Warning - painkillers for humans can be lethal to dogs & cats

[Susan Stone]

We've just been very lucky...

On Sunday our 10 year old Bramble had to go to the vet's for treatment of lumbago whilst staying with my father. The next day Bramble was feeling better. To be 'on the safe side' and with only the best intents my father gave her a small amount of the human painkiller (Voltaren - Diclophenac) and mentioned this to me 12 hours later.

Knowing of the risks this gave me quite a shock and I went through the internet to find out about possible side effects... :

Diclophenac is potentially lethal and can cause gatrointestinal problems (bloody diarrhoea) liver damage and kidney failure.

Fortunately Bramble had only been given a very small dose with her meal and 24 hours later she is showing no signs of being ill.

 

So despite owning dogs for over 30 years these things can still happen! This is why I decided to publish this blog and hope I can make other people aware of the danger.

 

Exert from Wikipedia:

Diclofenac is also available over the counter (OTC) in some countries: 12.5 mg diclofenac as potassium salt in Switzerland, Germany ("Voltaren dolo"), United Kingdom (since October 2008 as "Voltarol Pain-eze"), and preparations containing 25 mg diclofenac as the potassium salt in New Zealand, Australia, Japan, ("Voltaren Rapid"), and Sweden ("Voltaren T" and "Diclofenac T"). Diclofenac as potassium salt can be found throughout the Middle East in 25 mg and 50 mg doses ("Cataflam").

 

[Cheryl Gorey]

Thanks Susan for alerting us to these risks. I too looked into some of the human painkillers when my old boy Monty was suffering with his spinal arthritis earlier this year. Paracetamol and Aspirin all carry risks of causing bleeds, etc. It seems there isn't very safe painkillers as even dog painkillers can cause damage as well!

Would love to know more if there is a site that can assist us at these times as I found it difficult to find a safe option.

cheers
Cheryl

[Susan Stone]

Hi Cheryl
I know the problem, especially with olidies. Rimadyl is know for good pain relief but also has known side effects. But as the pain causes suffering I am willing to give pain killers if and when deemed necessary.

[Susan Stone]

Here is a link to a more scientific article:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9610496

[Susan Stone]

see attached file

[Catherine Carter]

Thank you for that link, Susan! I certainly won't give any form of ibuprofen or aspirin to any of my dogs! I have printed this article for future reference....

[Chantal McIlveen-Wright]

Many thanks Suzan for this very interesting debate, and glad to know that Bramble is well and happy now.
No medication is safe, it is as simple as that. Some are more dangerous than others, but they are all to be avoided as much as permitted. Medication should not be the first reflex. We will certainly not let our dogs suffer or having their health deteriorating because of a condition, but drugs should be used only in extreme cases, and what is good for one dog may not be for another one. The same applies for us. Nowadays a lot of people have the tendency to associate drugs with cure, and even very sadly, believe that the drug will only cure the problem without affecting the rest of our body's function or our dogs’body.
The worse in my experience, are the side effects. For instance, there are some great medications for dogs' arthritis and no doubt those do work well, but they can also affect the heart and give anxiety, extreme anxiety even. I learnt the harsh way that we have a duty to check on the web and discuss the matter with our vet, not accepting everything at its face value. Skin problem medications can work very well, and too often we are given antihistamine as well, but for some dogs the antihistamine can lead to a loss of their hearing. Of course, if we give only one course of antihistamine to our dog, the chance is that he will never have any problem, but not enough attention is given to the accumulation of those drugs during their life span. This is my very painful experience as I lost my oldie with these arthritis drugs, and because I love YOUR dogs too, I would like to suggest, please please, be very careful, watch for any side effects, and use drugs ONLY when no other option is possible.
Some vets are absolutely fabulous and are very cautious, but some, as usual in life, are more oriented for quick results, and tend to dismiss too easily possible long term side effects, especially when this is not a common one. In my case the vet was very well aware of the side effect, and could see them but – and very genuinely – believed that it was better to give my dog a certain quality of life at the cost of my dog’s duration of life. My point is that it was not the only option to start with, at least at the beginning. Due to my “young” age I also have arthritis, but with the supervision of my GP I am taking glucosamine & chondroitin which are natural products and work very well for me. I learnt, but too late that it could have done the same result on my dog.... Now I make sure that my vet is also a great believer in not using drugs unless it is the last resource. Not easy for them, but there are still some fabulous vets around.
How many times we can treat or prevent small external infection, i.e. cuts, with salty water instead of using a drug!!! This is a tip from my vet, and I will always look for my vet supervision. It is not my intention to promote alternative medicine here, as there is many charlatans on that market too, but just to re-iterate something we all know, that no drug is benign and with the help of our vet, when possible we should aim at giving the most natural course of treatment to avoid the drugs’ side effect, as they can be real killers.
Also, we should not under-estimate the wisdom and intuition of our dogs on curing matters.....

[Susan Stone]

Thank you, Chantal. What you say is true and goes for all medication - be that for pets or for humans. I am happy to have a vet whom I can trust and also - important to my mind - who will trust me. There are pros and cons in all aspects and it is never easy to make the right decision.

My intention with this blog was just to make people aware that what is a 'reasonably' safe medication for humans can actually be toxic and lifethreatening for our pets.
Any further discussion as to when treatment is considered appropriate would probably full many pages of a new blog.