Special Precautions For Using Prednisolone
Prednisolone is only to be administered to the pet it is prescribed for. The medication should be kept well out of reach of children and pets.Prednisolone should be used with caution in pets that have been diagnosed with diabetes. It should also be used with extreme caution in pets that are pregnant, and puppies and kittens because prednisolone can inhibit growth and cause other problems.
Once your pet is on prednisolone, you should not abruptly stop giving the medication to your pet, as this can have life-threatening consequences. The pet will need to be carefully weaned off the drug in the event the veterinarian chooses to stop the treatment.
How Prednisone And Prednisolone Work
Prednisone and prednisolone are steroids that are also hormones. They have effects on almost every type of cell in an animals body and can function in a variety of ways. The action of either medication also depends on the amount givenyour veterinarian will prescribe the dose that is appropriate for your pets medical condition.
At lower doses, prednisone or prednisolone can reduce inflammation and have broad anti-inflammatory effects. At higher doses, they can suppress the immune system response, which may be helpful in treating certain forms of cancer.
What You Need To Know About Prednisolone
Prednisolone works by suppressing the impulsive reactions of the inflammatory response in your cat’s body. Rather than letting the body’s neurons rush to the scene of the injury and cause inflammation as a way of trying to heal the issue at hand, corticosteroids like Prednisolone for cats are commonly prescribed to stop the body from reacting to certain variables. Since Prednisone packs quite a punch, the medication is only available when prescribed by your cats veterinarian.
The medicine is classified as a corticosteroid, meaning that it contains steroid hormones that are actually already part of the body by nature. The medicine itself does not include natural corticosteroids, but rather, the medication is intentionally designed to mimic the corticosteroids already in the adrenal glands of vertebrates.
Corticosteroids are derived from the adrenal cortex and they target both the glucocorticoid receptors and mineralocorticoid receptors. In layman’s terms, corticosteroids relieve parts of the body that are irritated and inflamed. The swelling goes down, allergy symptoms subside, and any red patches that resulted from the irritation are alleviated by corticosteroids. Other conditions like joint problems as a result of arthritis and the abundance of symptoms that skin conditions cause.
Read Also: When To Start Kittens On Wet Food
Side Effects Of Prednisolone In Cats
The side effects of prednisolone for cats include increased water intake, increased appetite, and occasionally, digestive upset.
Cats tend to tolerate steroids better compared to dogs and we see fewer adverse effects in kitties. However, there are some important things to look out for, especially for kitties on higher doses of prednisolone.
Why Prednisolone Is Prescribed In Veterinary Medicine
Prednisolone is most commonly prescribed in veterinary medicine to help relieve inflammation and joint pain, and decrease swelling, redness, and itching often associated with allergic reactions. It works by mimicking the effects of hormones naturally produced in the adrenal glands, which help suppress inflammation.
Also Check: How Many Times Are You Supposed To Feed A Kitten
How To Give Prednisolone To Your Cat
Since Prednisolone has such intense list of potential side effects, it is utterly important that you adhere to the dose that your cat’s veterinarian prescribes for your feline. Breed, height, weight, and severity of conditions are a handful of factors that your pet’s vet will take into consideration when deciding on the appropriate amount of medicine you should give your cat. This comes into play when it comes time to administer Prednisone to your kitty cat. If it makes you more comfortable, you should ask your vet to either model the appropriate way of giving Prednisone to cats, or at the very least consider administering Prednisone to your cat at a vet appointment so the professionals can give you feedback on how you’re doing. It is better to learn correctly the first time than to have to unlearn bad habits. Another important tip to make note of is that you’ll want to give Prednisone to your cat at the same time every single day.
Food is always good because it gives the stomach something to digest with the medicine, rather than just having strong steroid hormones in your pet’s body without anything to cushion the intensity. If you ever miss a dose of Prednisolone for your cat, don’t be too hard on yourself. Just try to prevent it from happening again. Setting an alarm to ring at the same time every day of the week is a great step in helping you avoid any slip-ups, but don’t try to overcompensate for the missed dose by doubling the dose the next day.
