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The doghouse

If you're worried about your pet's health, please speak to a vet or qualified professional.

Can i give the dog calpol ?

22 replies

frumpet · 25/01/2015 19:46

Dog has injured his leg and can't get to the vets until tomorrow , I am sure in the past I have given him calpol , but wanted to check ?

OP posts:
ShadowsShadowsEverywhere · 25/01/2015 19:50

Nooooooo!!
Paracetamol has a high toxicity to dogs. Some vets used to advocate it but not any more. No paracebtmol based products at all.

SunshineAndShadows · 25/01/2015 19:53

Vet here: NO NO NO
please do not medicate your dog
How serious is the injury? Cut vs broken leg?
Keep dog calm and quiet

FiveHoursSleep · 25/01/2015 19:54

NO, it can be toxic to dogs at what were generally believed to be therapeutic levels.
You have to be absolutely sure that your dog has no liver issues.

EasyToEatTiger · 25/01/2015 20:11

That's us told then! Thank you frumpet for asking the question, and thank you all for your answers! Some human medicines can be used for animals, but it doesn't happen often and there is a lot of confusion. I have given a duck dog medicine under the say so of the vet. The situation was desperate. One of our chickens had painkillers to help a broken leg. I asked my gp if humans took the same drug. It is very complicated, and so important to ask!

frumpet · 26/01/2015 12:23

Thank you for all the replies , got dog booked in tonight at vets . Sunshine no cut , he fell in the snow and it is swollen , won't weight bear at all on it , has done similar in the past and after a few days rest was right as rain , but it hasn't improved at all so think we may be looking at a break , so now feel awful that I haven't taken him sooner Sad . He is eating and drinking still and hopping into the garden for a wee etc . Have been carrying him up and downstairs each night , no mean feat as he weighs 42kg !

OP posts:
frumpet · 26/01/2015 12:28

He isn't flinching if you squeeze the area or constantly licking it , he got off the sofa last night to come and beg for gammon that I was dishing up in the kitchen Smile

OP posts:
tabulahrasa · 26/01/2015 13:47

Just as general information...dogs are sometimes prescribed paracetamol, the dosage is different than for people and it shouldn't ever be done without a vet prescribing it as it is easier to overdose a dog than a person, but if anyone is ever given it by a vet it is perfectly fine to give to them.

frumpet - if he's comfortable then fingers crossed it's just a sprain Smile

frumpet · 26/01/2015 20:35

Not good news , it is broken , the vet thinks he has a tumour that has caused it to weaken . He is 12 so the vet says amputation is out of the question . So we have the choice of sedating him for an x-ray and then not letting him wake up or just having him put to sleep Sad Part of me wants the x-ray just in case the vet is mistaken , but part of me thinks he wouldn't have said it if he wasn't pretty damn sure .

OP posts:
SunshineAndShadows · 26/01/2015 21:15

Oh that's sad :-( is he a larger dog? Bone tumours are more common in bigger dogs and I'd agree with your vet if it is an osteosarcoma then PTS would probably be best Sad
If you sedate him for the X-ray then you might not be there to say goodbye to him so it might be better to do it straight off?
So sorry for you x

livefastlove · 26/01/2015 21:20

Oh so sorry for this news. Poor old doggie. I would have to have the Xray. 12 is a good age though and you dont want him to suffer. Flowers

frumpet · 26/01/2015 21:24

He is a german short haired pointer , still in shock really , went in expecting mahoosive bill and came out in tears with painkillers . I have to work all day tomorrow , so will ring them on Wednesday morning . Going to ask if they could come to the house to put him to sleep , not sure if they do that sort of thing any more ?

OP posts:
CatsClaus · 26/01/2015 21:29

OH! so sad for you, this happened to our first dog, she was a GSD cross, i was so shocked when the vet said her foot was broken, she'd not been weight bearing but not in pain either

vet likened the bone to polystyrene once the bone tumour had set in

I am sure they will come to the house.

tabulahrasa · 26/01/2015 22:00

Oh dear Sad

moosemama · 27/01/2015 13:57

I'm so sorry to hear this.

We lost our 14 year old girl to osteosarcoma. We found out via xray, because the site and presentation weren't typical.

We were given the option of an xray to check for lung mets and chose to take it, but sadly they discovered that, not only had she got multiple mets, the leg had broken through the tumour sometime during the 24 hours from us last seeing the vet. She only had light sedation for the xray, so we were able to go in and have some time with her before we let her go.

