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Can Steroid Cause Aggression


Guest DrCoconut

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Guest DrCoconut

Don't know we're to post this under medical or behavior, but here goes the medical background. Carl has been with us 3 weeks. We took him to the vet the 1st week and he had a double ear infection, and a bacterial infection on his leg. He is 75 pounds.The vet gave him MalOtic ear drops,Cephalexin 750 mg 2x a day and a Chlorhexidine 4 percent shampoo 3x a week. I took a stool sample in and it was positive for hook worms. So first dose of Strongid given last Saturday. Tuesday Carl had red bumps all over his belly. Back to vet who gives him Temaril-P ( different vet in the practice). His first dose given Tuesday night.

Wednesday night a 10 month lab mix pup aggressively approaches Carl on the other side of our fence. Carl pees on the fence in front of him and walked away. The other dog then jumps the fence into our yard 2 feet from Carl who grabs and shakes the other dog. Lab is fine Carl is fine but the other owner has a small cut on his hand from trying to break up the fight. I figured the other dog started it and he was in our yard.

Friday Carl had the end of a peanut butter jar and my dd she is 11 sat next to him and went to pet him on the back and he bites her. I know and she knows she wasn't supposed to be near him while he is eating or sleeping, but she forgot and I wasn't there.

The vet did tell me he would be more hungry but did not tell me how much more to feed so I think he was really hungry too. Carl gets fed in his kennel 2x a day 2 cups of Iams green bag.

Sorry so long but I want to make sure my thinking is correct. We love Carl and want to make sure that this adoption works.

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Corticosteroids come with a whole hosts of side effects one of them being-yes aggression. Also seen is panting, pacing, excessive drinking and urination, thinning of skin and coat, pot belly, increased appetite, sleeplessness....... Many of those side effects are dependent on the dosage and frequency given, however, it's also dependent on an individuals tolerance.

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I don't know anything about dogs and steroids, but when my husband has to take them for asthma, he becomes nearly impossible to live with! (Hubby is generally very laid back.)

 

Your dog has a lot going on, and probably feels pretty yucky. That, with being very new to your home, and I'd bet a lot of what's going on is stress. You already know your DD needs to stay out the dog's space when he's laying down or eating. I bet she gets it now, too. As for the lab puppy, it's really not good that it can jump your fence. Can you zip tie some kind of barrier, like plastic lattice or one of those bamboo fence rolls, to the fence to make it a foot or two higher?

 

Eta: also consider walks with lab puppy and its family so your dogs get used to each other and become more like a pack. If they're going to live next door to one another, they need to at least tolerate each other, or you'll go crazy.

Edited by Riverhound
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Guest DrCoconut

Thanks everyone. The vet said that can be a very rare side effect. I wasn't sure he believed me. I increased his food to 3 cups for every meal, and he leaves a little bit so I think that's helped too. So after 2 days on the half dose Carl is back to acting like his happy goofy self.

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