My senior dog is still in pain after Rimadyl. Should I give more?

I am sorry to hear that Mattie isn’t feeling well. Rimadyl is great for arthritis pain and problems that improve with an anti inflammatory medication. However, without know what is wrong with Mattie there is a possibility that the Rimadyl could make things worse. Such as if she is suffering from liver disease, pancreatitis, intestinal foreign object, or a bleeding abdominal tumor. I know it is hard to watch your dog be uncomfortable, but until there is a diagnosis I would be very cautious about using the Rimadyl. I hope this helps you make a decision, and I hope you find and answer soon. Best of luck and thank you for using Pet Coach.

Hi there. I'm assuming you mean Rimadyl? If so, this medication should NEVER be given more frequently than directed by your veterinarian, since overdoses can cause serious damage to the stomach and kidneys. I would recommend calling your veterinarian tomorrow morning to see what they suggest - they may ask you to skip Evie's next scheduled dose. You will also need to monitor her for any signs of a problem such as vomiting or not wanting to eat, and take her in right away to be seen if any problems are noted.

If Clara was 48kg, then this would be the correct dose, but you correct that this would be an overdose for a 48lb dog. I wouldn't worry too much about the dose you gave, but would recommend calling your vet to confirm the correct dosage before giving her any more. I doubt she will have any toxic effects from this dose, but if you happen to notice that she's vomiting profusely, vomiting blood, or has bloody diarrhea, then she will need to go to the vet for treatment. I hope that helps and all is well with Clara.

That sounds like neck pain and it could be from disc disease or other causes. Rimadyl can help but a lot of dogs with neck pain need multimodal pain management. And, it can take time to resolve, especially if disc related. The length of time of pain management can be variable but often is required for weeks if not longer dependent on the case, cause, response to treatment, side effects, etc. At your dogs age you will need to be very careful with Rimadyl as it can be hard on the kidneys. Older dogs especially benefit from multimodal pain management to try to decrease drugs like Rimadyl dose and dosing frequency. Rest is key, ideally crate rest. For disc disease this is typically 4 to 8 weeks, but this is case dependent and is best guided by the vet who examines the patient. Anyway to have a vet come to the house to see if this helps with the vet anxiety? I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Hello! The 12.5mg every 12 hours is appropriate for her size as long as her bloodwork comes back fine. I couldn't cut a pill into thirds either- that's too hard! I hope you find this helpful. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Hello and thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Unfortunately, we are not allowed to recommend any treatment or dosage of medications on Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Legally, a pet must be physically examined by a vet before any treatment can be prescribed or recommended. Rimadyl can be used for any muscular or joint inflammation or pain, so it is probably the right choice for Westley. If you get in touch with your local vets, they should be able to advise about the dose for Westley. You will also find Rimadyl dosage on the leaflet, that should be provided with the tablets that were prescribed for Winston.

Hi there. So if I'm understanding correctly, it sounds like she just had one extra dose of Rimadyl at 2:30 am Thursday morning - is that right? While it's true that we always want to stick to the label dosage with this medication, as there is a risk of causing serious side effect issues with higher doses and/or giving it more frequently than prescribed, I would generally not expect to see any major issues with just one accidental "extra" dose. Most of the toxicity issues we see with this medication are related to dogs getting into the bottle and eating a large number of pills at once, or with chronic overdosing over a longer period of time. If your girl is acting normal, eating and drinking fine, and not vomiting, then I don't see any major cause for concern right now. I would definitely recommend calling your regular vet to let them know about the extra dose and make sure they don't recommend doing anything different - but otherwise, I would just monitor her for any problems, and stick to the prescribed dosing schedule from here on out. The main things to watch for would be vomiting, or not eating - if you see either of those symptoms, I would let your vet know right away. If you feel like she's still somewhat painful in between Rimadyl doses, you could also ask your vet about getting her a different pain medication that would be safe to give along with the Rimadyl if she seems painful at night before her next scheduled dose, such as tramadol or gabapentin.