Prozac?

[Jonathan Smith]

Hi - 

After doing some behavior modification with Joey, he still is a very nervous guy, always on high alert and hypervigilant.  Hes fine with dogs but very wary of people.  He is even more nervous when he's not with me.  I hate to see him stressed so much of the time.  

Just wondering if anyone has had experience using Prozac for a nervous doodle.  Thanks.

Jonathan

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

We never tried it, but wanted to try.  Our dog was placed on another medication.  My thoughts were that Prozac would work better.  And from what I read, it does.

I applaud you for not wanting your dog so stressed and upset.  Many think we can FIX the dog by traditional means but that is not always the case.   When my dog was placed on anti-anxiety medications I received numerous emails from those who also had dogs and cats on Prozac or other meds. 

I do encourage you to also attend training classes in conjunction with the medication for the very best results.

I'm all for it and had great results.  So much better than none at all.  It was great to see my dog a little happier and enjoying day to day life rather than hiding under the table--miserable.

 

Please come back in the next few months and update us on the progress. 

[Tina, Clover, Plus 5 More]

I tried Prozac with one of my fosters and it did help.  Twinkle (aka Miley) was never socialized early in life.  At eight months the breeder sold her to a family with three boys, which made things worse.  This family decided after two weeks to relinquish her to the rescue.  I tried everything before she was put on Prozac and we were making progress.  After starting her on Prozac within a few weeks I started seeing improvement.  The links below are two blogs before she started Prozac.

http://www.doodlekisses.com/profiles/blogs/life-with-my-foster-mile...

http://www.doodlekisses.com/profiles/blogs/miley-found-her-bark-amp...

The following blog is the day Twinkle went to her new home.  To me the picture tells the story of how much the Prozac was able to help her. 

http://www.doodlekisses.com/profiles/blogs/miley-went-home-today-dr...

After having Twinkle in my life and seeing the benefits Prozac can have along with counter conditioning.  I would not hesitate to use it again.  I know it is not a cure all, but it allowed Twinkle to relax enough to really make progress.  Since being with her new family they have been able to wean her off with no sign of regression. 

[F, Calla & Luca]

I haven't but I know it's been used successfully even on zoo animals.

[Diana Erhart]

I haved used what my vet called "doggie prozac" with my Charlie.  Charlie is an anxious guy but not terribly over the top.  But we recently moved and I was nervous about the 2 day drive with him.  My vet gave me the medication.  I didn't use it for the ride as he did fine.  But once we got to our new home he has had some trouble adjusting.  Then one morning when he was home with just my daughter who was visiting and her dog he had what seemed to be a panic attack.  Although he seemed to get over the panic attack before I got home he was extremely anxious.  I talked to the vet and gave him a dose of the prozac and the change in his behavior was amazing.  He was like a puppy again.  He seemed genuinely happy and ate like a horse (my guy is usually a difficult eater).  After the meds wore off he was somewhere in between his euphoric state on the medicine and his usual anxious self.  That was about 6 weeks ago and I haven't given him another dose yet since he seems to be doing pretty well although still a little anxious.  But I would not hesitate to give it to him again if I see him getting very stressed.

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

Diana, what was the name of the med the vet prescribed?  A lot of us use the  generic name 'Puppy Prozac' for many different meds

[Diana Erhart]

It is called Alprazolam.  I just googled it and google tells me that it is xanax.

[F, Calla & Luca]

Not Prozac indeed. This is a minor tranquilizer and has a short half life. Good for short term emergencies but not as effective long term.

[Patti]

Yes, we tried Prozac with Willow, and sorry to say it did not work for her.  That is why we changed to Clomipramine, however that doesn't work for her either, and we are in the process of weaning her off so we can try something else.

Sorry to hear about Joey. It's the strangest thing.

[Jonathan Smith]

Thanks everyone for the comments.  Today Joey started on Prozac.  He has been getting worse lately and now separation anxiety is another of his issues.  Whenever I leave the house, or the room, he starts becoming nervous... He looks for anything he can chew, newspapers, eyeglasses, pencils, you name it.  If my wife is home, he will sit staring a the door for hours, waiting for me to come home.  I have high hopes that the medication combined with our behavior modification techniques will help him relax.  It is painful to watch him this way.   

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

I am so sorry you are going through all this with Joey. We had a dog that was overly attached to me and sounds like your Joey when I left the house. I wish you all the best and hope the drugs really help. Good luck and keep us posted.

[Lauria Orr]

We recently started Melody on Prozac, after long deliberations about it. She is already a finicky eater, and unfortunately, one of the side effects of Prozac is loss of appetite. We have stopped the Prozac, but I will say that if wasn't for appetite issue, I would not hesitate to give this a hearty try. 

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

Hey Jonathan,
It's been a few weeks now. Thinking of you. How are things going?