Deborah & Muffy(GA) & Wendall
Member Since 2010
This week my vet asked me to take a 5 yr. old Tonkinese that was scheduled to be PTS in 2 hours for pooping out of the litter box and occasional unprovoked aggression toward her sister with whom she normally has a good bonded relationship. The vet didn't think that was a good enough reason to euthanize, but time was short and the owner was unwilling to surrender her to the hospital so I said yes to buy the kitty some time. Both problems have been going on for several months and owners have taken appropriate steps to address them without success.
The cat was diagnosed w/ asthma when less than 1 year old, put on prednisolone and has been getting it ever since. Dose is between 1.25 and 2.50 mg compounded into a liquid and given every 3 days. Is that typical dosing protocol? Owner said her case is 'mild' which is why she was never started on an inhaled medication. Maybe a case of if something is working, don't change anything but from what I've been reading this seems backward. I don't know how many asthma attacks she's had, how bad they were or when the last one was.
Doing some research, I suspect the long-term use of pred could be responsible for the behavior changes and aggression issues and plan to switch her to inhaled medication, with the goal to send her back to her family. I've poked around here and on other sites including Fritz the Brave and it seems that Flovent is the med of choice but have questions, like what strength I should ask for, how long an inhaler is expected to last and if I should purchase more than one as I plan to order from Canada. Given that she's been getting pred every 3rd day, would the same be true for Flovent? It seems to be a maintenance drug but will she also need something for a rescue inhaler? I've had her since Wednesday when she had her last pred dose and she seems just fine. Gave her some yesterday because I didn't want to just stop it but wondering if she really needs it or if such a small dose even needs to be tapered. I know about needing to get an AeroKat, have watched some instructional videos about using it, and Mark's Marine seems to have decent pricing on Flovent and a long list of strength choices, but that's about all I know.
It's possible I'm going to have to participate in coming up with a treatment plan and don't want to sound completely stupid so hoping to find some guidance here.
The cat was diagnosed w/ asthma when less than 1 year old, put on prednisolone and has been getting it ever since. Dose is between 1.25 and 2.50 mg compounded into a liquid and given every 3 days. Is that typical dosing protocol? Owner said her case is 'mild' which is why she was never started on an inhaled medication. Maybe a case of if something is working, don't change anything but from what I've been reading this seems backward. I don't know how many asthma attacks she's had, how bad they were or when the last one was.
Doing some research, I suspect the long-term use of pred could be responsible for the behavior changes and aggression issues and plan to switch her to inhaled medication, with the goal to send her back to her family. I've poked around here and on other sites including Fritz the Brave and it seems that Flovent is the med of choice but have questions, like what strength I should ask for, how long an inhaler is expected to last and if I should purchase more than one as I plan to order from Canada. Given that she's been getting pred every 3rd day, would the same be true for Flovent? It seems to be a maintenance drug but will she also need something for a rescue inhaler? I've had her since Wednesday when she had her last pred dose and she seems just fine. Gave her some yesterday because I didn't want to just stop it but wondering if she really needs it or if such a small dose even needs to be tapered. I know about needing to get an AeroKat, have watched some instructional videos about using it, and Mark's Marine seems to have decent pricing on Flovent and a long list of strength choices, but that's about all I know.
It's possible I'm going to have to participate in coming up with a treatment plan and don't want to sound completely stupid so hoping to find some guidance here.
I started with low dose as the vet prescribed that, but it was NOT effective at 10 puffs twice a day. Belonged to the FAIM board on Yahoo and most recommended the higher dose, 250, so I ordered that. They had resources for out of country inhaled meds. Paid about $125 for one canister that lasted 3 months. Cheaper if you buy 3 at a time. At some point you may need a bronchodilator to open airways to accept Flovent but only if the Flovent does not seem to be effective. I learned about albuterol from the FAIM group and insisted on a script from the vet to have on hand. I do not remember if cats can just puff as needed. My instructions were daily. Yes, you should wean off Prednisolone even at small doses. I wish the FAIM group had not been dissolved by Yahoo. These peeps were the BEST.