Prozac for dogs

If your dog's feeling the blues this time of year it could be depression. Or if he's been chasing his tail more than usual it could be OCD.

But help is at hand: Introducing ...

PROZAC FOR DOGS!

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/new...cle1705299.ece

(Wonder whether my Mogs could do with some too?)

my dog had this for separation anxiety, unfortunately for him and us, it didnt work. :wall:

Whatever next ! How they come to the conclusion a dog is depressed is mind boggling ..Surely its just Boredom and loneliness ? Animals arent meant to be locked up in houses for hours at a time .No need to pump them full of drugs to make them groggy and complacent surely ? :mad::weep: Sue:woof

The vet used to give my cats valium for the hour's car journey to where they went when we went on holiday. It made them behave verrrrry strangely :wacko:

I agree suzy, this was used as a last resort with Milo, we have been to a dog behaviourist, twice, we had tried dap diffusers, rescue remedy , kong toys with tasty stuff inside, he wouldnt touch them while we were gone, but would get stuck in the minute we got back, got a crate and made it a den for him .... but nothin worked..

unfortunately we adopted Milo as a stray when he was a year old, and he came with a whole load of issues, and he gets VERY upset, when you go out, literally even for 5 minutes to post a letter, he barks, howls and rips up papers until you come back, and wether thats for 5 mins or 3 hours, he keeps it up the whole time, we have videoed him, and he just doesnt let up, he is of course is exhausted once we come back and all he wants to do is sleep,
As you can imagine this causes problems with the neighbours, as well as seeing poor milo so upset, its just as well i dont work, and can be home for most of the day.
To make matters worse he know has chronic pancreatitis which means he can only have prescription food, with pancreatic enzymes added, so he cant even get any treats like kongs stuff with goodies etc.

he is an extermely highly strung dog, but funnily enough, lots of noise and fireworks dont bother him in the slightest... just being alone....

but having said all that, he is extremely loving and faithful, intelligent and funny and is ALWAYS pleased to see you.

If anyone has any tips that i may not have yet come across, please feel free to share, always open to new suggestions. :wacko:

P x

I'm not convinced that drugs would help an animal. I'm not an expert on animal behaviour but I would guess that your dog has a form of PTSD because of what he's been through as a stray, hence his separation anxiety.

I hope someone that's had a similar experience can help Pollyanna. It must be very difficult and upsetting for you.

It must be very hard for you Pollyana :hugs:It seems youve tried everything you know .He s obviously been given a bad start in life and gotten into a bad pattern of behaving .Similar to how were act to panic &Anxiety .Ive never heard of cbt for Dogs tho :D. Did the behaviour therapist come to your home or did you have to take milo to him/her ? I had a dog i got from a rehousing centre once .He was a lovely dog .but hated being left alone .He hated travelling in a car and was afraid of the traffic .He nearly got me killed by charging across the road the first time I took him for a walk :scared15:..Over the first few months I gradually exposed him to car journey s and walks along the pavemrnt near a main road .He learnt to behave, and enjoyed his trips out after a while .I used to to have to crawl up on my hands and knees up the road when I went to work ,so he didnt see me (.I left the back door open for him and my neighbour looked out for him ).Otherwise he would howl all the time .He chewed my furniture and even chewed up his new dog basket ,all that was left was a hole with a bit of wicker round the side ..:mad::lac:He was as good as gold when I was there with him ,but did nothing but damage and howl when I wasnt there .I had threatning letters through my door :blush:..But cant say I blame them ..Eventually after trying everything I re-homed him with a friend who was home all day .It broke my heart :weep:...I ve never had a dog since ..I dont know if you think this is a bit nutty but ,I watched a programme on tv about a Pet Psychic :ohmy:The woman I saw was amazing and had a very good success rate ,there was no way she could have known what she did about the animals she helped .It was really effective .I dont know where you would find one ,but might be worth a try ...:shrug: all the best Sue xx

Pollyanna,

Have a read at this

http://www.rspca-westhatch.co.uk/SeparationAnxiety.htm

Maybe you've tried all these things, but I hoped you might find something fresh in it. There's also a couple of books recommended at the bottom. I found Cats Protection's book Living With a Rescued Cat quite helpful, although three years down our Tigger has slowly overcome some of his odd behaviours but is still very nervous. Maybe some animals have just been through too much to ever be "normal". How long have you had Milo?

Incidentally, there's nothing new in giving dogs ADs (whether it's good for them might be a different question). If I google my old med, clomipramine, the first thing that comes up on the suggestions is "for dogs". I see it's particularly recommended for separation anxiety. I don't mean to be flippant, but maybe, as with a lot of people on here, it's a question of finding the right drug.

Hope that link is helpful in some way x

Thank you so much for your replies.

Suzy,

i really feel for you having to give up your dog, but can totally understand why in the end you had to, if i was working that would be a real possibilty for us, he would drive the neighbours nuts, and i would worry about the state he was getting himself into while i was gone, so in that respect i am lucky, but it causes a lot of anxiety to me even when i go out for a short time, when i leave the house and the neighbours car is gone and i know that they are out i breathe a sign of relief, if its still gone when i come home, i breathe an even bigger one... its stressful enough without getting into a dispute with your neighbours.
When we consultated the behavourists, we took milo to them, but i think it would have been better if they came to the house,( like victoria stillwell, in its me or the dog), i think it would given them an better idea of what his home surroundings were like and come up with more practical solutions for us to try and help him.
I dont think his previous owners didnt treated him very well, he goes mad if you pick up a newspaper, anyone shouts or raises their voice, when he was found he had sores on his legs , like he had been kept in a confined space, and he was in a poor condition, and a bit underweight, but the worst thing that we couldnt see at the time was his mental state, he took to me very quickly, and always looked for my approval before he did anything, and followed me everywhere, of course never having had a dog before only cats, i was flattered, sadly it was the begining of things to come. However, i love him dearly and despite all this he is one of the lucky ones, he found a home, i cant walk round a rehoming centre without crying, seeing all these poor mites looking at you through scared sad eyes.
I will look into the pet psychic thing , sounds interesting, nothing ventured , nothing gained , when you have tried every other avenue, you will look into anything, that might potentially help, thank you. :flowers:

Jane

thanks for the link, i have had a quick look, , but will go back and have a proper look, and see if there is anything i cam take from it.
Milo is 6 now, and we have had him for 5 years, so i think all his behaviours run pretty deep, and as you say what has happened to him might never be able to be reversed, and make him a' normal 'dog. we tried the AD way back at the begining along with the behavourist when we got him, and funnily enough it was called clomicalm, which is clomipramine, but there really wasnt any significant difference in him after 6 months, so we stopped it.


I really appreciate you all taking the time to reply and offer advice/information for me and mi , i should look out a photo of him, he is a lovely dog, and is a real sweetie, thanks again and i will keep you posted on any improvements :flowers:

P x