Vally - 227. page

[Vally]

I do indeed cut that wonder drug into a microscopic size tablet.  I bought a new pill cutter – same as the old, but my way of thinking was that there is a new blade at work and I don’t use it for any other tablet.  I have another which I use for his supplements. Although really the position of the tablet in the cutter is such that it’s using the blade in a spot that hasn’t been used before – make sense? Anyhow…

Whilst some tablets don’t make the grade and get tossed out as they are more crumbs than tablet, Bingo’s vet thought he should  go from 2.5 mg daily to every second day, so I figure, if the microscopic tablet is smaller than it should be, then we’re practicing for the next reduction.

I totally get the idea of giving the larger pepcid tablet on the Atopica day.  That so makes sense.  Bingo gets Pet Tinic every second day – on the day he doesn’t get his Neoral (cyclo) – as a boost for, I don’t know, whatever.  See I have an (anal)ytical mind too.

Love Vally & Bingo

[Vally]

Just thinking going from 7.5 to 5mg is still a 33% drop.  I’ve gone through my stuff and that is what we did with Bingo.  It was when we got to the 5mg mark that we had problems twice, went back up and back down slower.

Linda, what mg tablets are you using.  I’m guessing 5mg tablets.  Bingo actually uses prednisolone, not prednisone, and 5mg is the lowest mg tablet.  You’re giving 1 tablet in the morning and half a tablet at night.  Correct?

Perhaps for a few weeks do 5mg in the morning and a quarter tablet (1.25mg) at night, making it closer to a 20% reduction.  After a few weeks, when all is good (hear the positive in my tone???), drop the night one and just do 5mg in the morning.

Heartworm medication – I don’t use it – well Bingo doesn’t use it – now and I know that is a risk but his vet said it’s not the issue HERE that the pharmaceutical companies make it out to be.  I used to do every 6 weeks which is every 42 days – that was easier to mark on the calender.  I also felt a bit better knowing if I did forget by a few days, I was still inside the 45 day mark.  I believe the 30 day idea is simply because it’s easier to remember to dose on the say, 1st day of each month.

Lots of love

Vally & Bingo

[Vally]

Linda,

Bingo still takes 25mg Neoral (cyclosporine) every second day (he weighs in at a lean 7.6kg – 16.7 lbs).  His vet preferred to drop the prednisone over dropping the cyclosporine as he said the pred has more long term effects than the cyclosporine.  Last time there he mentioned we may look to drop the cyclosporine down next.  As Bingo has never really had too many side effects of the cyclosporine, we’ve worked more on the pred reductions.

I’m with Sheena too Linda, I think the dose Sadie is on now of the Atopica is quite low.  I like averages – a mere 3.3mg a day.  I too think it would be good to bring Sadie’s pred down a little in preference to the Atopica – 20% drop better, 25% drop fine though.  I understand you are worried about the Atopica though.

Love Vally & Bingo.

[Vally]

Linda, he’s  actually on 0.9 mg a day (I said 1.9 above by mistake) because he takes a quarter of a 5mg tablet (1.25mg) one day and an eighth of a tablet (0.625mg) the next day making an average of 0.9 a day.   His vet said on the last visit to go from 1.25 daily to 1.25 every second day, but I’m terrified of skipping a day, so I convinced him to do it my way and then the plan is to drop the 1/8th tablet in a while and leave him on 1.25 every second day.

Love Vally & 0.9.

[Vally]

Sheena, he’s been a little quiet for my liking – unless it’s meal times – then he’s a little loud for my liking.

The weather, I think, does affect him.  It’s just so very humid and doesn’t want to let up.  No rain for months, but it’s now been raining for a week.

We are 2 weeks and 2 days (who’s counting)  into the last pred reduction with no ill effects, so he’s officially now on 1.9 mg pred a day.  Good colour.  I won’t relax though until we get to the 4 week mark, and, what the heck, until we go back to have his bloods checked again.

He no longer gets his every so favourite treat every day of dried chicken necks. He now gets some dried kangaroo or dried chicken tenders.  Less fat.  He only does a tap dance for these as opposed to wrap dancing and moon walking for the necks.

I’ve planned my whole week around his next blood test.  It’s the week after Easter, so I’ve arranged to have the week off as there are 2 public holidays that week, plus my day off, plus my RDO for the month, and I’ll take 1 day off my holidays.  I’m planning it on the assumption that further testing will be needed – so if I prepare for the worse case scenario, the tests will come back good – right??? (Vally you’re so glass half empty).

Love Vally & Bingo

 

[Vally]

Tara, wow you poor thing you must be exhausted from worrying.  Chicken breasts are very low fat so that wouldn’t be a problem with his pancreas.  I’d make a batch of it, with lots of broth and freeze it up in batches, so you’re not having to cook each day.

I’ve just read that Ideopathic vestibular syndrome cannot be treated. However, the course of disease is such that it presents acutely, then gradually resolves on its own over 7 – 30 days. There is no way to speed this recovery process, but during this time the patient needs to tbe supported by antinausea and dizziness medication, and fluids (if the patient is so bad the it cannot eat). In majority of cases, the vestibular signs completely resolve.

So Diablo is still well within the times mentioned above and the fact that he’s not worse, is, I think, always a very good sign.

My very best, Vally & Bingo

[Vally]

Tara, hoping it all clears up soon.  It must be terribly distressing to see.

Vally & Bingo.

[Vally]

Mary & Mable,

Bingo wears many mantles, Napoleon was Linda’s name (small man’s syndrome) for not being wise enough to shut up when a much bigger dog is going for you and thinking you’ll come out on top.

This morning, we went for our usual 2 minute walk (only 2 minutes in the mornings now as he won’t go through the park in the mornings as he doesn’t like to get his little feet wet from the dew).  It’s only really a pretend walk to see if there are any cat poo offerings because I don’t feed him enough (or maybe he has noticed the low fat food).  On the mornings (like this morning) when the garbage bins are out, he always confronts a little white labrador across the road.  The labrador does absolutely nothing to Bingo – in fact, it doesn’t move – that’s because it’s only a picture of a labrador which someone has stuck on their  bin. But Bingo struts off after showing it who’s boss.

Love Vally & Bingo