Why is my dog lethargic after abrupt Prednisone to Rimadyl switch?

We are not in a position to change or reduce dosage prescribed by your treating vet and you should contact your vets office to advise. It is likely they will half the frequency every few weeks until he is more stable but this must only be done under direction from your vet

While a washout period is recommended between NSAIDs like Rimadyl and corticosteroids like prednisone the actual number of days to wait has not been determined by a research study. I typically recommend a 7 day washout but there are many times I have started prednisone right away when I thought it necessary. You could ask your vet about using gastroprotectant medications like antacids to help lessen the likelihood of side effects.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Being tired and thirsty can be linked to the prednisone. Prednisone specifically should not be discontinued abruptly and needs to be tapered slowly. The tapering of the prednisone has to be done carefully and calculated based on the weight of the patient. I recommend you check in with your veterinarian who prescribed the prednisone for the tapering schedule for it as they have all the information they need for this. They can also advice on the other medication. Best of luck!

Your dog should be weaned off Prednisone slowly. In many ways, prednisone is similar to the corticosteroid hormones cortisol and aldosterone produced by the adrenal glands located along each kidney. Because of this, when taking prednisone, the adrenal glands start decreasing their production of cortisol. It would be too shocking for the adrenal glands to find themselves out of the blue in need of producing cortisol in large amounts again, so by tapering the prednisone gradually, the glands are given some time to resume their normal function. The main risk is what is called an " addisonian crisis" or "iatrogenic hypoadrenocorticism" which can be life threatening and can cause the dog to go into shock. This can happen when the prednisone is stopped out of the blue and the adrenal glands are dormant because they weren't given a chance to gradually become active again. When this happens, the dog's potassium and sodium levels get unbalanced. The sodium levels start to fall, while the potassium levels start to rise. High potassium levels can have a detrimental effect on the heart and can lead to circulatory collapse. Affected dogs may appear weak, lethargic, they may vomit, have a low, irregular heart rate and may go into shock and even collapse. Affected dogs need to seek immediate emergency treatment to correct the electrolyte imbalances and possible low glucose levels through supportive care consisting of fluid therapy and careful monitoring. Rapidly-acting corticosteroid medications such as prednisolone sodium succinate or dexamethasone sodium phosphate may be needed. This whole ordeal can be easily prevented by gradually tapering the dog off the steroids. Dogs on prednisone for quite some time, need to be tapered even more gradually. The vet will tell owners how.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Rugby. You cannot use Rimadyl if she is taking prednisone. Giving these two medications together has a very high risk of causing gastrointestinal ulcers. Personally I do not start Rimadyl until a dog has been off of prednisone for two weeks. It can be done sooner if the dog is given additional medications to protect the GI tract, but it is still risky. Is she taken a muscle relaxer? In dogs with severe neck pain, I will use prednisone, gabapentin, a muscle relaxer and an additional pain medication such as tramadol. If her pain cannot be controlled though, she may need to see a neurologist for surgery. I hope this information helps!

She could be a little lethargic just from the stress and also from the rimadyl. I would continue to keep her confined and don't let her jump, play, or run. Rimadyl can cause them to be lethargic sometimes - it isn't very common, but I have a few patients who react this way. If she starts to worry you, stops eating/drinking or starting to not be walking properly, I would have your vet take another look at her. I hope that helps!

The reason that we cannot give specific instructions regarding a taper of the medication is because none of us specifically prescribed it. So legally, within the confines of a veterinary license, a dosage of medication must be instructed by the doctor who prescribed it, as they have an established "veterinarian-client-patient relationship" with you and Tawny. Without a valid "veterinarian-client-patient relationship," it would technically violate this protocol. I hope you've been able to get a hold of your veterinarian. If not, as a general rule of thumb, its reasonable to continue to cut the daily dose in 1/2 every 3-7 days. (for example, going from twice a day to once a day, then from once a day to every other day, then to every 3 days for a few doses.). Please attempt to reach your veterinarian for specific instructions.