my pug is a barfer
November 9, 2007 11:02 AM Subscribe
Does anyone know of a good alternative to Atopica, the medicine for pets to treat atopic dermatitis? It makes my dog puke every time i give it to him.
My pug is an itchy little bugger, constantly scratching himself vigorously, furiously licking and sucking on his paws, etc... The vet put him on Atopica. The instructions say to give it an hour before or 2 hours after feeding. We have tried that and even longer periods, like giving him the pill in the morning around 7 AM and feeding him 11 hours later, but no matter what we do whenever he takes the pill he pukes 99% of the time within an hour. The meds do work, he doesnt scratch as much but i have a rug that needs replacing now. Took him back to the vet, we took the dosage down to the notch for even smaller dogs (he's 25 lbs), but its the same puke fest.
Help.
My pug is an itchy little bugger, constantly scratching himself vigorously, furiously licking and sucking on his paws, etc... The vet put him on Atopica. The instructions say to give it an hour before or 2 hours after feeding. We have tried that and even longer periods, like giving him the pill in the morning around 7 AM and feeding him 11 hours later, but no matter what we do whenever he takes the pill he pukes 99% of the time within an hour. The meds do work, he doesnt scratch as much but i have a rug that needs replacing now. Took him back to the vet, we took the dosage down to the notch for even smaller dogs (he's 25 lbs), but its the same puke fest.
Help.
Are the allergies constant or seasonal? Our pug got prednisone for seasonal allergies that caused itching (fall leaves). You wouldn't want a pug to take that long term, though. They're already little porkers.
posted by crazycanuck at 11:32 AM on November 9, 2007
posted by crazycanuck at 11:32 AM on November 9, 2007
This article by a vet lists several options: antihistamines, essential fatty acid supplements, steroids, and avoiding allergens. From here, it looks like giving cyclosporine (Atopica) with ketoconazole lets you cut the cyclosporine dose down even further - the ketoconazole slows down how fast the dog's body eliminates the Atopica, so a smaller dose lasts longer. But it does seem like there are other, cheaper options out there than the Atopica.
posted by selfmedicating at 11:55 AM on November 9, 2007
posted by selfmedicating at 11:55 AM on November 9, 2007
Response by poster: thanks everyone. it was seasonal, but is now constant. vet mentioned the prednisone, but thats a steroid right? so we steered clear of that. little dude is allergic to everything it seems; lyme vaccination almost killed him once.
he's eating ko response food, which has done wonders for his coat, etc. and gets a medicated bath weekly or bi-weekly. luckily he takes the pill from my wife pretty easily, she sticks it in his mouth and rubs his throat and he swallows it. maybe the benadryl will work, we have used that before when he got a bug bite and swelled up.
thanks for the article link, im going to go read that.
posted by fumbducker at 12:59 PM on November 9, 2007
he's eating ko response food, which has done wonders for his coat, etc. and gets a medicated bath weekly or bi-weekly. luckily he takes the pill from my wife pretty easily, she sticks it in his mouth and rubs his throat and he swallows it. maybe the benadryl will work, we have used that before when he got a bug bite and swelled up.
thanks for the article link, im going to go read that.
posted by fumbducker at 12:59 PM on November 9, 2007
can anyone give some more advice about 'natural' or 'natural-er' remedies? Our pug has a similar problem (scratches her armpits + chews her forearms constantly) and I'm wondering if the olive oil thing would help her. we're a little gunshy around medication after an extreme reaction to a parvo vaccination landed her in the vet's overnight.
She seemed to be a little less itchy when we moved her to a premium dry food, but that might've been bias confirmation (wanted to justify the $12 per bag cost).
posted by fishfucker at 1:35 PM on November 9, 2007
She seemed to be a little less itchy when we moved her to a premium dry food, but that might've been bias confirmation (wanted to justify the $12 per bag cost).
posted by fishfucker at 1:35 PM on November 9, 2007
Ripley the itchy wonder pug is also experiencing some serious itchiness this year.
Fish oil supplements helps big, as does benedryl and a humidifier, but what's really helping for this "worst case of itchiness ever" is medicated baths.
We're using one of those dandruf "coal tar" shampoos (generic Neutragena-type) and another deep-cleaning (peroxide based) dog shampoo called Pyoben (from Virbac).
posted by answergrape at 1:42 PM on November 9, 2007 [1 favorite]
Fish oil supplements helps big, as does benedryl and a humidifier, but what's really helping for this "worst case of itchiness ever" is medicated baths.
We're using one of those dandruf "coal tar" shampoos (generic Neutragena-type) and another deep-cleaning (peroxide based) dog shampoo called Pyoben (from Virbac).
posted by answergrape at 1:42 PM on November 9, 2007 [1 favorite]
I once added brewer's yeast to my pets food. Apparently it gives them a nice shiny coat.
Speaking of which, what about diet¿ The garbage known as dog food may not be fit for a dog as a matter of fact. I'd look into that.
Yeah, more salmon steaks./
posted by alicesshoe at 4:42 PM on November 9, 2007
Speaking of which, what about diet¿ The garbage known as dog food may not be fit for a dog as a matter of fact. I'd look into that.
Yeah, more salmon steaks./
posted by alicesshoe at 4:42 PM on November 9, 2007
We had a dorkie (dachshund yorkie cross) that had a constant armpit licking problem. They cleared up when we eliminated corn from his dog food. (We use california natural). He gets itchy again when he gets tortilla chips.
posted by jefftang at 5:18 PM on November 9, 2007
posted by jefftang at 5:18 PM on November 9, 2007
FWIW... my itchy pug improved most greatly after a six-week treatment with ivermectin combined with medicated baths. Your dog would need a heartworm test from your vet to take it, but it has done wonders in only a few weeks.
After hundreds of dollars in allergy pills, skin scrapings, and other tries, this is the only thing that has worked.
Ivermectin is the same medication used for heartworm prevention, so the "itchy skin" thing is an "off-label" use for a skin condition we were never able to identify. My doctor didn't want to use it, but we were at the end of our options.
posted by answergrape at 8:50 PM on November 26, 2007
After hundreds of dollars in allergy pills, skin scrapings, and other tries, this is the only thing that has worked.
Ivermectin is the same medication used for heartworm prevention, so the "itchy skin" thing is an "off-label" use for a skin condition we were never able to identify. My doctor didn't want to use it, but we were at the end of our options.
posted by answergrape at 8:50 PM on November 26, 2007
This thread is closed to new comments.
I would try the Benadryl insteadof the Atopica to see if it works. And if it doesn't then maybe move onto a combination of the Atopica and Dramamine. I kind of prefer less meds in the long run if I can, kwim?
Have you looked into giving him medicated baths or trying some olive oil in his food to moisturise his skin? Just a thought (We have three Frenchies and they have similar skin issues as Pugs, so I'm familiar with the drill).
BTW, to give her the meds, I just put it in a little bit of cheese or a small bit of hotdog and she snarfs it down no problem. Poor guy, I hope he's better soon. :(
posted by dancinglamb at 11:12 AM on November 9, 2007