Prednisone for dogs?

Question

My 2 yr old Lhasa, Bree, was put on prednisone about 3-4 weeks ago for a flea allergy. Her behavior has changed suddenly and she doesn't seem to be acting right. What are the side effects of this medication? Long and short term. Should I take her to the vet to get checked out or wait until her medication is finished?

Additional Details

She is on the every other day dose. She eats at night mostly when everyone has gone to bed (we have two little ones). Her thirst really has not increased either. And now she yelps if you try to pet her. She is still itching as well.

She is also just laying around. Like she wont respond when I call her. Not even if I say "bye bye" and she enjoys her car rides! And even if I mention "treats" she doesnt come running like she used too.

Answer 1

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker

Predisone does the same things to dogs that it does to people.

Common side effects:
* increased appetite
* indigestion
* nervousness or restlessness

My dog is on prednisone right now. Yesterday, she ate *five* cans of dog food. (Prednisone increases the flow of stomach juices, so don't hesitate to overfeed, because it will prevent ulcers; any weight gain will rapidly disappear after she goes off the prednisone.)

Less frequent:

* darkening or lightening of skin color
* dizziness or lightheadedness
* flushing of face or cheeks
* hiccups
* increased sweating
* sensation of spinning
* decreased or blurred vision
* frequent urination
* increased thirst

These symptoms are uncommon:
* confusion
* excitement
* false sense of well-being
* hallucinations
* mental depression
* mistaken feelings of self-importance or being mistreated
* mood swings (sudden and wide)
* restlessness
* skin rash or hives

The side effects should disappear when she stops taking the medicine.

When prednisone was new, they didn't know what they were doing. My family physician says that when he started practice, he had a patient who was blind because another doctor had given her too much prednisone and her eyeballs exploded. Doctors (and vets) know more about giving prednisone these days.

I've had two friends who have died because they were uncomfortable with the side effects of prednisone, and simply *stopped* taking it. When you start taking prednisone, your adrenal glands stop producing cortisone, and unless you taper off prednisone, your adrenal glands don't start up again quickly enough, and you die of adrenal insufficiency.

So DO NOT STOP THE PREDNISONE without talking to the vet first.

Asker's Rating:

Asker's Comment:

thank you all for the great answers!! i will take her to the vet tomorrow. she is now having problems walking and has not moved for 4 hrs!

Answer 2

The vet prescribed weeks of steriods for a flea allergy. That is excessive itself. What dos is she on? How are her scabs is she healing well.

Yes steriods can cause a change in behavior for anyone.

Answer 3

Prednisone leads to increased urination in dogs in the short term. Over the long term if used over the long term it will lead to premature kidney / liver failure.
In general though for short term use prednisone is an excellent anti inflamatory drug.

Answer 4

wow that's really interesting...my dog (boxer/pitbull) was just prescribed the same. his behavior has changed as well. i'm wondering now if that's a symptom of the medication. i'm going to call my vet and find out now. I don't know off hand if there are any symptoms but he's definitely not his usual self anymore.

Source(s):

I just talked with my vet. They mentioned that since it is a steroid it's taken with the antibiotic. The steroid should be given in steps, not all at once, like one every day. My dog is in the phase where he's taking them one every other day. She said it keeps it from itching, which is interesting because he still itches anyway.

Also it is supposed to make him eat more and drink excessively. I noticed he's drinking water regularly but he has stopped eating as often as he used to. I feed my dogs 2 times a day, but he only eats every other day.

His behavior has changed as well. He's acting out of sorts, not listening, and I'm not sure that has anything to do with the medication.

I definitely recommend talking with your vet about it.

Answer 5

give him acid