Osteo is a horrible, horrible disease and according to my vet, excruciatingly painful. Unless caught very early, there's rarely a chance of getting a few more months, even with amputation and chemo etc and advice is usually to let them go sooner rather than later, as it's so hard to tell how much pain dogs are in, they can be incredibly stoic.

The vet will come out to your house, it's fairly common practise.

Again, I'm so sorry to hear such sad news and wish you and your family lots of strength through this difficult time. Flowers

MsAdorabelleDearheartVonLipwig · 27/01/2015 14:28

God I'm so sorry, what an awful shock. Sad

Can you give him some painkillers for a day or two so you can have some time with him?

We lost our old boy last month. We'd been considering for a few days that we might have to let him go but it still came as a horrible shock when we actually had to do it. I really do sympathise. Flowers

TheHappinessTrap · 27/01/2015 17:40

I just cried a little reading this. What a shock for you all.

frumpet · 27/01/2015 21:44

What we are all struggling with is how happy he is , pootling around , head in bin as usual ,begging for food ( slightly lopsided ) , other than the mobilising on three legs you honestly wouldn't know the difference . Mind you saying that he has never been the brightest poppet , bless him !
Clutching at straws here but about 3 months ago he went arse over tit chasing the cat and bashed the same leg against the door frame , it was a little swollen and he limped for a couple of days , but then came good . Don't suppose an old injury could present as a tumour could it ?
Part of me wants the x-ray to make sure that there is absolutely nothing we can do , but don't want him putting to sleep without me there . Worried that because we don't have insurance the vet thinks we won't pay for expensive treatment because we will if needs be for him Sad

OP posts:
moosemama · 27/01/2015 22:02

Am I right in thinking your vet diagnosed osteosarcoma without any xrays at all? Did you mention the previous injury to him.

I wasn't happy to pts without being absolutely sure there were no alternatives and that was at the point of being sure she had a tumour via the initial xray results - hence going for the xray under light sedation.

We had our girl for just under three weeks from initial diagnosis to when she had to be pts. She was on strong painkillers, but eating well, begging for scraps (she was a bit cheeky like that) pootling around and genuinely seemed happy. Our vet was very careful to reinforce to us how much pain she might be in without showing it, but knew how well we knew our own dog and we agreed that at the first sign she was suffering we would call a stop to things there and then. Vet also made it clear that she would only back us up as long as she was happy our girl wasn't suffering at all.

It meant we had chance to say our proper goodbyes (although no amount of time is ever enough really) and we were able to prepare our dcs for what lay ahead, which definitely helped.

It's a really hard to know what to do for best, as it's such a horrible illness and you're always aware of the 'better a day early than an hour too late' thing when you're desperate to do right by them. I would/could only say, trust your own instincts and do what feels right for you, based on your knowledge of your boy.

I have had the odd time when I've questioned whether we did the right thing keeping her with us for those weeks. But when I look at family photos of the time, I'm reassured that we did the best we could for her with the information we had at the time, backed up by a degree of gut feeling about what was right for both her and our family.

frumpet · 27/01/2015 22:20

We have painkillers for him , I think we just need a day or so to come to terms with it and break it to the children , especially my 12 yr old , he sleeps on her bed every night , until the leg broke and then she put her duvet on the floor next to her bed so he would be comfortable .

The vet diagnosed it by examining him all over , not just the leg , he is a bit lumpy bumpy and warty so he probably picked up on other things that we have just taken to be old age lumps and bumps . I did mention the previous injury , but maybe they are linked in a bad way .

Actually felt really sorry for the vet , he is a man of few words any way , but 'breaking bad news ' clearly left him struggling Sad

OP posts:
MsAdorabelleDearheartVonLipwig · 27/01/2015 22:20

Yes I think I'd be happier having an X-ray first under light sedation. At least you'd know and wouldn't be forever wondering.

FiveHoursSleep · 28/01/2015 19:10

I would definitely have an xray done first. Old dogs often have lots of lumps and bumps that aren't malignant and it would be a brave vet who would make a definitive diagnosis without an xray.

TheHappinessTrap · 28/01/2015 20:21

I was thinking of you today OP. It would be hard to make such a decision when a much loved pet seems to still be vivacious and enjoying life. I've got an older girl with arthritis and she can limp around the house quite slowly and be unable to jump on to the sofa. But then she gets out in the garden and is leaping over things - I always find that reassuring and I was thinking today what would I do if I found out that she was suffering from something like what your pooch has. I just don't know.

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