Pain Meds for Dogs - Need Advice

[Pupsnpullets]

My 10 year old lurcher was injured a few years ago in a bad fall. She has damaged her neck, which, along with fused vertebrae there is neurological damage from the spine being compressed. She has arthritis now, not only in the neck but also her shoulder and hip. Basically she's a mess. I've worked with her over the years with various treatments but now she's getting to the point where the pain seems to be constant and I'm looking at putting her on meds. This is something I've resisted because of the side effects they can cause when used over a long period.

Can anyone offer me some input on different pain meds they've used and how the dog has tolerated them? Thanks.

 

[Stevo]

I have given my GSP's Tylenol after a hard day hunting and they get stiff after laying down. Seemed to help and no side effects that I noticed.

 

[Ms.FuzzyButts]

I don't know about long term. But both my labrador and my Sheltie/german shepard mix have taken Rimadyl 100mg chewables for pain. I think the longest stretch of time was 2 - 3 weeks. But other than being really mellow and sleeping, I saw no adverse effects. I will keep my fingers crossed for you and your precious pet that you find something that works for her.

 

[Brindlebtch]

Never ever give a dog tylenol. Ever. It is toxic to canines and will damage their livers or kidneys. There is damage occuring, you just may not be seeing it. You can give them aspirin.

Pupsnpullets
For nerve pain you can give a dog gabapentin or amantidine. For the arthritis pain there are a variety of NSAIDs you can get from your vet. You can start with aspirin, but give with a pepsid if it is non-buffered.

Here is a really good link on treating pain in pets: http://www.2ndchance.info/pain.htm

it offers many alternatives for pain treatment for canines.

Best of luck with your lurcher.

 

[smileybritches]

we have used rimadyl on various older dogs long term with no side effects, it has helped a great deal. my personal thought is I am not going to let an animal suffer with uncurable pain if there is a treatment that will relieve that pain. be it exercise, pain meds, warm baths just whatever it takes. the longest we had a dog on rimadyl was close to 3 years because of bad hips and (in my opinon) too advanced in years for surgery. she tolerated it very well.

 

[Akane]

My mom's dog was on rimadyl for years when he got older. You can give aspirin to dogs but the safe amount is quite small so baby aspirin is normally used. Call your vet for dosage. The use of over the counter pain killers can actually increase the damage causing the arthritis. Not much of a concern for older animals but younger animals that suffered injury and have many years left to live should be put on a prescription medication that is less likely to cause increased damage.

 

[Pupsnpullets]

Quote:
I agree. I've used homeopathy, chiropractic care, massage, even energy work, and, of course, I've kept in touch with my vet throughout. Everything has worked to a point. When I think back to the initial vet visit and was given pain pills for 4 days and told I had to make a very serious decision about the dog's welfare in that time! The vet said my choices were surgery, which he was straight with me on ie very expensive with 50% chance or success, or euthanasia. I chose homeopathy (thinking outside the box here

) and saved the dog's life. It's now been 5 years and, basically, I've bought a young dog extra quality years, but now, well, it's time to keep her comfortable and allow nature to take it's course.

Brindlebitch: Thanks for that awesome website.

 

[ChickenRazz]

You live in Cali? If cannibus is legally obtainable for you I would consider that a pain management option for your dog.

 

[KellyHM]

I've had dogs on Rimadyl and/or Deramaxx for years and they haven't had any problems. Both can potentially be tough on the liver or GI tract, which is why you run blood work occasionally to make sure nothing harmful is happening.

Aspirin can be used short term but will set them up for bleeding disorders in the long run.

 

[Redyre Rotties]

I managed similar pain in one of my older dogs with a drug called Tramadol. It does not have the scary side effect of the family of drugs that include Rimadyl.

This dog did pretty well on Tramadol with occasionally a schedule of prednisone.