METACAM®
Trust their pain relief at disbudding to METACAM
METACAM is the proven performer to help calves bounce back faster post-disbudding.1,5,8
A single shot, long-acting non-steroidal anti-inflammatory pain relief
METACAM assists in the control of pain and inflammation following surgery and disbudding of cattle particularly that following heat cautery disbudding of young cattle.2
METACAM takes care of calves' long-term pain making disbudding a more comfortable experience for all concerned, and improving the calves' wellbeing. Trust in METACAM at disbudding to give the calves in your care, the best care.
Talk to your local vet about METACAM effective pain relief now.
METACAM 20 mg//mL Solution for Injection and METACAM 40 mg/mL Solution for Injection. See product labels for full claim details and directions for use. ACVM Nos. A007982, A011754. Restricted Veterinary Medicines. Available only under a veterinary authorisation.
Calf disbudding is a necessary procedure on NZ dairy farms.
Our world-leading dairy farmers want the best for their calves. So managing pain for those calves will be top of mind. Calves experience pain in two phases – the acute pain immediately after the procedure followed by the chronic inflammatory phase, extending beyond the effects of the local anaesthetic.
Why disbud calves?
Horns can pose a significant risk to the health and welfare of other animals and humans. Good farming practice advocates the removal of horns as early as possible. However, the disbudding of calves is a stressful and painful procedure that requires management of pain and inflammation.3,4
When disbudding is performed, the method used must minimise the pain and distress as well as other negative health consequences such as inflammation and infection.3 This means that throughout the procedure, the calf must be under the influence of pain relief for that procedure.
METACAM effects on pain and inflammation
In the absence of analgesia disbudding pain is comparatively high.
There are two phases to the pain response, acute, (or fast pain), that is felt in the first minutes of the procedure and chronic, (or slow) pain and inflammation that is felt for hours after the initial insult.
The acute phases should be mitigated using a multimodal approach including local anaesthetic, systemic non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medication (NSAIDs), and sedation. The addition of the NSAIDs helps attenuate the subsequent inflammation and associated chronic pain response.4,5
The use of local anaesthetic and NSAID is best practice for mitigating pain and inflammation when disbudding calves.6 The New Zealand Veterinary Association advocates the use of long-acting analgesia alongside local anaesthetic and the addition of sedation to optimally manage calves during the procedure.7
METACAM effects on calf productivity
Controlling pain and inflammation at disbudding with NSAIDs not only improves calf welfare, but has also been shown in studies to have beneficial effects on daily liveweight gain and increase milk intake.1,8
METACAM® 20
Less pain, quicker return to the herd
Dosage and indication (cattle):
- For use to assist in the control of pain following the dehorning of cattle, particularly that following heat cautery dehorning of young cattle. It is recommended that the injection be administered approximately 10 minutes before dehorning and be accompanied by a cornual nerve block anaesthesia.
- For use in acute mastitis, in combination with appropriate antibiotic therapy in lactating cows.
- For use in acute respiratory infection with appropriate antibiotic therapy to reduce clinical signs in cattle.
- For the alleviation of pain and inflammation associated with surgery.
- For use in diarrhoea in combination with oral-rehydration therapy to reduce clinical signs in calves and young cattle.
- Single use only by S/C or I/V injection at 2.5 mL/100 kg.
Withholding periods (cattle):
- Milk: 84 hours, Meat: 10 days
METACAM 20 mg/mL Solution for Injection. See product label for full claim details and directions for use. ACVM No. A007982. Restricted Veterinary Medicine. Available only under a veterinary authorisation.
METACAM® 40
All the benefits - in half the dose
Dosage and indication (cattle):
- For use to assist in the control of pain following the dehorning of cattle, particularly that following heat cautery dehorning of young cattle. It is recommended that the injection be administered approximately 10 minutes before dehorning and be accompanied by a corneal nerve block anaesthesia.
- For the alleviation of pain and inflammation associated with surgery in cattle.
- For use in acute mastitis, in combination with appropriate antibiotic therapy in lactating cows.
- For use in acute respiratory infection with appropriate antibiotic therapy to reduce clinical signs in cattle.
- For use in diarrhoea in combination with oral-rehydration therapy to reduce clinical signs in calves and young cattle.
- Single use only by S/C and I/V injection at 1.25 mL/100 kg.
Withholding periods (cattle):
- Milk: 84 hours, Meat: 10 days
METACAM 40 mg/mL Solution for Injection. See product label for full claim details and directions for use. ACVM No. A011754. Restricted Veterinary Medicine. Available only under a veterinary authorisation.
References:
1 Bates A, et al. Effect of analgesia and anti-inflammatory treatment on weight gain and milk intake of dairy calves after disbudding. NZ Vet J. 2015;63(3):153-7.
2 Justus, C. et al. Meloxicam (METACAM), a new Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug (NSAID) as an adjunctive therapy for bovine respiratory disease. XXth World Buiatrics Congress, Sydney.
3 Ministry for Primary Industries. (2018, October). Code of welfare: Painful Husbandry Procedures. 46045-Code-of-Welfare-Painful-husbandry-procedures (mpi.govt.nz).
4 Stock, ML. et al. Bovine dehorning: assessing pain and providing analgesic management. Vet Clin North Anim Pract. 2013;29(1): 103-33.
5 Mintline EM, et al. Play behaviour as an indicator of animal welfare: Disbudding in dairy calves. Appl Anim Behav Sci. 2013; 144 (1) 22-30.
6 Winder CB, et al. Effects of local anaesthetic or systemic analgesia on pain associated with cautery disbudding in calves following thermocautery disbudding with local anaesthetic. NZ Vet J: 2019:1-11.
7 New Zealand Veterinary Association. (2019, May). Disbudding and dehorning of cattle. Policy: Cattle disbudding and dehorning | New Zealand Veterinary Association (nzva.org.nz).
8 Bates AJ, et al. The effect of different combinations of local anaesthesia, sedative, and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs on daily growth rates of dairy calves after disbudding. NZ Vet J. 2016;64(5):282-7.
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