Prozac...anyone have experience?

Bailey08

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#21
Everybody and everything reacts differently to meds so it may work fine, I just have personally NEVER heard of giving prozac to a dog. I am used to clomicalm being the RX



I think clomicalm is only made for animals, but it could be similar to prozac.

I am just iffy on giving human meds without lots of research, and Benadryl does not tire animals out like it does humans ;) The tiring ingredient does not react in a dogs system.
Clomicalm is specifically for animals. When he prescribed it, the vet told me the closest human approximation was Prozac. Since B was only going to be on it for a short period of time, I went with the vet script rather than ask about a human prescription. [Incidentally, however, Bailey is on a different prescription that I get from the drug store (Metronidazole).]

I'm not saying that this vet is the be-all-and-end-all, but I enjoy this blog and found this recent entry interesting -- and on point for this discussion.
Dolittler: Veterinary drugs, their off-label uses...and why some vet drugs cost so much

ETA: a quick Google search suggests that Benedryl has sedative effects in dogs. Apparently nothing takes the edge off of mine other than lots of exercise. :)
 

elegy

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#22
Everybody and everything reacts differently to meds so it may work fine, I just have personally NEVER heard of giving prozac to a dog. I am used to clomicalm being the RX
sure everybody and everything reacts differently, which is why it is so important to have more than one drug option available! not every dog responds well to clomicalm after all. the use of prozac in dogs is fairly well-known and accepted and has been for awhile. they market it specifically for separation anxiety, though that's not its only use.

the drug that is veterinary brand named clomicalm is clomipramine, which is a human drug btw.

I think clomicalm is only made for animals, but it could be similar to prozac.

I am just iffy on giving human meds without lots of research, and Benadryl does not tire animals out like it does humans ;) The tiring ingredient does not react in a dogs system.
clomicalm is the veterinary brand. just like reconcile is the veterinary brand name for prozac. both clomipramine and fluoxetine were developed for use in humans and still used in humans today.
 
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#23
Clomicalm is specifically for animals. When he prescribed it, the vet told me the closest human approximation was Prozac. Since B was only going to be on it for a short period of time, I went with the vet script rather than ask about a human prescription. [Incidentally, however, Bailey is on a different prescription that I get from the drug store (Metronidazole).]

I'm not saying that this vet is the be-all-and-end-all, but I enjoy this blog and found this recent entry interesting -- and on point for this discussion.
Dolittler: Veterinary drugs, their off-label uses...and why some vet drugs cost so much

ETA: a quick Google search suggests that Benedryl has sedative effects in dogs. Apparently nothing takes the edge off of mine other than lots of exercise. :)
Interesting, my vet said it does not sedate. My dogs must be like yours, they don't tire out from benadryl LOL

sure everybody and everything reacts differently, which is why it is so important to have more than one drug option available! not every dog responds well to clomicalm after all. the use of prozac in dogs is fairly well-known and accepted and has been for awhile. they market it specifically for separation anxiety, though that's not its only use.

the drug that is veterinary brand named clomicalm is clomipramine, which is a human drug btw.



clomicalm is the veterinary brand. just like reconcile is the veterinary brand name for prozac. both clomipramine and fluoxetine were developed for use in humans and still used in humans today.
TY for the info, I do not take meds other than allergy meds so I have never heard of clomipramine. You learn something new everyday :)
 

SpringerLover

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#24
My 9.5 year old ESS started taking fluoxetine (Prozac) a couple months ago and I love the results.

(from my blog a week or so ago)
A short list of things we've been able to do since being on Fluoxetine that I A)wouldn't have let happen or B)would have ended very poorly, before Fluoxetine.

1. Tonight she HUNTED with another dog!!!!!! *jaw hit the floor... NO scuffles, and it was an INTACT BITCH*
2. At both trials the last two weekends, she has MET other dogs without showing signs of being uncomfortable.
3. I have had Rascal and Rasza upstairs without her muzzled three days in a row (under close supervision of course, but she's been relaxed while not under direct cue).
4. She has solicited attention quite a bit, but hasn't been pushy or overly possessive. A hard stare but no lift lip or growl. If I stop petting her she'll move around with the toy in her mouth and not continue to guard me.

We didn't see results immediately. It took about 4-5 weeks to see anything. She's much more manageable now, and much more relaxed.
 

Scooter

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#25
I have an update on Zoe. We have had her on prozac (low dose) for 6 days now. The only negative side effect is she seems to have less appetite. We have been playing the "storm" cd on very, very low, keeping it on continuous loop. She doesn't seem to notice it much, which I think is good. In a few days we'll make it a bit louder. On walks, we've been careful not to react when she jumps to a noise. We just look the other way, or try to distract her (squirrels are good for that).

