Dog on prednisone: Is this dose too high given his panting and peeing?

Thank you for submitting your question regarding your dog. That is a very high dose of steroids for a dog his size. This dose will suppress his immune system in addition to all of the side effects that you are noticing at home. Steroids will cause panting, increased thirst, urination and hunger. Some dogs will experience skin and coat changes, muscle weakness/ loss and gastrointestinal ulcers in rare cases. Doses this high are only used to treat severe life threatening conditions. I recommend contacting his veterinarian today to discuss his treatment plan. Typically the steroids are tapered once the primary disease is under control. There are other immunosuppressive drugs available that may have less side effects. Perhaps he would do better on a different medication. However, never stop steroids yourself as they need to be carefully tapered down. I hope this information helps!

Panting is a common side effect of prednisone, so unfortunately it will probably continue as long as he is taking this medication at her current dose. If it's bothersome to him or you, I would recommend calling his regular vet in the morning to discuss your concerns - you may be able to decrease Satchmo's dose or discontinue the medication earlier than planned, but I would not do this without speaking to your vet first because it could be dangerous depending on his underlying medical condition.

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!

Hello and thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. 30mg of prednisone is a high dose for Ozzy. I would suggest to taper it down slower. There are different protocols to do it and decreasing slowly the dose on weekly basis is probably the most frequently used protocol (for example 20mg every other day for a week then 10mg every other day for a week etc). Another benefit of tapering will be better monitoring of potential relapse of strangles. Sometimes once we reduce the dose of steroids, the skin gets worse, so we can up the dose of prednisone quickly. Please, get in touch with your vet to confirm the protocol of tapering down the dose of prednisone. Good luck.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Prednisone is a steroid. Steroids cause pets to eat more, drink more, urinate more, and pant. The increased stool could be if he is eating more but antibiotics, like cephalexin, can cause loose stools. I suspect the signs you are seeing is because of the medications. If you notice any vomiting or diarrhea please let the veterinarian that prescribed the medications know. Kisses to Cooper!

Prednisone can cause panting, but it shouldn't change the character of their breathing. (The panting should be the same sound/speed as his normal pant is). If it doesn't seem like he's just panting, get him in to see your vet. If he has other symptoms as well (coughing, labored breathing, vomiting, lethargy, etc) please seek emergency care. Thank you for asking Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Poor Bentley! I'm sorry to hear that he's so uncomfortable. Steroids such as prednisone can sometimes cause weight gain, excessive panting, increased thirst, and urinary accidents in the house - so it's certainly possible that some of the issues you are seeing could be side effects from the medication. Since he isn't feeling any better after 5 days, yes - I would definitely recommend giving your vet a call or taking Bentley back tomorrow for recheck visit. It sounds like he may need a different course of treatment, or possibly some diagnostic testing to see if something else is wrong.