My dog is stressed by shots. Can I give melatonin or Benadryl?

Melatonin can have side effects in dogs including itching, increased heart rate, gastric upset, and stomach cramps, but these side effects are rare. If Romeo has a preexisting health condition, however, I would check with his vet first to see if it's safe to give him. Watch out for the melatonin side effects and do not give more than the label states to give on a daily basis. I hope this helps.

I'm sorry that Belle is suffering from some anxiety. Unfortunately Benadryl can have the opposite effect on dogs; instead of sedation, it can make them more anxious. In addition, I cannot legally recommend giving her either drug without seeing her in person. Put her in a dark quiet room by herself to self-soothe. You can also turn on the TV or music to block out the sound. One important thing to do to when your dog acts scared is not to reassure her. We think we are comforting her when we do that, but it's actually reinforcing the behavior and telling her it's ok to be scared. Give her vet a call to see if you can get something prescribed to help with her anxiety. Best of luck.

Hello, thank you for your question. I’m sorry to hear that visits to the vet are stressful for Luke. Yes, melatonin can be safely given to dogs. There are other medications that can also be used to help with anxiety prior to vet visits (gabapentin, Benadryl, acepromazine). I would recommend contacting your veterinarian to discuss which product they prefer and to get accurate dosing for Luke. Hope this helps!

Thank you for your question about Romeo. I would not give him the Endosorb since he is not having diarrhea. While I understand being concerned he's pooped more times than usual, sometimes that does happen (it happens with humans as well), and as long as it's not diarrhea, it's a cause for concern. Vaccines can cause diarrhea as a side effect, it can be a common one, flea meds it is not a side effect. Could it be he's eaten more than usual and that's caused the increased pooping? Or had more exercise that usual? If he has fleas, that will be causing the itching. He will need more than one treatment to get rid of all the fleas, and the environment will need to be treated as well, as fleas live in the environment, not on the dog. They jump on the dog to feed, then jump off. It is safe to give him Benadryl if his vet recommended it. I hope this helps!

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Lilly! Neither are used or labeled for noise phobia. Melatonin is more to help with sleep and benadryl is an antihistamine that potentially makes the pet drowsy. Of the 2 I would chose benadryl but I personally recommend discussing Lilly's issues with your Vet. They can prescribe drugs that will actually work to sedate Lilly. Drugs like Trazadone, Xanax, and Sileo can work very well. I wish Lilly the best!

Hello. You would need to give a lot of Benadryl to calm a dog, & even then, it probably would not work. I would try to make sure that your appointment is at as quiet a time as possible. Call ahead to make sure there are no unexpected wait times & that you can get in & out as quickly as possible. Bring a highly valued treat, even if it is cooked chicken or a can of CheeseWhiz & give him plenty of treats going over. Make sure the technician takes a few minutes with Lance to get to know him & feed a few treats. The same goes with the veterinarian. Bring enough to share. If this is a pleasant experience, while it will not take away all anxiety, it will help in future visits. If Lance just goes ballistic, then reschedule the visit & ask your vet for some Trazodone that you can give 30 minutes before the visit. Hopefully, things will go smoothly. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! While this may be a reaction to the vaccines, I would not recommend that you give her Benadryl without having her physically evaluated by a veterinarian. There are scenarios where administering this medication would be contraindicated. I would highly recommend that you have Phoebe evaluated by a veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. Best of luck!