give a dog a xanax?

shimsham

Lifer
May 9, 2002
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im heading to a friends house tomorrow to ride out the storm. i dont want to leave my dog, hercules, alone at home, but im not excited to take him either.

hes a 90lb lab/german shepard mix. hes a sweet, gentle dog, but at 1.5yrs old, he still gets very excited around other dogs and new people. being a largish dog, people are sometimes freaked out, but he calms down fairly quickly.

hercules hates storms. any time we have one, he hides in the closet and pants until it passes. hes gotten better lately, but if theres thunder or lightning, forget it. normally, this isnt a problem. but, for the next few days he will be around many strange adults, children, and dogs (two of which are little yappin rats that like to think they are badasses). without the pending hurricane, he would be fine once he calmed down. with the hurricane coming, im afraid the stress of the storm compounded by all the excitement may be too much.

we had some pills the vet gave us when he was nuetered that calmed him down, but theyre all gone. talking to a guy at work today, he said we could just give him some xanax. one of the ladies were staying with has a script so i could get one from her.

normally i wouldnt think to do such a thing, but im afraid if one of those dogs or kids start fooling with him while the storm is hitting he may just snap from the stress and then all hell would break loose. i cant leave him here for 2 days during this storm. i just cant make him go through this alone, but i cant stay and be seperated from my wife and children either.

so, would giving him human xanax be safe? i know not to be stupid and pump him full of pills, but i would like to help take the edge off until we can get back home. this is my first dog, so im kinda ignorant on what to do here. if anyone has any experience or suggestions id greatly appreciate it. :beer:

CLIFFS NOTES:
ivan coming.
staying at a friends with many other people and dogs.
i have a large excitable dog that hates storms.
can i give him some xanax to help him cope?
any other suggestions appreciated.


 

glen

Lifer
Apr 28, 2000
15,995
1
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Yeah, good idea.
Give him 1/3 the amount you would give a human, since he weighs about 1/3 of a human.
 

Yo Ma Ma

Lifer
Jan 21, 2000
11,635
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I have no idea about xanax.. I used to give our dog some Kava Kava when he had to go to the vet, he was a very tense and nervous dog. It seemed to help a little.

For dosage I looked up some OTC dog potions/remedies and noted the dosage of kava in that tablet, then gave him a portion of the tablets we had on hand.
 

JulesMaximus

No Lifer
Jul 3, 2003
74,544
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Bah, someone gave my dog a hit of acid at a party once when I was in high school. He survived. Man, that dog was fvcked up for a while though.
 

MichaelD

Lifer
Jan 16, 2001
31,528
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:Q

Yes, let's give a 90 pound dog psychotropic medication designed for a humans' physiology.

The dog will either immediately go to sleep while licking his nose, or he'll become a 90-pound freight train with teeth and a really pissed off attitude.

Let me know how this works out for you.
 

DAGTA

Diamond Member
Oct 9, 1999
8,172
1
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Originally posted by: glen
Yeah, good idea.
Give him 1/3 the amount you would give a human, since he weighs about 1/3 of a human.

90lb is 1/3 of a human? The avg human you know is 270lb? ;)
 

Nebor

Lifer
Jun 24, 2003
29,582
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Go ahead. Dogs are pretty much like little people anyways. You should probably only give him half of a human dose, since he weighs about half the weight of a human.

Call your vets office and ask, maybe?
 

CrazyHelloDeli

Platinum Member
Jun 24, 2001
2,854
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NO! DO NOT GIVE YOUR DOG XANEX!

Im serious, its very hard on the Dogs liver. My dog, when its the 4th of july gets a medication name Acepromazine 25mg. If you are unable to get this medication from a vet before you go, I suggest you take him with you. If you have to walk him around and watch him like a hawk so he does not bite any of the little kids, so be it. But giving the dog Xanex is a big no, and so is leaving him alone in the storm.
 

Nebor

Lifer
Jun 24, 2003
29,582
12
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Originally posted by: HelloDeli
NO! DO NOT GIVE YOUR DOG XANEX!

Im serious, its very hard on the Dogs liver. My dog, when its the 4th of july gets a medication name Acepromazine 25mg. If you are unable to get this medication from a vet before you go, I suggest you take him with you. If you have to walk him around and watch him like a hawk so he does not bite any of the little kids, so be it. But giving the dog Xanex is a big no, and so is leaving him alone in the storm.

Shows what you know, dogs don't even have livers. They have 3 extra kidneys to make up for it. Take a biology class! :p
 

Farbio

Diamond Member
Apr 9, 2000
3,855
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it will not hurt him, it will knock him out for awhile most likely, but it will not hurt him. my pharmacy dispenses all sorts of pills to pets as well as humans. the most comon dog meds are insule (you wouldn't believe how many diabetic dogs there are apparently) prozac, phenobarbital and valium. we do occassionlly give out xanax for dogs, but not too often as its that much stronger. valium and xanax are both benzodiazepines, but xanax is many times stronger. i would try to give the dog valium if you can, but if not, give him no mare than 0.5mg as needed, and no more than 2x/day. hope that helps a bit on it.
 

shimsham

Lifer
May 9, 2002
10,765
0
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Originally posted by: Nebor
Go ahead. Dogs are pretty much like little people anyways. You should probably only give him half of a human dose, since he weighs about half the weight of a human.

