Maybe you won't have to try anything once he is off meds. Is there anywhere you can walk him that isn't so busy? We have clients that drive to a conservation area every night after dinner to walk their dogs so that the dogs can have a relaxing walk instead of dealing with traffic, bicycles etc. Their Scottie was really reactive which is why they started these nightly forays to a quieter place. He's still more reactive than most dogs but can now walk in town without looking like a dog going to the chamber or trying to start something with every tree, dog, human, post - well you get the picture. Just a thought.
Melatonin for Treatment of Anxiety
- Thread starter OntarioSheltie
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I am taking max to the vet today and going to talk to nim about giving Max melatonin for the scratching. He doesn't know how to bark so he gets nervous when hes hungry and scratches, he s ratches when he has to go out so we've givng him meds from the dermatologist and now he has pancreatitus, cortisone, specialists, cooked for him, no grains food, now hypo alergentic food! So we will talk about it today. I'll keep you posted.
BTW my niece whomuses it, her dog is on other meds and my miece cooks for him, she also is a fanatic with her dogs so I'm betting its going to fine foe you. She also is Docter!
BTW my niece whomuses it, her dog is on other meds and my miece cooks for him, she also is a fanatic with her dogs so I'm betting its going to fine foe you. She also is Docter!
OntarioSheltie
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Not really a good option for Toby since we live down town. Even if we go find somewhere else to walk we still live in a busy area with noises that set him off. Avoiding walking him in those areas in a sense makes his anxiety worse.
I take Prozac for chronic pain, and have for a majority of the last 10 years. (It's commonly prescribed with tramadol for fibromyalgia.) I've also used melatonin for years, and haven't seen any drowsy side effects. I have also used Rescue Remedy.
Bela had many noise-oriented anxiety episodes when she first came to us. I didn't want to go the prescription drug route, so I went with homeopathic/herbal stuff.
I had the roof replaced right after I got Bela and we had an entire day of alarming noises, strange people, and plaster falling from the ceiling. I dosed Bela with melatonin and Rescue Remedy - the Rescue Remedy seems to work a lot better than the melatonin. Both are good, but for extreme anxiety, I used the RR.
Bela had many noise-oriented anxiety episodes when she first came to us. I didn't want to go the prescription drug route, so I went with homeopathic/herbal stuff.
I had the roof replaced right after I got Bela and we had an entire day of alarming noises, strange people, and plaster falling from the ceiling. I dosed Bela with melatonin and Rescue Remedy - the Rescue Remedy seems to work a lot better than the melatonin. Both are good, but for extreme anxiety, I used the RR.
OntarioSheltie
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Thanks for sharing Jaynie, your experiences are interesting! I'd not heard that prozac could be used for the treatment of chronic pain. It also makes me feel better to know that you've take both melatonin and prozac with no ill effects.
I know that the interaction I read about isn't a serious one, but I didn't want to overload Toby's system all at once with new stuff. I'll definitely give melatonin a try in a few weeks.
The drowsiness may be more pronounced in dogs, I'm not really sure. But I'd certainly not give my dogs anything I wouldn't take myself. I want them to be as safe as possible.
The anxiety Bela was struggling with was so severe, I did consider putting her on Valium, as the vet suggested, but Valium kind of does a number on me, and I'm pretty out of it. I didn't want that effect with Bela as I was afraid she would associate the side effects with the cause of the anxiety (certain noises, etc.)
The Rescue Remedy and Thundershirt combination is what worked the best for her. That was only six months ago, and she now doesn't need the Thundershirt much, and rarely does she need the Rescue Remedy. And when she does occasionally become anxious, she will come to me or get my attention somehow, and circle around a couple of times, then run to the closet where I keep all the dog stuff. She'll still have episodes of trembling, but they are getting so much better that I didn't use anything on her last time we had a storm, but just put her in the bed with us. She settled down against hubby's legs and trembled for about five minutes, then went back to sleep.
The anxiety Bela was struggling with was so severe, I did consider putting her on Valium, as the vet suggested, but Valium kind of does a number on me, and I'm pretty out of it. I didn't want that effect with Bela as I was afraid she would associate the side effects with the cause of the anxiety (certain noises, etc.)
The Rescue Remedy and Thundershirt combination is what worked the best for her. That was only six months ago, and she now doesn't need the Thundershirt much, and rarely does she need the Rescue Remedy. And when she does occasionally become anxious, she will come to me or get my attention somehow, and circle around a couple of times, then run to the closet where I keep all the dog stuff. She'll still have episodes of trembling, but they are getting so much better that I didn't use anything on her last time we had a storm, but just put her in the bed with us. She settled down against hubby's legs and trembled for about five minutes, then went back to sleep.
OntarioSheltie
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That's wonderful that you found a combination of treatments that worked for her and that she's doing so much better. I hope I find the same success with Toby eventually.
He's continuing to do well so if all goes as planned I'll try the melatonin at the end of the month.