My 2 yr old Lhasa, Bree, was put on prednisone about 3-4 weeks ago for a flea allergy. Her behavior has changed suddenly and she doesn’t seem to be acting right. What are the side effects of this medication? Long and short term. Should I take her to the vet to get checked out or wait until her medication is finished?
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October 31st, 2009 at 7:38 am
Predisone does the same things to dogs that it does to people.
Common side effects:
* increased appetite
* indigestion
* nervousness or restlessness
My dog is on prednisone right now. Yesterday, she ate *five* cans of dog food. (Prednisone increases the flow of stomach juices, so don’t hesitate to overfeed, because it will prevent ulcers; any weight gain will rapidly disappear after she goes off the prednisone.)
Less frequent:
* darkening or lightening of skin color
* dizziness or lightheadedness
* flushing of face or cheeks
* hiccups
* increased sweating
* sensation of spinning
* decreased or blurred vision
* frequent urination
* increased thirst
These symptoms are uncommon:
* confusion
* excitement
* false sense of well-being
* hallucinations
* mental depression
* mistaken feelings of self-importance or being mistreated
* mood swings (sudden and wide)
* restlessness
* skin rash or hives
The side effects should disappear when she stops taking the medicine.
When prednisone was new, they didn’t know what they were doing. My family physician says that when he started practice, he had a patient who was blind because another doctor had given her too much prednisone and her eyeballs exploded. Doctors (and vets) know more about giving prednisone these days.
I’ve had two friends who have died because they were uncomfortable with the side effects of prednisone, and simply *stopped* taking it. When you start taking prednisone, your adrenal glands stop producing cortisone, and unless you taper off prednisone, your adrenal glands don’t start up again quickly enough, and you die of adrenal insufficiency.
So DO NOT STOP THE PREDNISONE without talking to the vet first.
October 31st, 2009 at 10:00 am
The vet prescribed weeks of steriods for a flea allergy. That is excessive itself. What dos is she on? How are her scabs is she healing well.
Yes steriods can cause a change in behavior for anyone.
October 31st, 2009 at 12:40 pm
Prednisone leads to increased urination in dogs in the short term. Over the long term if used over the long term it will lead to premature kidney / liver failure.
In general though for short term use prednisone is an excellent anti inflamatory drug.
October 31st, 2009 at 6:16 pm
wow that’s really interesting…my dog (boxer/pitbull) was just prescribed the same. his behavior has changed as well. i’m wondering now if that’s a symptom of the medication. i’m going to call my vet and find out now. I don’t know off hand if there are any symptoms but he’s definitely not his usual self anymore.
October 31st, 2009 at 7:51 pm
give him acid