This study compares the sedative, analgesic and behavioral effects with the detection of changes in vital signs and blood values following injection of Nalbuphine HCl, Fentanyl citrate, Tramadol HCl and Meloxicam in dogs. Forty clinically healthy mongrel dogs were randomly divided into 4 groups (10 dogs each) according to the analgesic agent used. Doses of 0.5mg/kg Nalbuphine HCl, 5μg/kg Fentanyl citrate, 2mg/kg Tramadol HCl and 0.2mg/kg Meloxicam were given IV in groups A, B, C and D, respectively. The zero time for evaluation was 10 min for Nalbuphine HCl, 45 min for Tramadol HCl, 7 min for Fentanyl citrate and one hour for Meloxicam. The dogs were evaluated every15 min interval for up to 90 minutes. Assessments included the degree of analgesia, sedation, behavioral abnormalities and changes on vital signs, hemogram and serum biochemistry. Statistical analysis was carried out by paired samples t-test. Unlike Nalbuphine HCl, Fentanyl citrate and Tramadol HCl, Meloxicam induced better analgesia, no significant changes in total leukocytes, neutrophil, eosinophil, lymphocyte and monocyte counts, serum levels of total protein (TP), albumin, urea, creatinine, creatinine clearance and serum enzymatic activities of alanine transaminase (ALT) and aspartate transaminase (AST) along the whole experiment. Meloxicam induced no sedation, no behavioral changes, insignificant increase in heart rate, significant increase in systolic, diastolic and mean blood pressure and significant increase in respiratory rate after 15 and 30 minutes. In conclusion, meloxicam is more safe and effective analgesic than Nalbuphine HCl, Fentanyl citrate and Tramadol HCl in dogs.
Keywords | Dogs, Fentanyl citrate, Meloxicam, Nalbuphine hydrochloride, Tramadol hydrochloride