? Tiffany amps +280 - Questions about Cabergoline

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Jadi & Tiffany

Jadi & Tiffany

Member Since 2017
Hi there,

Tiffany has had a roller coaster week with a UTI diagnosis last weekend, bad reaction to the Clavamox with vomiting for 24 hours then a trip back to the vet on Monday for an antibiotic shot (which I think was Covenia). She had 3 great days with numbers in the green and blues, but then last night when I returned home from work, she was sneezy and blowing mucus out and also had lost her meow. (She has kind of been doing this for a while, but seemed to be much worse last night.) Her eyes also looked like she just did not feel well. I gave her a dose of Bupe, which seemed to help make her comfortable.

This is my question, with all of this going on, do we add Cabergoline to this mix? My vet is willing to prescribe it and try it out with us, but I am not sure.

I would love to get honest feedback from those of you who have tried it and are considering trying it. Is it expensive? Where is the best pharmacy to compound it? Is it hard to get them to take? And most importantly, what are the side effects? (Tiffs labs were not the best last week, but her vet said he could have been the UTI causing some of the bad numbers.)

We want to give her the best quality of life for as long as she is here with us. (I sometimes feel like she is a sinking boat and when we plug one hole, another one starts leaking...)

Thank you, friends, for your help! You really have gotten us through these past 6 months!

Jadi and Tiff
 
Hi Jadi, think right now on here only myself and @Bronx's dad have tried it. @Wendy&Neko may know if anyone else has tried cabergoline here.

I would wait till her UTI is resolved. Side affects I believe is appetite can be affected, eating less. The following is what RVC provided me about possible side effects:
  • The main possible side effects of the medication are gastrointestinal upset such as reduced appetite and diarrhoea. I think some cats have experienced reduced appetite but not to the extent of requiring to discontinue to drug. I have known one cat that did need four days of hospitalisation due to pancreatitis and I do not know if this was drug induced or not.
As for costs a one month supply is about 100.00. Give or take. How to find a compound pharamacy near you, simply do a google search for compound pharmacy with the town or city you are in and hopefully you will get a few results. I did a quick search on San Diego and got the following, look like there are alot more, so you probably can find one close to you.
upload_2017-8-19_13-49-6.png
 
If the cabergoline works on Tiff, it will probably will only allow you to get control of her FD. Either by lowering the amount of insulin you need to give her, and maybe nicer cycles. It's still experiemental so hard to tell. You may also want to wait until the Trial results are published at RVC which should be sometime next month. Better control of FD may help with her other conditions. Not sure at this point if it helps with other complications related to Acromegaly. I would need to get Marvin retested to see if there is any improvement there but right now I can't afford it.
 
Marvin's Mom - Nat said:
Hi Jadi, think right now on here only myself and @Bronx's dad have tried it. @Wendy&Neko may know if anyone else has tried cabergoline here.

I would wait till her UTI is resolved. Side affects I believe is appetite can be affected, eating less. The following is what RVC provided me about possible side effects:
  • The main possible side effects of the medication are gastrointestinal upset such as reduced appetite and diarrhoea. I think some cats have experienced reduced appetite but not to the extent of requiring to discontinue to drug. I have known one cat that did need four days of hospitalisation due to pancreatitis and I do not know if this was drug induced or not.
As for costs a one month supply is about 100.00. Give or take. How to find a compound pharamacy near you, simply do a google search for compound pharmacy with the town or city you are in and hopefully you will get a few results. I did a quick search on San Diego and got the following, look like there are alot more, so you probably can find one close to you.
View attachment 30421
Click to expand...

Thanks, Nat. I know that sometimes the pharmacies in Canada offer a much better value. (I now use Mark's Marine Pharmacy for everything. They are awesome. They beat even our with insurance prices.) What if any of these side affects did you notice with Marvin? Are you still giving him the Cabergoline? And, is it hard to get him to take it? (Tiffany used to take pills, but with the recent Clavamox experience, she has become difficult to give meds to...makes me feel horrible.) Did Marvin have other health issues before you started giving it to him? (Besided the dx?)
 
