My dog (14, Collie) recently got his broncoidal cough back worse.I had
him on Paracodin 10mg a day but it didn't seem to work.

I went to the vet and he has put him on a course of Prednisolone.The
side effects are rubbish, the dog drinks like a fish, has to urinate a
lot, is restless and pants a lot.

I have been giving him for the past 5 days 5mg X 3 twice a day.I have
to do this for 2 more days then 5mg X 2 for 7 days and 5mg X 1 for 7
days.

I want to get the dog on a lower dose ASAP and wondered could I start
the 5mg X 2 dose tommorow (cutting by 2 days) and eventually get him
of this horrible drug sooner? I don't think it has had a huge affect
on his cough.

I know I should tell my vet, he is good but hes a bit crotchity and
would tell me to do the full course.As I write the dog is beside me
panting and would normally be lying down & resting.

Of course the vet said "this drug has few side effects..."

Thanks.

"Father Yod & YHW 13" wrote in
news:06c3a522-456d-494a-a248-2fe71f887ea9
@w24g2000prd.googlegroups.com:

The side effects are rubbish, the dog drinks like a fish, has to
urinate a lot, is restless and pants a lot.

The panting and restlessness would worry me.

When my dog was on prednisone, she drank and peed like crazy (at one
point she couldn't even hold it for a full hour), until I was able to
drop her down to one dose per day. At that point, her water intake
went down a *lot* and she was able to hold it for 4-5 hours. By the
time she was weaned to every-other-day doses, water and urine were
pretty much back to normal.

I want to get the dog on a lower dose ASAP and wondered could I
start the 5mg X 2 dose tommorow (cutting by 2 days) and
eventually get him of this horrible drug sooner? I don't think it
has had a huge affect on his cough.

I would strongly recommend calling the vet. Prednisone is *not*
something you want to mess around with.

FWIW (and this is not a recommendation!), my 50lb dog was on

10mg 2x/day for 3 days, then
10mg 1x/day for 6 days, then
10mg 1x every other day for 6 days

It's important that you wean the dog off at the right dose and the
right pace, so again, I really think you should contact your vet.
Crotchity as he may be, it's your dog, and it's okay to tell the vet
that the side effects of the drug are intolerable and you want to
wean your dog off it.

--
Shelly
http://www.cat-sidh.net (the Mother Ship)
http://esther.cat-sidh.net (Letters to Esther)

In article
,
"Father Yod & YHW 13" wrote:


I want to get the dog on a lower dose ASAP and wondered could I start
the 5mg X 2 dose tommorow (cutting by 2 days) and eventually get him
of this horrible drug sooner? I don't think it has had a huge affect
on his cough.

I know I should tell my vet, he is good but hes a bit crotchity and
would tell me to do the full course.As I write the dog is beside me
panting and would normally be lying down & resting.

Of course the vet said "this drug has few side effects..."

Do not muck with the weaning schedule! Give it the whole time, as
prescribed. Yes, it has annoying side effects and long term use can
have more serious ones, but right now, you need to finish the course
properly.

Take the dog out more frequently, try to keep the dog cool rather than
too warm, and hope for a turnaround in cough symptoms. This drug can be
a lifesaver as well as annoying, so please don't self-prescribe.

--
Janet Boss
www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com

On 10 Jan, 00:10, Janet Boss
wrote:
In article
,
*"Father Yod & YHW 13" wrote:



I want to get the dog on a lower dose ASAP and wondered could I start
the 5mg X 2 dose tommorow (cutting by 2 *days) and eventually get him
of this horrible drug sooner? I don't think it has had a huge affect
on his cough.

I know I should tell my vet, he is good but hes a bit crotchity and
would tell me to do the full course.As I write the dog is beside me
panting and would normally be lying down & resting.

Of course the vet said "this drug has few side effects..."

Do not muck with the weaning schedule! *Give it the whole time, as
prescribed. *Yes, it has annoying side effects and long term use can
have more serious ones, but right now, you need to finish the course
properly. *

Take the dog out more frequently, try to keep the dog cool rather than
too warm, and hope for a turnaround in cough symptoms. *This drug can be
a lifesaver as well as annoying, so please don't self-prescribe.

