Sunny

[admin]

Atopica information http://www.drugs.com/vet/atopica.html says without food at least 1 hour before or 2 hours after a meal & separate from other medications it can interact with or that can prevent absorption (eg sucralfate). Strictly speaking, this has to be right way as it is the manufacturer’s instructions. This has always been controversial on here & I know different vets say different things. It also depends on which website you look at for information for advice! The most important thing to know is that more should be absorbed on an empty tummy & that the tummy upset should settle down when the dose is lowered.
Sheena x

[Linda]

Hello Maura. I am writing from my phone, so excuse typos, please.

I, along with everyone here, am so sorry about your precious Sunny Girl. What a beautiful gal she is!!!

I have caught up with all your posts (have been out if town and internet capasity not good). I am so very sorry you’re going through this. Please, you know already, you are not alone. Everyone has already been their usual awesome, knowledgeable and helpful selves. Sadie’s Story continues positive because of this forum. Their input was her saving grace and my sanity.

A few things that I would like to reiterate:

Anti-clotting Medication:
Please, anti-clotting meds are a MUST. Sadie was put on the generic form of human Plavix. It worked perfectly. Pkease insist that Sunny be put on an anti-clotting medication immediately.

Prednisone:
I too, think this is high, 40MG a day. As Vally and others mentioned, 1MG per pound is the usual dosage. I would address this with the specialist immediately too.

Lab Results:
You PAID for these tests!!! The results should be given readily and without reservation. Simply INSIST on a printed out physical copy. And ask before they are done again.

PCV:
I tested Sadie every other day too. I really think a local vet can run these. The results take only minutes and can be run right there at MIST vet offices. I would ask and if not, find a vet close by that can run in there office.

I still take Sadie monthly. They run it while I wait and write it on the invoice, so I have a running tally. I then come home and incorporate it to Safie’s calendar.

Med Chart: Vally – can you send yours to her. I can send Sadie’s too.

Sadie weighed 35 pounds at onset of AIHA. She went up to 42 pounds, becoming ravenous from the meds. She is now (today, in fact) down to 38 pounds AND PCV of 49!!!

I remember too well, your feelings of exasperation. As Vally and all say – a wag of the tail, a spunky bark, a semi-smile – make a day sparkle. Please, bless your heart, hang in here with us. This horrible, roller-coaster, disease CAN BE BEAT!!! Here’s to sparkles for you and Sunny!!!

Sending our love and huge hugs to you and Sunny,

Linda and Sadie

[maura]

Sunny got the atopica and my husband gave her food less than an hour later. Now I am worried she did not get it absorbed properly.
She is so hungry today. She barked. I do not know if this is a good sign or just what happens on prednisone.
I will update later.

[admin]

Hi Maura
Don’t worry about a minor glitch like this – I bet we’ve all done this kind of thing. I certainly have made a few mistakes with Worzel. We all learn as we go along – just start again tomorrow as it should be done & forget about it. Barking & hungry is good news, even if it is the prednisolone.
Love Sheena x

[admin]

Hi Maura,
Sunny barked? that is for sure a good sign! Barking takes energy and if she shows you she is hungry and barks, that is great. I remember my dog was so weak he could not even shake his body any more. Once he did it again, I knew he had more energy. Sunny barking is clearly a good one:) The fact that she is hungry tells us that the prednisone has kicked in, that too is a good sign. I think you mentioned that she cam down from that initial high dose, what is it now? I would not worry too much about giving her food too close to the Atopica. Water under the bridge, it is what it is, leave more time next time. the fact the Atopica went down is already a good thing. Many dogs bring it right back up in the beginning. You might not see this Maura, but I think Sunny made some crucial progress today!
Thinking of you,
Brigitte

[admin]

Yes Maura and Sheena, we have all made some mistakes when giving all these medications. Before I got all organized with daily pill containers I thought I had given my dog too much medication. I ran to the vet totally frantic, thinking I gave him too big of a dose. It turned out it was all ok in the end. Saying that, it is a very good idea to have pill containers and a schedule where you write everything down.
Sheena I am not at all worried about your grammar:) Lucky me, I always have a good excuse, English is not my first language:)

[Vally]

Maura, as everyone has said, mistakes happen. Don’t be upset.

What is the ulcer medication you have or are getting? Most need to be given away from other drugs or they stop absorption of the drugs.

With the Prednisone is a synthetic corticosteroid and is part of a group of glucocorticoid drugs. It is  activated by the liver to become prednisolone.  Prednisone is  often called the “cornerstone”  for the treatment of AIHA/IMHA and is used in the early stages in very high doses to stop red cell(…) Term details” class=”glossaryLink ” target=”_blank” >Prednisone should always be given with food.

Did you ask about thyroid medication. As said, this often makes a big difference in production of red blood. If the vet hasn’t mentioned it, please ask.

Maura I’d love to make up a drug chart for Sunny. Can you list what medications Sunny is taking and what time she gets them and I’ll fix it up for you and email it to you. Send me a note and I’ll get it back to you. Once I get an email from you I’ll delete my address from this post. My email is

The barking is definitely not a side effect of prednisone. It’s a Sunny side-effect. That’s one of the best side effects. It does take energy to bark and it’s good that she’s hungry. Try and avoid high fat foods.

If Sunny likes to have her fur clipped, that’s a great idea if you can do it at home. If she doesn’t, I’d avoid it for now to keep her less stressed.

Lots of love, Vally & Bingo

• This reply was modified 10 years, 2 months ago by Vally.

[Tamara]

So happy to hear that Sunny is feeling better! Yes, I agree with everyone, everything you’re describing is her recovering! Doing the happy dance here for Sunny and Ashki :) .

I made the mistake too one bleary morning of giving Ashki his Atopica with food, it’s ok. Some people buy those big med caddies, the ones with 4 little boxes for each day, so you can sit down and set up the meds for the week and then you don’t have to think. Ashki was on too many initially for me to use one (I suppose I could have bought 2).

If Sunny continues to be jaundiced and her chemistry indicates liver problems you can add Denamarin, it’s a prescription supplement specifically for liver support and has brought many dogs’ liver values down well, including Ashki’s.

I had to do a homemade clip on Ashki’s back legs because of the severe diarrhea he had initially — those beautiful long feathers on his back legs were getting very icky. Because of the meds they still haven’t grown back, all of his clips from his surgeries have have been very slow to grow back with these medications, but he doesn’t seem to mind :) .

Thinking of you and sweet Sunny and your family and sending you all love and hugs —
tamara and ashki xoxoxo