Prozac

[incognitotoday]

Linus started Prozac on May 1st. After plenty of time with a Vet. Behaviorist, we began him on 1/4 of 10mg for two weeks, then yesterday we started with 1/2 of 10mg.

I am not sure if we are up'ing the dose to the full 10mg, I am assuming the VB wants to see how he does on the 1/2.

Anyone else's dog on Prozac? How long before you actually saw it "working"?

Stats: Linus is 5 yrs old and weighs approx 14lbs.

Thanks for any input.

[straymo]

Hey! Lily is on Prozac and I'm sorry I can't remember the exact dosage. She is on the highest dosage possible for her weight (45 pounds) and takes it twice a day. It took about a month before we saw a change and it was almost all of the sudden. When I came home and found her laying down in her crate and quiet I bawled like a baby. Her separation anxiety and general panic disorder was heartbreaking for all of us.

She's been on the same dosage for 3 1/2 years. A few times we tried to take her down to once again and panic returned. We actually had to add an additional med about 6 months ago because she was having panic again.

Sooooooo, long story short,...it took about a month for it to work and we were then able to work on behavior modification on certain things (some thing there just isn't enough meds for).

Have hope, two weeks isn't long enough.
(by the way, it was really hard to type the entire thing while watching a pole dancing rabbit. Lol!)

[incognitotoday]

Thank you for your update. I know the VB said it takes anywhere from 4-6 weeks (depending on dog/dosage) to see any change.

Linus is an extremely fearful dog of any sound or object coming at him (walking people, strollers, skateboarders, or even falling leaves). His fears then bring on this horrible barking pattern that is getting worse and worse.

I know that Prozac is not the "end all be all", but I am HOPING for that window of opportunity to actually work on behavior modification while he is "calmer" from being on the Prozac.

I have some great techniques the VB has given me, but it breaks my heart every time he gets into that barking/fearful stance of thinking that "bad thing" will "get him." Know what I mean?

*BTW: love that bunny!

[straymo]

Yes, once the prozac is fully loaded, you should start to see a difference. I saw a great graphic on working with a fearful dog, but I can't find it. It showed that if your dog is fearful of a person 20' away, you treat and reward at 25' feet and then walk away. Very, very slowly increasing the distance between you and the scary thing while rewarding when calm. Once fear starts, reward stops otherwise it has the opposite effect.

I realize on a regular walk this would proably be impossible to do since you never know when someone will show up etc. Maybe you can work in an empty parking lot with a friend or something.

Lily is very fearful and when she was backsliding a bit due to my failure to socialize her, we started walking her with her Thundershirt on. Hard to do that in the summer, but it did help some.
Good luck. I hope it starts working quickly.

[calico]

Kai is about 55lbs and takes 20 mg/twice a day. She was on this when we adopted her, but honestly a thundershirt has helped more with her seperation anxiety than the drug alone. I don't know how severe her seperation anxiety was in her previous home, so I'm not sure how big a can of worms that we'll open if we take her off it.

[incognitotoday]

May 15, 2012 13:14:59 GMT -5 straymo said:

Yes, once the prozac is fully loaded, you should start to see a difference. I saw a great graphic on working with a fearful dog, but I can't find it. It showed that if your dog is fearful of a person 20' away, you treat and reward at 25' feet and then walk away. Very, very slowly increasing the distance between you and the scary thing while rewarding when calm. Once fear starts, reward stops otherwise it has the opposite effect.

THIS! The VB was telling me something along these lines. And so now what I have been doing is sitting in the parking lot of the library, but far enough from people, cars, etc. And slowly, but surely we are going to work our way towards the library.

I have two dogs, so sometimes Luci will set Linus off with her barking, but she is just barking to say, "Hey look at me, I am over here" sorta thing. But, he takes it like, "OH NO THE BAD THINGS ARE COMING, I MUST BARK NOW!!!" Kills me every time!

It's hard to be one person with two doggies with anxieties, but I am hoping with the VB's training techniques, and Prozac, that over time, this will get a bit easier.

I am not banking on a miracle of a bark free dog all.the.time, just one that may be barks once and then that is enough release for him.

Thanks for the input...

[incognitotoday]

May 15, 2012 13:34:55 GMT -5 @fivedogs said:

You are definitely doing the right thing - behavior modification won't work if the dog is so panicked that his/her brain has shut down. Good for you for making this step. I would call the vet and see what they say about going from 5 mg to 10 mg - generally stepping it up slowly is done to minimize side effects, not because 5 mg will be enough (because your vet probably thinks 10 mg will be a good therapeutic dose to start with).

Also, monitor for side effects but know that 10 mg is still at the lower end of the dosing range for severe anxiety. Our dog has severe canine compulsive disorder (like OCD - it's an anxiety disorder) and she needs a huge dose of prozac (80 mg for a 43-lb dog, plus a large dose of trazadone). Our vet behaviorist said that 4 mg/kg is at the high end of the range (she has two patients including our dog at that level). So my dog is at 4.4 mg/kg and yours is at 1.5 mg/kg. Your pup might be great at 10 mg, but I just wanted to reassure you that 10 mg is not a huge dose and that the transition from 5 to 10 mg will probably go smoothly. I know it is worrisome when you start all of this, but the right meds can help so, so much.

Are you keeping a behavior chart for your dog? Our vet had us keep a daily log of Fancy's behaviors (barking at a tree, digging, peeing/pooping in the house/her crate) on a 0-3 scale of severity. Fancy actually responds pretty quickly to meds, so we saw improvement after a week and it peaked at about a month. After about two months, we adjusted her meds higher. It was easier to track when we were writing it down daily.

Finally, if you aren't already getting your meds at a human pharmacy, you can get prozac at Target for $4 (10, 20, 40 mg doses). Once you get him stable on a dose, you can ask for a 90-day script and get 90 days for $10. Reconcile (the canine version) and prozac have the same drug (fluoxetine).

Good luck!

Thanks FiveDogs. I am using my CVS pharmacy right now, and so far it has cost me $15; not too bad.

I am not sure how long we are keeping Linus on the 5mg. I know that is a small dose, but I am assuming it is going to be a good start for a small pup. I am talking to my VB in the next few days.

I've been keeping a log. Nothing has really changed at ALL yet, that is why I originally began this thread. I know it takes time, so I am trying.to.be.patient! LOL!

There hasn't been any change in his behavior or appetite (I know that can be a side effect too).

Here's hoping it helps!!! Thanks again for your input! Keep the responses coming.

[LoveTrains]

My Corky is on clomicalm for his separation anxiety. Well, right now he is on the generic clomipramine hydrochloride since clomicalm is impossible to get (its a novartis product and the factory got shut down).

I noticed an improvement within a week.