--
Janet Bosswww.bestfriendsdogobedience.com

Ok! I will do as you both say.But the side effects are driving me mad!
At least its only for 3 weeks and not continuously.
Tonight the dog has been very restless but I am going to bed now
and he should settle down after half an hour.

Thanks for your quick replies!

In article
,
"Father Yod & YHW 13" wrote:


Ok! I will do as you both say.But the side effects are driving me mad!
At least its only for 3 weeks and not continuously.
Tonight the dog has been very restless but I am going to bed now
and he should settle down after half an hour.

Thanks for your quick replies!

By all means, call your vet and express your concerns! Safe weaning
really is important though, but your vet may have an acceptable shorter
weaning period to offer.

--
Janet Boss
www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com

DO NOT cut the dose quicker then the vet tells you to. Dropping this med
too soon can cause worse problems than you have right now.

Take the time and do it correctly!!!!!!!!!!!

Celeste


--
Save 25% or more on your eBay® auctions
Snipe eBay Auctions with Bidnip
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"Father Yod & YHW 13" wrote in message
...
My dog (14, Collie) recently got his broncoidal cough back worse.I had
him on Paracodin 10mg a day but it didn't seem to work.

I went to the vet and he has put him on a course of Prednisolone.The
side effects are rubbish, the dog drinks like a fish, has to urinate a
lot, is restless and pants a lot.

I have been giving him for the past 5 days 5mg X 3 twice a day.I have
to do this for 2 more days then 5mg X 2 for 7 days and 5mg X 1 for 7
days.

I want to get the dog on a lower dose ASAP and wondered could I start
the 5mg X 2 dose tommorow (cutting by 2 days) and eventually get him
of this horrible drug sooner? I don't think it has had a huge affect
on his cough.

I know I should tell my vet, he is good but hes a bit crotchity and
would tell me to do the full course.As I write the dog is beside me
panting and would normally be lying down & resting.

Of course the vet said "this drug has few side effects..."

Thanks.

"Spot" wrote in message
...
DO NOT cut the dose quicker then the vet tells you to. Dropping this med
too soon can cause worse problems than you have right now.

Take the time and do it correctly!!!!!!!!!!!

Celeste

What type of problems? My former vet did not stress the importance of
weaning animals off this drug properly yet I see this warning quite
frequently.

Kathy

"Father Yod & YHW 13" wrote in message
...

Ok! I will do as you both say.But the side effects are driving me mad!

They can be pretty awful. I wanted to cry when the side effects were at
their worst. They should start to improve, though.

At least its only for 3 weeks and not continuously.

That's what I kept telling myself. I'm not sure it helped at the time,
but we both got through it, and you will, too.

Thanks for your quick replies!

You're welcome. I hope this gets easier for you both.

--
Shelly
http://www.cat-sidh.net (the Mother Ship)
http://esther.cat-sidh.net (Letters to Esther)

"kat" wrote in message
net...

What type of problems? My former vet did not stress the importance of
weaning animals off this drug properly yet I see this warning quite
frequently.

The withdrawal symptoms are petty heinous, which is why it's recommended
to taper off gradually.

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/pre...drawal/AN01624

--
Shelly
http://www.cat-sidh.net (the Mother Ship)
http://esther.cat-sidh.net (Letters to Esther)

On 10 Jan, 11:49, "Shelly" wrote:
"kat" wrote in message

net...

What type of problems? *My former vet did not stress the importance of
weaning animals off this drug properly yet I see this warning quite
frequently.

The withdrawal symptoms are petty heinous, which is why it's recommended
to taper off gradually.

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/pre...drawal/AN01624

--
Shellyhttp://www.cat-sidh.net(the Mother Ship)http://esther.cat-sidh.net(Letters to Esther)

Thanks.Since Friday the dogs cough seems to be better.The vet said his
lungs seemed inflamed.
I will continue the course and on Monday two weeks we will see what
the vet recommends.
The dog has been on the drug since Monday (its now Saturday).
I wish the vets could be more honest and say what the side effects
really are.
After a pee at 1am the dog had a good nights sleep and seems ok now
(6pm).

Thanks for your help!
Cheers!