Apoquel

[Dublinhorse]

We have recently moved and I have signed up with a new local vet.

My 9 year old Cyprus hunting dog (BeaglexJack), has had regular flare ups of itchy ears since we moved her to wetter climes 8 years ago up till now a couple of days of Courtavance cleared it up.

This time it did not work (must be a new irritant locally) and vet prescribed Apoquel at a 2 x 5.4mg loading dose for two weeks.

Three days in and itching is indeed better but she ate her dinner last night and then threw it up and was then sick multiple times until she was only bringing up bile......this is a dog who is never sick and has the constitution of a galvanized bucket so it was a shock to see her like this.

I googled side effects of this drug and sickness is indeed one of them along with some other rather alarming ones.......my gut says take her off them now.

Anyone had any dealings with this drug as I want to do the right thing for her she is still very sorry for herself this morning......only change s the drugs.

 

[Snuffles]

My dog has been on it for itching , I was a bit nervous about using it but it did stop the itching and dog didn't have any problems, but I have seen reports of various unpleasant side effects. Best speak to the vet, an alternative I believe is prednisolone (sp) which is a steroid though. and a lot cheaper.

 

[Aru]

Bring her to the vet in the morning if shes still unwell.
It may be the drugs, it may be coincidental.

If they suspect that the Apoquel is the cause they will be able to help you make a adverse reaction report and get to the bottom of it...the drug companies are usually very interested in hearing if there are issue's and do sometimes pay fo further work up if its needed in order to see what has gone wrong and to fix any issues.
I wouldn't give any more medications until you have had her checked but like I said sometimes its unlucky timing and cooincidence.

Apoquel is a relatively new drug on the market so reports of possible reactions are still being recorded.
I would take online anecdotal reports with a massive pinch of salt though...drugs often get blamed for effects of underlying diseases...unless its been worked up its impossible to be sure of the actual cause...this drug has changed the quality of lives of many animals so far and has had worldwide shorttages due to demand.It seems,so far,to be a much safer alternative compared to steroids.Not benign but safer so far.

However...and i say this simplysimply because its in the product info sheets.... it is known causing issues when tumours are present and is completely contraindicated if any type of cancer is present....so I would be getting any dog who has a possible reaction to it checked. Ive heard stories of it helping to find early stage cancer. She may just have an gi upset...but I wouldnt just drop the drugs and hope for the best....but il freely admit I always think worse case scenarios!