She is doing very well- in the morning she is nervous and doesn't seem thrilled to go out, but within minutes she's ok. If we run into one of her dog friends, she gets very happy and plays like she used to.

My goal is to get her off the prozac sooner than later. It's only been 6 days, but if she keeps doing this well two weeks from now I'm going to call the vet for advice on how to wean her off of them. The vet had said to give her half a pill for a week, then a quarter or so for a week then she should be ok. I pray when we do that she will continue to improve, because I don't want to have to keep her on the drugs. They are $70 a month, by the way (wow!)

I just wanted to give an update, and I really appreciate all your help and concern!

Laura
 

pawzaddict

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#26
Wow thats amazing! Also I did not realize this was a temporary adjustment, I thought she was going to stay on prozac that is why I was concerned. The other steps you are taking as well is awesome, would have never thought of all of that.
 

Scooter

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#27
Pawz- we talked to two trainers and our vet, so didn't come up with this program on our own. It does seem to be working, but I know we have to be patient.
 

Lolas Dad

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#28
At $70 a month I would have had the vet call my doctor and have the script written in my name. When I had insurance meds were a $10 co-pay.
 

cwebbatya

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#29
Wonder if the side effects are the same as for a human..? I imagine something tramatic happened to the dog at a young age, dont ya think? I have never heard of this and am going to go do more research. im interesetd in side effects ... eeeeek!
 
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dogsarebetter

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#30
I have my vet right out a prescription and I pick it up at walmart. I think prozac is on the four dollar list. so thats just $4 a month for your meds. However most vets do NOT do that. they like money too much....
 

pawzaddict

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#31
I don't think they can legally do that and that may be why... can you imagine if they did that, you gave it to your dog, something happened and you sued? I am sure human doses and dog doses are totally different as well...
 

dogsarebetter

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#32
no, in this med it is the same. This is not even FDA approved for use in dogs.... (but its a common anti anxiety to use for dogs)
so that is probably why they can do it for me.
 

Scooter

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#33
I have to say, we've had her on it now for 10 days, and she has vastly improved. We don't yet know if it's the prozac, or the desensitization techniques we're using or maybe just time, but it's working. She still isn't thrilled about the first morning walk (I suspect that is because the thunder storm incident was early morning), but the rest of the day she is almost back to normal. I'm so happy my dog is back!
 

PoodleMommy

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#35
I don't think they can legally do that and that may be why... can you imagine if they did that, you gave it to your dog, something happened and you sued? I am sure human doses and dog doses are totally different as well...
we used to get our cats thyroid meds at the regular pharmacy... vets can give you scripts for certain meds to be filled at human pharmacies because many meds are the same... obviously they adjust the dosage accordingly.
 

dogsarebetter

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#36
yeah, i forgot to mention that I get Ruckus's steroids (for itching due to allergies) on the walmart $4 list.
vets just do not do this sort of thing because I think lots of them are money hungry. BUT my vet is also a friend. So I am not sure how common it is to write out a prescription to walmart and check if its on the $4 list (tons and tons of meds are)
 

PoodleMommy

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#37
yeah, i forgot to mention that I get Ruckus's steroids (for itching due to allergies) on the walmart $4 list.
vets just do not do this sort of thing because I think lots of them are money hungry. BUT my vet is also a friend. So I am not sure how common it is to write out a prescription to walmart and check if its on the $4 list (tons and tons of meds are)
well our vet is not a friend, I dont even like him at the moment, :yikes:

The first time he wrote the script, I was like what :yikes: Im supposed to walk into a pharmacy and ask for my cats meds? I thought they were going to think I needed meds!

But the pharmacist said lots of people got their pets meds there so I guess some vets do it, maybe only with certain meds that they cant get? I dont know.
 

elegy

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#38
many things can be scripted out but not all (some drugs are veterinary specific). i've had heart meds scripted for my poodle, eye meds and psych meds scripted for harvey. my mom has meds scripted for her cat. it's not at all uncommon. i even had antibiotics scripted for my rat (that made the pharmacy tech comment! lol). we usually script things we don't use a lot of and therefore it's not worth the effort to carry and the money when they expire and we have open bottles that we can't use or return.

i remember price checking a medication (tramadol) for a client right when walmart first started their $4 scripts. i called walmart and the pharmacy person told me $4 and that was so incredibly cheap compared to everywhere else that i had somebody call back and double-check because it caught me so off-guard. lol
 

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