Anti anxiety medication

[hollykatew]

My dog Vyvyan is aggressive towards (strangers) people and other dogs and I have tried a few different forms of training to show her that her behaviour isn't acceptable and that there's nothing to be afraid of. She is aggressive out of fear. I have found Vyv doesn't really respond to my commands or techniques and I've taken her (last Wednesday) to a very well respected behavioural specialist who has said that she needs to go on anti anxiety medication because (he has read her history from vets and from me, describing different situations she has been in since a little puppy and her reactions to them) Vyvyan has trouble 'bottling' that anxiety and dealing and suppressing it, and just focusing, like most of us do. Rather, she is always on 'a knife's edge' and can explode through lack of self control. He said this is due to genetics, considering her mother (due to her breeder's description) was a very anxious dog and out of all of Vyv's brothers and sisters, she has probably recieved all of the 'anxiety' genes. I believe however that my lack of knowledge when training her when she was young that humans and dogs we ok has also contributed to this, since she was a very timid puppy, yet we didn't go to socialisation school, etc. He said my only other option (and he was leaning towards this option most definitely...however I am TOTALLY against it and will do anything in my power to teach Vyv that most humans and dogs are wonderful to be around) is to euthanase her before she 'has victims'. I AM NOT GOING TO DO THIS!! (don't worry)
What I'd really like to know is if anybody else has tried anti anxiety meds and whether they have had any bad side effects?
The vets have also told me that in Australia there is no anti anxiety meds specifically for dogs, and we must use human medication in human pharmacies and give that to them. Does anyone know if this is true? Sometimes I wonder whether the vets are biased and only give out info that they want me to follow, rather than giving me a whole range of options and letting me choose.
Right now, we are undertaking a different approach with a good trainer and Vyv is showing a lot more improvement already, even though we've only had 2 sessions. The behavioural spec said aggression has been found to develop between a few weeks of age and 3 years of age, so there is a chance Vyv can get remarkably worse. Obviously I want to avoid that, and that may include using anti anxiety drugs as a training aid, however I don't want to give her anything that will hurt her organs. Are there any dog dieticians out there reading this? The drugs I've been prescribed are an anti anxiety drug to be taken daily (fluoxetine, 30mg per day - she's 30kg) and a beta blocker (which Im not going to give her, but it is Inderal, 15mg tablet when ever she is confronted with stressing situations (people etc) which is an extra anti anxiety kick for temporary short term use). I've decided against the beta blocker as it is common apparantly for dogs to faint whilst on them.
Anyone else used these drugs? Could you please give some advice?!
Thankyou

[bianca]

Hi these are just a few thoughts so please don't take them as gospel but Fluoxetine is an antidepressant (Prozac)

A natural remedy that may be worth looking at is Animals Apawthecary (Robbins Pet Care - Animals' Apawthecary Tranquility Blend - 1 oz


Alaprazolam is also prescribed for anxiety (I was prescribed it for my cat) Alprazolam for Dogs - VetInfo

The only med I know of in Australia prescribed for dogs is Clomicalm but it seems that may be used for separation anxiety mostly?
Clomicalm Tablets Veterinary Information from Drugs.com

[Stacey650]

My dog Sam is on Xanax as needed. It does help some. We did try the doggy prozac in the beginning as he was a rescue and had terrible seperation anxiety. I did not find that he prozac helped Sam much, but Vet said had to be used in conjuction with therapy. We were supposed to trick him into believing we were leaving the house so he would get more used to it. did not work. His seperation anxiety is better now with no treatment. Have his thyroid checked!! Ia m going through the same aggression issues myself and I empathsize with you bc I know how hard it is. That vet should have his license taken away for suggesting you euthanize!!! Scary how jerks like that are supposed to be advocates for our animals. I am about to have Sam's thyroid checked. Studies show that low thyroid values contribute to aggression. google dr. dodds, orange county, CA . SHe is a thyroid expert for dogs. Hang in there

[goatdude]

I have my dog on Clomicalm now and am working with her aggression issues. She has been aggressive towards young children since about six month of age. She's now 2 1/2. The Clomicalm is to be used just during training, there are no plans to make it a life-long medication.

I have found the Clomicalm a great help with the desensitizing program as now I can have her exposed to children without her going out of control. After only a month I can take her on walks without an ag reaction to children. Children riding their bikes or running past our house used to solicit a severe reaction, now, nothing more than just a look. The plan is to continue to expose the dog to kids in a safe environment (kids are behind a 6' chain-link fence). Once we can get up to the fence with the dog remaining calm in her long down/stay we will move to phase two, muzzled direct contact.

Even if she passes all of this and is calm with kids I feel this dog will never be trusted with children. You just never know when an event could happen to set her off but the combination of meds, mild flooding and calming techniques have made a world of difference and a much more controllable dog.