Xanax Dosage

[NeylasMom]

If you've used Xanax for anxiety relief for your pup, could you share what dosage you used and what your dog weighed at the time? Feel free to add what specifically you used it for and for how long as well.

 

Thanks!

[Hollis]

can tell you dose when I get home. Miss Bree is 60-70 lbs. Has been almost a year now, (year at Dewey anniversary). I wanted to take her to be groomed before we left and she WOULD NOT leave the house. So the vet very kindly gave us xanax to get her to the groomer. When I explained we were heading out of town and could I have more, she changed the "5" to a "50" and told me "just dont go out selling it..." Gotta love my vets!

 

Bree has really made leaps and bounds this past year. She gets SO happy when her mama comes home from work in the morning! DP gets all the nuzzles and little licks! Bree still tends to run away from me, but I do get nuzzles when I come home in the afternoon. Trick for me is I have to petting Norm and have my back to Bree. Thats the only way we can do it still.

 

I'm not sure if the xanax is really doing anything at this point, but I'm really afraid to find out.

[JAJ2010]

YES! I so need this thread right now! We just started with a new vet and went back on Prozac 20 mg once a day. With 30 days of Xanax to start us off. I thought this new vet gave us waaaaayyyy to high of a Xanax dosage. She's 55lbs and getting 2mgs twice a day, and you know what, it's PERFECT for her. But we are on week 3 and I don't think the prozac is really kicking in at all...

[inugrey]

Ask Dr. K? I can figure out the dosage for Zoe tonight. She prescribed some for managing the stress of walks not for anything long term.

[NeylasMom]

What are you using the Prozac for, separation anxiety? If so, you might try amitriptyline or chlomicalm instead. They're a different class of anti-anxiety meds than Prozac so therefore may have a better effect. I also was told recently that while it does build, amitriptyline starts working pretty quickly.

 

Ask Dr. K? I can figure out the dosage for Zoe tonight. She prescribed some for managing the stress of walks not for anything long term.

I actually have the dosage from Christine, but I'm trying to figure out what the "typical" dosage is, or where people generally see a positive effect. I understand that each dog is different, just trying to get some data for comparison.

[JAJ2010]

What are you using the Prozac for, separation anxiety? If so, you might try amitriptyline or chlomicalm instead. They're a different class of anti-anxiety meds than Prozac so therefore may have a better effect. I also was told recently that while it does build, amitriptyline starts working pretty quickly.

 

 

We've tried Clomicalm with zero results and Prozac worked 2 years ago for generalized anxiety for day to day life The xananx works so well that I'm almost wondering what the harm in just keeping her on that would be!

[NeylasMom]

What are you using the Prozac for, separation anxiety? If so, you might try amitriptyline or chlomicalm instead. They're a different class of anti-anxiety meds than Prozac so therefore may have a better effect. I also was told recently that while it does build, amitriptyline starts working pretty quickly.

 

 

We've tried Clomicalm with zero results and Prozac worked 2 years ago for generalized anxiety for day to day life The xananx works so well that I'm almost wondering what the harm in just keeping her on that would be!

 

From what I understand, it's safe to use longer term as well, so my guess is none.

 

ETA: Oh, except that I forgot that there's supposedly a risk of dependence with drugs like valium and xanax so perhaps not.

Edited August 4, 2011 by NeylasMom

[Guest budsmom]

I tried xanax with Twiz, but it didn't help. I don't remember the dose, but it seemed pretty high to me (4mgs maybe). At the full dose, she just got really restless, so I kept reducing the dose till finally I was giving her 1 mg and hoping that it would cut the fear at least a little. She wasn't showing the restlessness at that dose, but I'm not sure it helped with the fear, either (she was on it for storm phobia). I've swtiched to trazadone this summer, and that is the first thing that has seemed to help a little.

[JJNg]

Xanax has a rather wide dose range, and in my experience, there really isn't a 'typical' dose. It varies a lot from dog to dog, which is why I always recommend owners do a trial dose or two before actually using it in the situation where the dog needs it. Some get agitated on the higher doses and less works better. Others need higher doses to see any effect.