Can Prednisone Change Your Skin Color
In addition to extreme tiredness, weakness, slowed movements, upset stomach, weight loss, sores in the mouth, and a desire for salt may occur.
When taking prednisone, it is critical to be aware of any signs of fungal overgrowth or other skin changes that could indicate a serious medical problem. It is also a good idea to pay attention to any new or different body hair growth that may indicate an increase in skin activity.
Read Also: Why Do Cats Push Their Paws Into You
Is There A Standard Dosage When It Comes To Prednisone And Prednisolone For Cats
Prednisone and prednisolone for cats are most frequently used to provide short-term relief. The standard dosages, at least for humans, are 5mg, 10mg, and 20mg. Cats are different and much smaller creatures, though. With great medicinal power comes great risk of side effects and withdrawal, so veterinarians might begin a short-term course of prednisone for cats at a high dosage initially, which is then rapidly tapered off until treatment is complete and symptoms or swelling have subsided.
Is prednisone for cats safe? Not especially, which is why it should be administered only under veterinary supervision while following all dosage instructions. A veterinarian will take all of a cats health information into account to determine proper dosage. Aside from the state of a cats kidneys, which guides the choice of prednisolone over prednisone, these major factors for dosage include:
- Overall health and fitness
Can Prednisolone Cause Weight Loss In Cats
For some conditions that cause weight loss, like inflammatory bowel disease, weight gain is desirable, but this is not always the case, so weight should be closely monitored. Steroids may cause digestive upset in some cats, usually some soft stool or diarrhea if it happens. Separate, long-term effects of prednisolone therapy can also be seen.
Also Check: Is Rachael Ray Cat Food Good
Prednisone And Prednisolone Possible Side Effects
Prednisone or prednisolone may cause side effects, which are dependent on the dose the pet is receiving and how long they have been on the medication.
The most common side effects include the following:
- Increased thirst
- Increased urination
- Increased appetite
- Vomiting/Diarrhea
Additional side effects can occur, especially when the medication is given long-term or at higher doses. These additional side effects may include:
- Poor haircoat or hair loss
- Stomach or intestinal ulcers – may present as bright blood in vomit
- Bleeding into the digestive tract may present as black and tar-like stools
- Triggering or worsening of diabetes mellitus
- Increased risk for infections
- Pot-belly appearance
- Behavior changes
Prednisone or prednisolone can suppress the immune system response at higher doses. This may cause pets to be more susceptible to infection. Abruptly stopping prednisone or prednisolone can cause serious side effects. Contact your veterinarian before prematurely discontinuing prednisone or prednisolone. Your veterinarian can recommend a gradual reduction in dosing to reduce the likelihood of serious side effects.
Human Side Effects
While this medication is used in humans, it may be given differently and have different side effects. If you accidentally ingest this medication, call your physician or local poison control center.
Monitoring
- Severe side effects are seen or if you see or suspect an overdose
Can Dogs Overdose On Prednisone
Because prednisone has such a wide range of safe doses, an overdose is unlikely to cause lasting harmful effects in dogs. Dogs that ingest high quantities of prednisone typically experience gastrointestinal distress that revolves as the drug leaves the body. It is possible for high doses of prednisone to cause serious GI ulcers and bleeding.
You don’t need to panic if your dog accidentally got too much prednisone, but it is important to contact a veterinarian for advice right away. Try your local vet or animal emergency center, or call a pet poison control service like ASPCA Animal Poison Control or Pet Poison Helpline. The vet may tell you to induce vomiting if an extreme amount was ingested. In addition, follow-up supportive care may be needed to manage symptoms.