Call your vets office and ask, maybe?


thats what i thinking. the lady says she has some strong, and some weak. i was thinking maybe a 1/4 of the weak one, and see how that works. his vet is gone, and i didnt have time to call another today. ill try again tomorrow, maybe even call one out of town.

Yes, let's give a 90 pound dog psychotropic medication designed for a humans' physiology.

The dog will either immediately go to sleep while licking his nose, or he'll become a 90-pound freight train with teeth and a really pissed off attitude.

Let me know how this works out for you.

im worried about that. ive taken them twice, and both times i immediately went to sleep. im hoping it will have similar effects on the dog. he will be in the garage for the majority of the time, but since the drink fridge is out there, i expect heavy traffic. if he starts freaking, which i really doubt but cant say for sure, im prepared to just stay in the garage and keep an eye on him as long as its safe.

Bah, someone gave my dog a hit of acid at a party once when I was in high school. He survived. Man, that dog was fvcked up for a while though.

that happened to a buddys cat except it was shroom tea. that cat was fried.



maybe im not giving hercules enough credit. we had an infant and toddler here the other day, and he was very gentle and calm after the initial rush. hopefully he will handle it without the pill.
 

shimsham

Lifer
May 9, 2002
10,765
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Originally posted by: Farbio
it will not hurt him, it will knock him out for awhile most likely, but it will not hurt him. my pharmacy dispenses all sorts of pills to pets as well as humans. the most comon dog meds are insule (you wouldn't believe how many diabetic dogs there are apparently) prozac, phenobarbital and valium. we do occassionlly give out xanax for dogs, but not too often as its that much stronger. valium and xanax are both benzodiazepines, but xanax is many times stronger. i would try to give the dog valium if you can, but if not, give him no mare than 0.5mg as needed, and no more than 2x/day. hope that helps a bit on it.



good news. ive heard of dogs on valium. actually, the guy who suggested the xanax today confessed that he took a dog valium once, and said the effects were the same as a human one, just weaker.

 

Rage187

Lifer
Dec 30, 2000
14,276
4
81
Should be fine, only half though.

And my old cat was a burnout by choice. Would climb in my lap as soon as I would toke up.

The Cat would get so high she would fall asleep in her food bowl.
 

Nebor

Lifer
Jun 24, 2003
29,582
12
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Originally posted by: Rage187
Should be fine, only half though.

And my old cat was a burnout by choice. Would climb in my lap as soon as I would toke up.

The Cat would get so high she would fall asleep in her food bowl.

ROFL.
 

Mill

Lifer
Oct 10, 1999
28,558
3
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Sure, it is pretty safe, but the half-life of Xanax in a canine is quite low. You would only give him temporary fix, and then his sedation would pass. I don't think you should own a dog if you are not willing to take care of it. Take him with you or give him to someone who actually cares about animals. Now, if you want to take him with you and put him on Benzodiazapines then feel free. I'd reduce the dosage to a very low level however. I wouldn't give him more than .5mg per 100lbs.
 

Klixxer

Diamond Member
Apr 7, 2004
6,149
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you could give him 315 bottles of xanax and he would just sleep it off, just like a human, benzos are not lethal, not even dangerous to OD on.

The benzos they give dogs, cats and kids before traveling are basically the same. a normal level for a human is .25-.5 a dog will need .5-1 to relax.

Xanax is a stronger/less dosage required drug hence to low dosage.
 

shimsham

Lifer
May 9, 2002
10,765
0
0
Originally posted by: Mill
Sure, it is pretty safe, but the half-life of Xanax in a canine is quite low. You would only give him temporary fix, and then his sedation would pass. I don't think you should own a dog if you are not willing to take care of it. Take him with you or give him to someone who actually cares about animals. Now, if you want to take him with you and put him on Benzodiazapines then feel free. I'd reduce the dosage to a very low level however. I wouldn't give him more than .5mg per 100lbs.



:roll:

maybe try reading the thread? i said im fully willing to stay in the garage if i have to to make sure theres no issues.
 

shimsham

Lifer
May 9, 2002
10,765
0
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Originally posted by: Klixxer
you could give him 315 bottles of xanax and he would just sleep it off, just like a human, benzos are not lethal, not even dangerous to OD on.

The benzos they give dogs, cats and kids before traveling are basically the same. a normal level for a human is .25-.5 a dog will need .5-1 to relax.

Xanax is a stronger/less dosage required drug hence to low dosage.


thanks for the reply, klixxer.
 

Gurck

Banned
Mar 16, 2004
12,963
1
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Originally posted by: JulesMaximus
Bah, someone gave my dog a hit of acid at a party once when I was in high school. He survived. Man, that dog was fvcked up for a while though.

:(

Anyway, I could never leave my dog alone in that situation, for better or worse he'd be coming with me. Best of luck, whatever you decide, but for the pup's sake I hope you decide to take him along with you.