 

The only dog I've personally had to use it with was my fear aggressive IG who also had some storm phobia. I used Xanax for the more severe storms, and also if I had to take him in to the clinic for anything. He weighed about 16 lbs, and I would usually gave him 0.25 mg. When I took him in for a dental cleaning, I gave him 0.5 mg before we left the house, and that also kinda doubled as his pre-med before anesthesia.

 

The general dose range for Xanax (for dogs) is 0.01-0.1 mg/kg, although some sources go as high as 0.4 mg/kg. I've never gone much over 0.1 mg/kg, and I usually use a starting dose of around 0.025-0.05 mg/kg. I have owners adjust the dose based on how they respond to the trial dose at home.

 

Regarding long term use.... It is safe, so there really isn't any 'harm' in terms of causing any health problems. But yes, it can cause dependence, so if a dog is on it for an extended period of time, you need to wean off slowly when you want to stop. Also, with long term use, you can get resistance, so that you need to increase the dose to get the same effect, and it may get to the point where it stops working altogether.

[Guest Whistle]

My 62ish-pound girl takes 4 mg every 12 hours for thunderstorm anxiety and around the 4th of July when there are a lot of fireworks. 2 mg did nothing for her. The Xanax really does help her. Our vet said Xanax has a very wide safety range.

 

Also, we give the generic, alprazolam.

[JAJ2010]

Here's a fun spin off... Cheapest place to get the Xanax? I'm using Costco right now

[Hollis]

Here's a fun spin off... Cheapest place to get the Xanax? I'm using Costco right now

 

 

 

This.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(I have ALWAYS wanted to do.....THIS!!! )

[JAJ2010]

Here's a fun spin off... Cheapest place to get the Xanax? I'm using Costco right now

 

 

 

This.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(I have ALWAYS wanted to do.....THIS!!! )

 

That went way over my head for a very long time!

[Hollis]

Here's a fun spin off... Cheapest place to get the Xanax? I'm using Costco right now

 

 

 

This.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(I have ALWAYS wanted to do.....THIS!!! )

 

That went way over my head for a very long time!

 

 

Not kidding here....what did?

[JAJ2010]

(I have ALWAYS wanted to do.....THIS!!! )

 

That comment.... I couldn't figure out what I did! :lol

[Hollis]

(I have ALWAYS wanted to do.....THIS!!! )

 

That comment.... I couldn't figure out what I did! :lol

 

 

 

OH! LOL!

[Guest BrianRke]

Diamond is 65lbs. She takes 3mg of xanax for her thunderphobia.

[Jackandgrey]

I use 2mgs for Joshy for thunderphobia. Not more often than every 4 hours. He usually only gets the one dose though. He's about 75 lbs.

Edited August 5, 2011 by Jackandgrey

[greysmom]

I use it with my spook Cash for absurdly high general anxiety. She started on it in 08. Our vet was not very familiar with anxiety drugs, and neither was I, at the time, so we started with xanax (alprazolam) instead of clomicalm or one of the other prozac-like drugs. Cash weighs about 68 lbs. At her highest dosage, she was taking 1.5 mgs every eight hours. Max dose according to my research is 4 mgs per 24 hours, so we were over that.

 

Interestingly, I've been gradually weaning her off this drug, as I think clomicalm (or similar) will help her more. She has come a long, looooong way from the little greyhound who cowered in our bedroom for a year. Just about 5% left to get over. Anyway, I've got her down to .5 mg every eight hours and she seems to get better behaviorally each time I do a reduction. So maybe we won't need anything by the time I have her off it completely.

 

If you do use it long term, you need to do bloodwork at least every year to make sure liver and kidneys are doing OK.

 

I get mine at Safeway. $9.99 for 2 months worth.

[Guest MnMDogs]

1 mg for Mork about an hour before vet visits. He's about 80 pounds, and it works for him. Fortunately nothing else stresses him out.

[Guest d0ggiem0mma]

Maggie weighs around 50lbs and takes 1mg for light storms, 2mg for nasty storms or during fireworks. The vet says she can have 3mg at a time if needed but we've never gone that high.

 

We started using it WITH trazodone around July 4th and that has been a huge help. The Xanax only helps Maggie for about 3 hours but the trazodone is only dosed twice a day. If we're expecting pop-up showers I will dose with the trazodone every 12 hours and the Xanax as needed. Thundershirts are great too, for both storms AND separation!