Also Check: How To Get Cat To Poop
Calming An Overactive Immune System
Steroids have strong anti-allergic and anti-inflammatory effects and can help calm an overactive immune system. Among other diseases and conditions, they can treat the following:
Allergies: Allergic reactions to flea bites, bee stings or spider bites Allergic bronchitis
Trauma, especially to the head Soft tissue injuries like sprains or strains Gingivitis, a common form of gum disease
Autoimmune disorders: Stomatitis, inflammation in the mouth Pemphigus, a skin disease in which numerous pustules form on the skin Autoimmune hemolytic anemia, a condition associated with an abnormal breakdown of red blood cells Certain kidney diseases
About Dr Chris Vanderhoof Dvm Mph
Dr. Chris Vanderhoof is a 2013 graduate of the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine at Virginia Tech, where he also earned a Masters in Public Health. He completed a rotating internship with Red Bank Veterinary Hospital in New Jersey and now works as a general practitioner in the Washington D.C. area.Dr. Vanderhoof is also a copywriter specializing in the animal health field and founder of Paramount Animal Health Writing Solutions, which can be found at www.animalhealthcopywriter.com. Dr. Vanderhoof lives in the Northern Virginia area with his family, including 3 cats.
Also Check: At What Age Do Cats Start Spraying
Administering Prednisone To Cats
Prednisone can be administered to your cat in many forms including tablets, oral liquid, syrup, eye drops, or direct injection. The format and dosage all depend on the context for which it was prescribed, and on your veterinarians determination of treatment. Because Prednisone can have effects on the digestive tract, your vet will likely recommend that the medication be given with food at mealtime.
Side Effects Of Corticosteroids
by Paws & Claws Animal Hospital | Oct 12, 2016 | Animal Wellness Published Articles
While corticosteroids definitely have their place, steroids are frequently over-prescribed and misused, and can lead to serious health consequences in pets.
Corticosteroids are among the most commonly prescribed medications in veterinary medicine. Theyre also one of the most commonly abused and misused. As a result, dogs and cats are often incorrectly treated for months or even years, with serious side effects, before someone says: Enough. There must be a better way!
While many holistic pet owners think corticosteroids are horrible drugs to be avoided at all costs, theyre actually wonderful drugs that can be life-saving when used at the right dose, for the proper length of time, and for the correct reason. The problem is, corticosteroids are often not used at the right dose, for the proper length of time, or for the correct reason. With rare exceptions , there is rarely if ever a need for the long-term use of corticosteroids in the treatment of diseases such as arthritis or allergies, since so many natural options work just as well.
In this article, Ill introduce you to steroids and show how natural therapies can safely and effectively replace them for most pet problems.
Corticosteroids Explained
Pros
Cons
Natural Therapies
Follow Us!
You May Like: Cat Randomly Started Peeing On Things
Adverse Symptoms And Negative Side Effects Of Feline Prednisolone
Prednisolone is a medication that starts to have a higher propensity for adverse side effects the longer your cat is on the medication. It is likely that your cat will, at some point, stop feeling the benefits of Prednisolone as well as they did when they first started taking the medication. They may require higher doses to feel the same immune response.
This is not unique to Prednisolone. A lot of medications become tolerated by the body at a certain point, and since the bodys tolerance has reached a certain threshold, the medicine is not having the same effects anymore. If your cat still requires Prednisolone for allergies or inflammation, your cats veterinarian may prescribe a higher dose of the medication.
But before you blindly follow the prescriptions that your felines vet says are best, you should learn more about the short-term and in cats’ behavior.
Prednisone Side Effects In Cats
Just like humans, cats may experience side effects from the medications that they take. What are some prednisone side effects in cats? Prednisone can cause dry mouth resulting in your pet drinking more water. Prednisone also increases hunger which is why it is prescribed for cats with a weak appetite. This may result in rapid weight gain. Other side effects that are less common may include an upset stomach, behavioral changes , and hair loss. If any of the more serious side effects occur, contact your vet.
