benedryl

I just read on another thread about giving cats benedryl. I tried it once, gave the exact dose my vet said and it was awful. My poor Fred ran around in circles, screaming like he was on fire. Then when he got tired of running in circles, he flopped over on his back and kicked his feet and continued to scream. It was all I could do to get hold of him, put him in his carrier and get him to the vet. By the time we got there, he was ok, just very mad at me. I had heard of people using it with good results, so I felt ok giving it to him. Has anyone else had this happen? It was terrifying!

I've used it with great results but I use the children's one, not the adults. I also only give 1/4 of a dropper. When I travel east, my babies get allergies and that helps them. I've never had any side effects but then I also don't believe in tranquilizers while traveling. I would also be nervous about using it again if I had a bad experience. I did have a bad experience when my old vet gave one of my cats all of his shots together and he had a bad reaction which caused us to spend the night at the animal emergency. Found out he can't have all shots together because of his asthama. Right after that, we changed vets and he was wonderful unti we moved 3,000 miles away but don't laugh, until I found my present vet, I use to call him for help.

Frannie

I have only used it once. It didn't help, but I was using it for an allergic reaction to something. My 3 vets all agreed that for itching, it doesn't do much good in cats, but does well in dogs. I do know that the 3 vets also told me to use the liquid childrens. How much and what kind did you him?

This has been several years ago, and I do not remember what the dosage was. I used the children's liquid. I think we were using for allergies, now that you mention it. He was an indoor/outdoor kitty at the time and had developed a severe skin condition. It turned out he was allergic to fleas.

There are so many thoughts on this one. Chlortrimeton (chlorpheneramine) also known as Chlortabs was always used in our house. 1/4 tab was what vet prescribed. Many years later they are now saying others are ok. I hate to say alot of people don't know much about the medications the vet sells them. For instance, many of the same antibiotics are taken by both human, dogs and cats. Usually lots cheaper at pharmacy since they sell in bulk. Just be sure to call around for best price (may be on the 4 dollar list). Our german Shepard took benadryl for car sickness. The cats were taking Chlortrimeton way back into the 90s. Trust your vet, they want your return business so keeping your animal healthy and happy is their priority. Their is no definitive dosage that will magically do it. Just like in humans, a certain normal dose of a medication may be too much or too less compared to another person that takes it. The vet may know something about your pet that you don't or they might be just erring on the side of caution or it just could be the vet wants to shut down the allergy symptoms quickly. Or maybe a larger dose to try to keep the animal from scratching as much so sedating would lower the chances of a secondary problem with open sores on skin from biting and scratching areas til it's under control. Just talk to your vet or vet tech. They will be happy to help you.