Marvin's Mom - Nat said:
If the cabergoline works on Tiff, it will probably will only allow you to get control of her FD. Either by lowering the amount of insulin you need to give her, and maybe nicer cycles. It's still experiemental so hard to tell. You may also want to wait until the Trial results are published at RVC which should be sometime next month. Better control of FD may help with her other conditions. Not sure at this point if it helps with other complications related to Acromegaly. I would need to get Marvin retested to see if there is any improvement there but right now I can't afford it.
Click to expand...

We have been having success lately (keeping her numbers in the 200s and lower pretty much all summer.) So, that is also my thought...do we rock the boat and try something else when 14u of insulin seems to be keeping the bg numbers lower. I am planning on having this conversation with my vet next week, but I seriously gain so much insight from all of you! (Is it hard to get him to take it? Big pill...little or liquid?)
 
His appetite may have been affected, but not sure if it was the cabergoline or just the diabetes, as his appetite was affected even before cabergoline.

Yes, he still gets the cabergoline as it's what is allowing his body to properly use his own production of insulin.

He has been ok, taking it. A little harder at first, now he seems fine. The compound pharmacy added chicken flavor to it. Not sure if it made a difference, but couldn't hurt and don't think it cost any more. It is administered in a syringe and squirted in his mouth, has to be given orally. So you just load the syringe with the proper dose, and squirt in her mouth.

Marvin has a heart murmur, not treated yet and severe neuropathy. I think now that he is better regulated that his legs are getting a bit better. Hard to tell as its a long process and he may have had it too long to get much better. As for other issues, not that I know of, but I do want to do another full senior blood panel as I see from here there is often other issues. So want to see how his kidneys, heart and pancreaus are doing. I think one of his test showed possible thyroid issue but vet was not concerned so I want to double check that.
 
Marvin's Mom - Nat said:
I am out for most of the day, if you have other questions will respond when I can. Don't be shy.
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Thank you for taking the time to answer my questions!! Do you mind giving me the name of your compound pharmacy, so I can compare with SD? (You are in Canada, yes? ) I also love that they added chicken flavor for you and that it is liquid..I think that will be easier. You are totally helping! Have a nice weekend!
 
Jadi & Tiffany said:
Thank you for taking the time to answer my questions!! Do you mind giving me the name of your compound pharmacy, so I can compare with SD? (You are in Canada, yes? ) I also love that they added chicken flavor for you and that it is liquid..I think that will be easier. You are totally helping! Have a nice weekend!
Click to expand...
P.S. So glad this is working for Marvin! Hope he has a nice weekend too!
 
States and Canada so different not sure it will help. Some med are cheaper here and other more expensive and often you have more options in the states. I asked the pharmacy for a quote first. Gave them the dosage info I had and cat weight and they gave me the quote. It is cheaper to go directly to the compound pharmacy. Your pharmacy could order from them probably but at a cost
 
You might want to check online pharmacies for prices, which are often cheaper. BCP in Texas, Diamondback in Arizona, and Roadrunner are three big ones in the US.

I don't know if anyone else here using cabergoline yet, though @Adrian and Chino is about to start it.

Have you talked to the vet about her sneezing? I wonder if she added a URI to the mix. You might want to try putting her in a steamy bathroom to see if it helps clear her out,
 
Wendy&Neko said:
You might want to check online pharmacies for prices, which are often cheaper. BCP in Texas, Diamondback in Arizona, and Roadrunner are three big ones in the US.

I don't know if anyone else here using cabergoline yet, though @Adrian and Chino is about to start it.

Have you talked to the vet about her sneezing? I wonder if she added a URI to the mix. You might want to try putting her in a steamy bathroom to see if it helps clear her out,
Click to expand...
.

Thank you, Wendy. I will try the steamy bathroom and speak to her vet.
 
Hi Jadi, [adrian and chino] started cabergoline today. You may want to add them to the follow options, to see how they do on it. Chino is taking about the same insulin units as Tiffany, so it should be interesting to see.
 
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