Cats sometimes have trouble metabolizing prednisone. That is why some are prescribed prednisolone instead. It is basically the same drug, but it is already in the form it would be after being processed in the liver. Prednisolone side effects in cats should be the same as the prednisone side effects. Since prednisone works as an immune suppressant, you should watch for the signs of an infection in your cat when it is taking this drug, especially if it is on a high dose as such a dose will significantly compromise the immune system. That is why high doses are only used in connection with serious conditions such as cancer.
Read Also: Cat Behaviors To Worry About
How Is Prednisone For Cats Administered
Prednisone for cats can be administered in a variety of formats, including tablets, oral liquid, syrup, eye drops or by direct injection. The format and dosage of prednisone for cats all depend on context, and veterinarians determine treatment cat by cat. Because prednisone and prednisolone for cats can damage the digestive tract, as well see below, your veterinarian might recommend that the medication be given along with the cats food at mealtime.
Taurine Deficiency In Cats
Taurine deficiency can cause serious diseases, including dilated cardiomyopathy and feline central retinal degeneration.
Although only a couple of health effects are seen from taurine deficiency, these health problems can be severe and even fatal.
Taurine deficiency can cause a heart disease called dilated cardiomyopathy . This is a disease where the heart chambers dilate, leading to overall heart enlargement, but the heart muscle itself actually becomes thinner and flaccid, leading to poor contraction.
Taurine deficiency has also been linked to feline central retinal degeneration , as the amino acid is required for proper retinal health. This degeneration of the retina of the eye is irreversible and leads to blindness.
Taurine is required for bile acid conjugation in dogs and cats, a process required for digestion, so deficiency of taurine can also lead to digestive health concerns.
For breeding queens, taurine deficiency can lead to poor litter health with small litter size, lower birth weights, and kittens that are not strong or healthy.
You May Like: Do Cats Bleed Before Giving Birth
The Essential Monitoring Tests
Because steroids suppress the immune system, cats taking them can be vulnerable to viruses, bacteria and other infections. While healthy cats should see their veterinarians for checkups twice a year, those taking long-term steroids should see their veterinarians more often.
During these visits, veterinarians will conduct urine and blood tests to screen for infections or signs of damage and make sure the cat is handling the steroid medication well. They might decide to alter the dosage or switch to an alternative medication if certain side effects become evident.
The Side Effects Of Prednisone For Cats
Prednisone for cats
Common Diseases for Which Prednisone Is Prescribed
- Bronchitis and other lung conditions
- Endocrine disorders
It is important to remember though that its use also causes minor to serious side effects. A full understanding of these will help you take an informed decision on the use of Prednisone.
Don’t Miss: My Cat Is Not Eating Or Drinking
Dosage And Administration Of Prednisolone
Prednisolone can be formulated into oral tablets, capsules, chewables, and liquids and in an injectable form. When it is administered at home, the drug is given orally, and it should be administered exactly as prescribed by your veterinarian. The dosage and frequency are determined by many factors, including the size and weight of the pet being treated, the severity of the condition, and more. It is recommended to give this medication with food or after meal.
If the prescriptions directions are for once-a-day administration, then it should be given to dogs in the morning and to cats in the evening at approximately the same time every day, as this best matches each species natural hormone cycle.
If you miss a dose of prednisolone, then give the next dose as soon as you remember or, if it is close to the next scheduled dose, wait and resume with the next regularly scheduled dose. Do not administer a double dose to try and catch up on a missed dose.
Corticosteroids And Cushings Disease
One unfortunate result of long-term steroid use is the potential for developing Cushings disease. This is called iatrogenic, or medication-caused, Cushings disease. Sometimes Cushings disease is unavoidable when a cat must be on a long-term dose of prednisone. Vets have several strategies for avoiding this situation, however, including tapering your cat off the steroids and using different drugs in combination. Symptoms of Cushings disease include an increase of thirst and hunger, a pot-belly, thinning skin, infections of the skin and ears, and urinary tract infections.
Recommended Reading: How To Care For A New Kitten