again this morning. What is the difference between Frontline for a dog and for a cat? I know the dog kind can make a cat sick too.


                              • FrankieFlash
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                                  Bunnnie! that is so cute. Bunjamin’s first “room” was our walk in closet. That was HIS domain
                                  I’ve been thinking about you too but I didn’t want you to think I was like crazy stalker…. just that zeus face, I miss it! Pictures?


                                • jerseygirl
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                                    I tried find a customers MSDS yesterday but haven’t yet.
                                    I think a polite letter or email to the clinic wouldn’t hurt. Even to clarify if it is their practice to use frontline on other species.

                                    If its not and it’s a case of one employee being misinformed, it’s to the practice owners benefit to be aware if this. So then they can make sure all present and future staff are educated about safe use.

                                    I wonder with the rabbits that were treated if anything ever followed up…
                                    If they did have a fatal reaction, owners might not even make the link. They may think unrelated death.


                                  • Malp_15
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                                      I think the problem here are the schools. Rabbits just aren’t prevalent enough in the veterinary world yet, in North America, so vets and techs are not taught about them. They learn basic anatomy and how to anesthetize them, that’s basically it. They don’t learn about diet, housing, or specifics of their medicines. Techs just don’t have that oppurtunity at all, they only get proficient in it, if they work in an exotic clinic and get training there or from continuing education seminars. Vets if they WANT to learn it, they can take some extra classes, but even then they only become “rabbit savvy” by doing an internship (most of the time unpaid) or by having an expert as a mentor.

                                      Another problem is that everyone who works in the back of a vet clinic is called a “Tech”. There is a Veterinary Assistant and then there is a Registered Animal Health Technologist (RAHT). An RAHT is a 2-3 program that is finished off with a National Board Exam. They are your Lab Techs, Radiologists, Anaesthetist, Pharmacists, Dental Hygienist, and Scrub Nurse. A Veterinary Assistant is someone who can take a 6 month certificate, but many times is in clinic trained. Their duties would include, administering certain meds, setting up appointments, sometimes receptionists, and assisting in restraining for procedures. The problem is that many vets do not want to pay the required wage to have enough RAHT’s that a practice should have, so they have Veterinary Assistants doing things that should really be outside their job description and is definitely outside their training.

                                      I do think that it was an ingnorant comment from that person, and I believe the best way to deal with it is to email the clinic. The office manager or head vet will usually be the one reading the emails. And a good clinic will take what you said and have a meeting about it to make sure everyone is on the same page. If it’s a clinic that doesn’t deal with rabbits that often, then they probably don’t know that there is a discrepency in advice. With dogs and cats, there is set “practice” for each clinic and everyone is on the same page.

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                                  Forum THE LOUNGE Small rant; Dog/cat clinic suggested I use Frontline on Zeus.