Dawn's Ollie 6/4 RELAPSE conserv - NECK-pancreat, GRAD7/30

Dawn, thank for the pill paste name.

Hope the addition of amantadine will provide dose to dose pain relief for Ollie. Worth trying that he will be in the group that benefits from it.

Dawn, what a good report on Ollie's health!!!!

CALMERS
Using any oral calmer in combination with a Pheromone diffuser seems to work best.  It takes several days for these to start working - it isn't immediate but they are a much better option if you can avoid heavy duty prescription sedatives (ACE, alprazolam or trazodone). Of course always keep your vet in the loop on all things you give your dog.

Place a DAP pheromone diffusor at floor level where the recovery suite is:
--DOG Adaptil (DAP) wall plug in diffuser 48ml www.adaptil.com/

Use diffusor with one oral calmer from below:

Oral calmers:
1) ANXITANE® S chewable tabs contain 50 mg L-Theanine, an amino acid that acts neurologically to help keep dogs calm, relaxed www.virbacvet.com/products/detail/anxitane-l-theanine-chewable-tablets/behavioral-health
2) Composure Soft Chews are colostrum based like calming mother's milk and contain 21 mg of L-Theanine.
www.vetriscience.com/composure-soft-dogs-MD-LD.php

Also consider some of these ideas in helping Ollie to be able to relax in his recovery suite:

-- Many members have found a pet stroller to solve the whining problem because the stroller can be wheeled from room to room as you go about your activities. Many dogs really like being up high to survey their home. Pet strollers, however, should only be used when you are directly supervising. More details on strollers: www.dodgerslist.com/literature/strollers.htm

-- Put a garment you have been wearing and have not washed in the crate.

-- Nan Arthur, CDBC, CPDT, KPACTP: According to the book "Stress in Dogs" by Martina Scholz & Clarissa von Reinhardt, the most well-behaved dogs get 17 or more hours of rest and sleep per day.

Teaching self-calming exercises can also help your dog to relax more. You can make something as simple as eye contact a very rewarding behavior that also acts as a way for your dog to “ask permission” when he wants something. When dogs have a focus and an understanding about how to behave to get what they want, they are much calmer overall. To do this, each time your dog looks at you, say, something like, “Yes!” or use a clicker to mark the second he looks at you, and then give your dog a very tiny piece of high-value food reward. OR choose lo-cal small piece of apple, carrot. OR use kibble subtracted from  his normal daily portion to prevent gaining weight from too many treats. [NOTE: for crate resting dogs, shift your body a bit] .... wait for your dog to look up at you again, say, “Yes,” and reward again. Do this exercise 10 or so times and then say, “All done,” and put the treats away. Come back later and do it again until you can see that your dog is really starting to make automatic eye contact in hopes you will say, “Yes,” again and give him his reward.


-- At night, try placing a wire crate on a sturdy bedside table to sleep next to you.

-- During the day try the coffee table or the dinning room table so there will be a view out a window and a better perspective on what is going on in the house from a high if the stroller idea does not work for you.

-- Make his recovery suite more cozy by draping a blanket over part of the top. Play classical music or one of the wildlife TV shows. 

Dawn, with the calmers, members report it is the use of two at the same time that is more effective.
DAP diffusor + one oral from below. In the past had you used the DAP with an oral calmer?

Oral calmers:
1) ANXITANE® S chewable tabs contain 50 mg L-Theanine, an amino acid that acts neurologically to help keep dogs calm, relaxed www.virbacvet.com/products/detail/anxitane-l-theanine-chewable-tablets/behavioral-health
2) Composure Soft Chews are colostrum based like calming mother's milk and contain 21 mg of L-Theanine.
www.vetriscience.com/composure-soft-dogs-MD-LD.php

Dawn, is the Amantadine something that was compounded by a veterinary pharmacy where they would use a chicken or other dog approved taste? If the brand name syrup was made for people it may have something distasteful to a dog.

How many mgs of Amantidine are contained in one mL of the liquid. That info should be on the bottle?

IF the dose in mgs prescribed could be the tablet form (100mgs tablet), then perhaps splitting a 100 mgs tablet into 1/4 would be feasible? ?

The prednisone taper is starting along with a weaning off of of pain meds.

Your job again, is to monitor for any hint of pain surfacing and report to the vet. Hope this taper will prove to be successful in having got rid of all painful swelling in the spinal cord. Keep us posted! ! !

Good news, Dawn! WTG, Ollie!

Fingers crossed for a successful taper off of pred. At the point when the pain meds have been fully stopped, you will have the answer as to if all painful swelling is actually gone. Let us know when the gabapentin is to be also backed off.

I am very happy to hear how well Ollie is doing. You are right to keep him crated if the other dogs might play too enthusiastically. Controlled walks are an excellent form of physical therapy when the dog has finished crate rest.

There are some dogs that must stay on medication long term. However, gabapentin is a medication that kicks in quickly. If the gabapentin were to be stopped, you would be able to watch for signs of pain and then start the gabapentin again immediately if pain emerges. All meds have side effects and no one wants a dog on meds that are not really needed. This way you would know.