Rimadyl adviseQuestion:My poor baby hurt her hip somehow. The vet wanted to put her on rimadyl but after hearing all the horror stories I requested that I'd rather not give her that. They told me to give her asprin instead. Last night she seemed in alot more pain. So much so that she was having problems going up the stairs in our home. This is starting to make me rethink the decision on rimadyl but I want to hear from others before I really make a decision. She is resting and I am lifting her for things like in and out of the car. I'm really not sure what to do about the rimadyl really. She will only be on it for a short time and she is a 5 1/2 yr old springer spaniel. It is hard seeing her hurting so. The vet doesn't want to do an x-ray yet because she isn't limping and it requires sedation. I'm going to have to call them and tell them she was worse last night and make a decision. I just want to help her feel better but am worried about the possible deadly side effects of rimadyl. I'd like to hear of both negative and positive experiences with it. Answer: Rimadyl can be toxic to dogs and it can also be a wonderful short-term medication. Before starting on the medication, it is recommended that dogs have a chemistry panel to check for liver and kidney function. Periodically, if the dog is on the medication long-term, these levels are monitored and, if they are elevated, the Rimadyl can be stopped. If you have a healthy and young dog and the medication is to be used for a short-term duration, I would get the chemistry levels checked and talk to your vet about options. I have also had good luck with Etogesic for my arthritic and dysplastic Welsh Springer Spaniel. You might ask your vet about this medication too as it is readily available for both humans and dogs. My Rottie took it as well and it worked for her too. Answer: Aspirin can be toxic to dogs if it's used wrong too. Any drug needs to weighed for it's good and bad points, and to each individual dog and it's need. Talk to your vet about how long he anticipates your dog would be on Rimadyl, also discuss your concerns with the drug's safety with the doctor. He or she is a much better source of factual information than any message board (however well meaning we all are.) Answer: Another alternative would be Deramaxx http://www.deramaxx.novartis.us/home/default.asp?page=3_1 It cost more, but is easier on the liver. Answer: the best & safest IMO is glucosimine, chondroiten, msm. Its cheap, available everywhere, addresses the cause of the problem as well as the symptoms including pain & presents no danger to the liver. http://www.biosynergy.com/GCMSM.htm Answer: After talking with a trusted family friend who is a vet tech I decided to try the rimadyl. The points my friend made was that she is young and healthy plus it is a great drug for short-term but not really for long-term. I called Lily's previous vet and got her lab results since she had a full work up may 31 with them. Her liver and kidney function tests were "perfect" so I called my current vet and had them get it together for me. She can't start it until tonight cause she took a dose of asprin that morning. They did say that it might make her start to feel better so to try my hardest to keep her from doing things that she shouldn't be doing yet. She can be a pain when she's cooped up. Answer: Melinda recommended this on another thread, she said to ask your vet about Previcox. It is a NSAID like Rimadyl, but supposedly has a much lower risk of causing liver problems when given on a regular basis. Here is a link to an article about Rimadyl and Deremax. http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/health/drugs/2005-04-11-dog-pain-usat_x.htm?POE=click-refer Answer: That's an interesting article. I tech at a hospital and we use a lot of Deramaxx and have had no complaints. Metacam also. In addition, we are starting to use Previcox more. You have to weigh the risks and the pain level of your dog and decide if it is worth the risks. My two 14 year old dogs are on Glusomine products but they simply are not enough when they are having bad, arthritic days. I've given metacam to my oldies with great success. Answer: I would also recommend trying Glucosamine/Chondroitine/MSM formula along with coated aspirin that can be used for infants and homeopathic pain reliver Arnica, pellets orally or gel, locally on the painful area. Answer: That's an interesting article. I tech at a hospital and we use a lot of Deramaxx and have had no complaints. Metacam also. In addition, we are starting to use Previcox more. You have to weigh the risks and the pain level of your dog and decide if it is worth the risks. My two 14 year old dogs are on Glusomine products but they simply are not enough when they are having bad, arthritic days. I've given metacam to my oldies with great success. I too liked the Metacam. It worked really well and was safe for cats. Answer: I too liked the Metacam. It worked really well and was safe for cats. I so wish that were true since we desperately need safe pain meds for cats but Metacam is actually approved only for use in dogs. It can actually be quite dangerous for cats and causes kidney failure. Go here: http://www.arthritis-cats-dogs.com/cgi-bin/datacgi/database.cgi?file=Forum&report=Topic&TopicID=0003&firstrecord=0&finalrecord=14 I got some "inside" information that a reputable company is working on a new pain medicine for cats. It may be years away though Answer: My lhasa was on Rimadyl for the last 4 or 5 years of her life and died this spring at age 20. She had liver function tests every 6 months and was always fine. She did have kidney failure at the end and we had to put her to sleep but I think it was her age, not the meds. At age 19 her eye ruptured and she had surgery to have it removed and she came out of it with no trouble. So I think if it works and improves quality of life I wouldn't hesitate to use it. Of course, I was a vioxx user (bad knee) and haven't gotten relief from anything else since. If I could buy it I would risk the heart attack. Answer: I would also recommend trying Glucosamine/Chondroitine/MSM formula along with coated aspirin that can be used for infants and homeopathic pain reliver Arnica, pellets orally or gel, locally on the painful area. That stuff might be all well and good for arthritis but I'm refering to a young healthy springer spaniel that has a temporary injury. the glucosamine stuff is good in the long term but isn't going to do too much for a sudden injury. Also I was not able to use gel coated asprin because I had to cut them in half. The rimadyl is highly unlikely to cause problems in a young, healthy dog for a short period of time. If she is still in pain when she is done with it in 2 weeks then we'll get an x-ray and discuss other options. I don't plan on her being on it for more than 2 weeks. I'm keeping an eye on her. I never leave her home anyways so it is really easy to know when something is wrong since she accompanies me everywhere. She is my service dog you see which makes it all the more important that she is as healthy as possible and stays that way. Her vet said she can do her regular work as long as it doesn't require running, jumping, or bearing extra weight. You know anything that might cause injury. She can pick things up and give them to me but I've been keeping it to light work and not going out if I don't have to. She seems to be feeling alot better. I have to struggle to get her to stop pouncing on the grasshoppers when I bring her out to potty. Other than that I've divided her outside kennel up so she has a little under half of it (6'x15'). That way she gets plenty of fresh air. She has been resting very well in it and doesn't have to worry about the great dane puppy picking on her. She got the better part of the deal though. She got the small dog house with her bed and blanket in it, drinkwell fountain, kiddie pool, and the toys she likes the most while Bandit (the puppy) gets a little more space and the 6'x8' dog house (outside measure) that has ac/heat along with his bed and a bean bag and the toys Lily doesn't like as much. All the toys were hers, she was just being nice enough to share with him so she got dibs. She's been nice and quiet sleeping in her dog house during the day. It stops her from going up and downstairs inside. I'm generally ok with her out there when someone is home with me during the day. She mostly helps me when we are out, alone, and at night. She really helped change my life. I don't know what I'd do without her. If it wasn't for petfinder I would have never found her. I never knew she could be taught to help me the way she does until after I got her. She was a poor abandoned pup in a humane society. So we both needed each other. She takes good care of me so I'm going to take the best care of her as I possibly can. I already spoil her rotten when she isn't working. Answer: We use Zubrin in our clinic and seems to help most dog cases VERY well. Liz |
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