My dog is wobbly after gentamicin. Is this a permanent side effect?

Hello. Yes, it is most likely that the gentamicin has induced the deafness in your dog. Most times this is reversible, but in some cases the deafness is permanent. I would not use any more gentamycin. Most ear infections are due to underlying allergies, so the first thing to do is have a culture done to see if antibiotics are even warranted ( may have to wait at least several days after stopping medications to obtain the culture ). I would also start a low dose with a decreasing dosage of steroids to decrease inflammation in the ears & start an anti-allergy medication such as Apoquel or Cytopoint to see if the ears can be kept at least more comfortable without the use of topical ear medications. Hopefully, some hearing may return, but it certainly will not as long as the gentamycin is being used. Good luck & thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Hello, I'm so sorry you are going through this with Scarlet. I have reviewed the previous exchanges you had with our veterinarians and I do have to agree with both of them and state that seizures as well as respiratory distress, which I can see that you also asked about, are not typical signs of amikacin toxicity. Definitely, deafness and vestibular signs can occur when an aminoglycoside antibiotic such as amikacin is allowed to enter the middle ear, which commonly happens when the tympanic membrane is ruptured. This is why it is so very important to ensure that the eardrum is intact before prescribing and using these preparations. Sometimes the TM cannot be visualized due to the high degree of swelling present in the canal or the amount of debris accompanying the infection, and when the drug is used in these cases this is often how the drug enters the middle ear and does damage. Unfortunately, sometimes we have very little choice in the way of antibiotics we can use to treat serious multi-drug resistant ear infections, such as those caused by bacteria of the pseudomonas species, which is when amikacin is typically used. If the seizures were in fact due to the amikacin, that would be a highly abnormal reaction to the drug as it was prescribed in Scarlet. It would be very important to me, were I her doctor, to rule out other diseases that cause seizures, specifically brain lesions like tumors, before concluding that this was indeed a drug reaction. If no other issues are found that could explain the seizures, I would urge your veterinarian to contact the manufacturer of the preparation and report this as an adverse effect.

Hello and thank you for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. I'm sorry to hear that Lucky is not acting himself and may be having a hard time balancing. These types of signs, called vestibular signs, can be a side effect of Metronidazole toxicity, however the signs tend to occur while a dog is taking the medication, and signs tend to resolve within a few days of stopping the medication. There are many causes of vestibular signs, such as a stroke, a mass within the brain, or something like a severe middle/inner ear infection. I recommend having Lucky seen by your veterinarian at their next available appointment for a physical exam and a neurologic exam. Based on these findings, your vet can try to localize the problem. Ultimately, they may recommend an MRI to determine the cause of Lucky's clinical signs. I hope this is helpful - best of luck getting care for Lucky!

For a dog this size, it has a possibility of causing damage to the stomach, intestines and kidneys, but I would have to know how big of a bottle it was. If it was half of a 15g bottle, then the dose should not be too harmful, but it's difficult to know for sure. Watch for signs of vomiting, diarrhea and a decrease in appetite as signs that she is having an adverse reaction. If you notice any of this, then she should go to the vet immediately for treatment. If she's otherwise acting normal, then she'll probably be OK. You will know that all is OK if nothing abnormal is seen in the next couple of days. Below is a link to the pet poison helpline. They can provide more assistance if needed. http://www.petpoisonhelpline.com/ I hope that helps and all is good with Penny.

No it should not cause paralysis but it can cause severe balance issues on one side, meaning she will always fall on this side, the limbs of the affected side will still be able to move though. after 5 weeks of antibiotics i would expect seeing a significant improvement assuming the correct antibiotic was chosen for the condition.

In this product they use Amitraz. I have seen dogs react poorly to this medication. Typically they have vomiting, diarrhea and lethargic behavior. I would recommend taking him to your veterinarian for supportive care. Typically this is not a fatal medication but can make them dehydrated and need medical care! Some dogs just like people are more sensitive to certain medications. I would not recommend using this product again. Hope that helps

Dramamine or dimenhydrinate can cause hyperexcitability in some situations and I'm wondering if the tremors are from this side effect. It's also possible that Marlin has something else going on - if the head shakes last more than about 12 hours I'd recommend seeing your vet for an exam. It might help to video an episode of the tremors in case you need to show your vet. In the future you may want to ask your vet about switching to a different medication for motion sickness.