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My dog is lethargic after taking meloxicam. Is it an overdose?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Bedlington Terrier | Female | spayed | 6 years and 10 months old | 22 lbs

Polly has an anal abscess and is taking 10ml of meloxicam and Antirobe 150mg, she is eating and drinking, poo and wee as normal but she is very lethargic . She is a 10,7 kg dog and the 10 ml of meloxicam is given in a syringe Drew up to 10 ml level. She has been on this since Thursday . Is the lethargy a result of her medication?

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Kevin Sanada, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on August 26th, 2017

Hi, I see you've posted again...you have confirmed that this is a massive overdose of meloxicam for a dog that size and it would definitely cause her to be lethargic. Overdoses are most concerning for causing stomach and/or intestinal ulcers/bleeding. It can also cause significant damage to the kidneys. For these reasons, I recommend you take Polly to the vet immediately. There are medications and treatments that can keep this from getting worse and it's imperative that they are given soon. However, it's worth double-checking the syringe. Liquid meloxicam is usually given with a small 1ml syringe. The 1ml may be written as 1.0ml, which could be confused with 10. A 10ml syringe is considerably bigger and would be quite difficult to give to a cat. Below is a link to a guide that explains the syringe sizes better: http://www.vgr1.com/metacam/

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    Answered By Susan England-Foster

    Veterinarian

    Published on

    I am sorry Polly is not feeling well. I would call your vet and discuss the meloxicam dose. We do not use it at that high of a dose in the United States by they might in the U.K. However it is usually dosed by pounds. Do you think you are giving a 10lbs dose. If he is taking to much meloxicam it can cause gi upset but so can antibiotics. I just think the best option is to take Polly back to the veterinarian to discuss her being lethargic and meloxicam dose. Hope that helps

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