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Itchy dogs


Posted: Feb 19, 2014

Has anyone tried the new "miracle" drug for itchy dogs, Apoquel? It had remarkable results in Europe, and was finally approved for the US in January. My vet is impressed with it, and says he sees results within 4 hours. I was concerned about where the drug is metabolized, since my dog is very old, and I don't want to give him anything that's metabolized in the liver or kidneys. This is apparently very safe, and the only possible reaction is diarrhea which quickly resolves after a day or two.;

Itchy dogs - Boxer

[ In Reply To ..]
Well here's their safety information:

APOQUEL® should not be used in dogs less than 12 months of age or in dogs with serious infections. APOQUEL may increase the susceptibility to infection and demodicosis and may exacerbate neoplastic conditions. APOQUEL has not been evaluated in combination with systemic immunosuppressive agents such as glucocorticoids or cyclosporine. APOQUEL should not be used in breeding dogs or pregnant or lactating dogs. The most common side effects seen in dogs administered APOQUEL were vomiting and diarrhea. APOQUEL has been safely used in conjunction with other common medications including antibiotics and parasiticides and with vaccinations.

My boxer has skin/itch issues. She's older too. I gave up on the rx drugs, because the side effects are worse in the long term than what they're intended to treat.

She has food and environmental allergies. I have all my dogs on Victor Yukon (salmon) dog food, and she gets Benadryl. She's managed pretty well with those. She used to lose a lot of fur around spring, and it would grow back in by June or so. Since she's been on Victor she hasn't lost fur, and she's actually growing it back on her chest and neck. Those areas were essentially hairless for a long time because of her allergies.

Apoquel - shipwrecked

[ In Reply To ..]
We don't know whether my guy has a food allergy or environmental, but it isn't seasonal. I don't feed him any commercial dog food. Right now he is taking Claritin, which is supposedly slightly more gentle than benadryl. Prior to that he was on hydroxyzine, then Temaril, both of which didn't do much, and an omega-3 for his coat. I think the Apoquel is reportedly safer than the antihistamine and definitely the steroid.

I found a great website to calculate the dosage of human OTC medications for pets, but I'm not sure if I'm allowed to post links here. You can google "pet medicine dosage calculator."

the liver or kidney is the only place we metabolize drugs - fyi

[ In Reply To ..]

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