Metronidazole Side Effects

[Guest gordysmom96]

My 11yr old girly was seen 11/30 for a variety of issues, mainly my questioning pancreatitis from her previous bloodwork results when seen by the oncologist and a torn dew claw. Her vet suspects pancreatitis related GI problems. He prescribed a bland diet of boiled chicken and rice including metronidazole. She's been eating this diet for two weeks and finished the meds but still has loose bowels, this can be a side effect, but I had hoped this would resolve sooner. I suppose it takes several days. ??? Anyone experience this?

 

I found she needs to eat at least 3-4 breast halves per day. Not all the rice gets eaten and I hope the powdered probiotic sprinkled on her food is consumed as well.

 

Am I worrying unnecessarily?

[cleptogrey]

both dogs have been on flagyl with out any side effects. but it often takes more than one round to clean up their gut. so, be patient.

 

annie has colitis and has been on flagyl for months now.she is down to a prophylactic dosage of 250mg daily. from what i was informed (sept. visit to vet) the newest dosage amount for a 60# dog is 250mg, morning and night totaling 500mg. the max dosage is 250mg + 500mg per day but limit the duration of that dose. anything greater than that will result in loose stools and is dangerous. in the past i was told 500mg. 2xs daily(old vet)? i did ask my new vet extensive questions about the use of flagyl and probiotics. the good flora in probiotics are basically wiped out by the flagyl. prior to her diagnosis i was informed by the vet that more times than less repeat dosages are necessary. as to the choice of antibiotics, it's up to your vet, i asked about tylan powder, it's their preference.

 

with pancreatitis, my other dog has had bouts of it, success has been a strict low fat diet. but boy did he get thin, even with supplements of rice and yams and oatmeal. felix did respond well to the low fat diet, he's now on a food which is 12% fat and tolerating it. he was on 7/8% fat(no need for ID, purina pro plan or Nutro weight reduction) saved us a bundle. annie did not respond to a bland diet. she needed the flagyl and that took a good couple of months to straighten her out.

 

i found it online for $.17 per pill/500mg. i don't remember where, but allivet did a match

.

[tbhounds]

I think you are worrying unnecessarily. Personally I never found chicken and rice to help firm up stools-yes, it's bland but, my feeling is it's a better suited diet for upper gi/vomiting. I think you may be better suited to try a commercial bland low fat food and -if needed add in extra fiber.

Metronidazole is generally well tolerated-there can be some dogs that display neuro signs (rare) but, resovle completely once the medication is discontinued.

Oh-I wanted to add that without repeating fasted blood work or running a spec pli test you aren't even sure if your dog had pancreatitis in the first place.

Edited December 11, 2016 by tbhounds

[Guest gordysmom96]

tbhounds, I'll ask for fasting bloodwork & spec pli test. She's not responding well to pumpkin, so I'll try boiled potatoes. I put altitude low fat kibble in her bowl with chicken broth. Hopefully she'll eat it.

 

Perhaps the vet will continue another course of metronidazole.

 

Poor baby isn't t feeling well today.

[Guest gordysmom96]

both dogs have been on flagyl with out any side effects. but it often takes more than one round to clean up their gut. so, be patient.

 

[Annie has colitis and has been on flagyl for months now.she is down to a prophylactic dosage of 250mg daily. from what i was informed (sept. visit to vet) the newest dosage amount for a 60# dog is 250mg, morning and night totaling 500mg. the max dosage is 250mg + 500mg per day but limit the duration of that dose. anything greater than that will result in loose stools and is dangerous. in the past i was told 500mg. 2xs daily(old vet)? i did ask my new vet extensive questions about the use of flagyl and probiotics. the good flora in probiotics are basically wiped out by the flagyl. prior to her diagnosis i was informed by the vet that more times than less repeat dosages are necessary. as to the choice of antibiotics, it's up to your vet, i asked about tylan powder, it's their preference.

 

with pancreatitis, my other dog has had bouts of it, success has been a strict low fat diet. but boy did he get thin, even with supplements of rice and yams and oatmeal. felix did respond well to the low fat diet, he's now on a food which is 12% fat and tolerating it. he was on 7/8% fat(no need for ID, purina pro plan or Nutro weight reduction) saved us a bundle. annie did not respond to a bland diet. she needed the flagyl and that took a good couple of months to straighten her out.]

 

 

Thanks cleptogrey. I'll call the vet tomorrow. Sounds like she may need fasting blood work to check pancreatic values, as tbhounds mentioned if a spec pli wasn't done, then the vet is only speculating.i suspect she'll need another corpse of metronidazole. Poor baby. I feel sad to see he like this. She's been doing well, all things considered, but not today. Who wouldn't with chronic diarrhea.

 

Her vet suggested boiled chicken & dice but not oatmeal as he thinks it's too rough on the GI tract. Deedee may not care for low fat kibble, but if a small amount of her fave is added, then she should eat it.

[Remolacha]

Conner had a bout of diarrhea a while back (unknown cause) and the metronidazole didn't help as much as it has helped my previous dogs. Don (Rocket's dad) gave me some of his Tylan capsules, which helped a lot more. His vet gave me some clay (yes, just finely powdered medicinal clay ) that, along with his probiotic, has helped keep him regular. Pumpkin, which has worked well for previous dogs, didn't agree with him either.

 

When he needs a bland diet, he likes oatmeal better than rice

[greysmom]

The chicken-and-rice diet is more useful, as said above, for vomiting and upper GI issues. If you need low fat, a commercial (ie rx) diet is probably better. If you contiue with a home-made food, remember that rice must be overcooked to mushiness, otherwise it just goes right through with breaking down. I prefer overcooked pasta or oatmeal, with cooked and rinsed ground beef or turkey.

 

Metronidazol is a low dose antibiotic that specifically target the GI tract (same with Tylan powder). It may or may not help if your dog has pancreatitis. If she is still symptomatic after two weeks of treatment you should definitely be contacting your vet again.

[Hubcitypam]

Rex was on it for years with no issues.

[cleptogrey]

do ask your vet the difference or his preference of flagyl vs. tylan powder. and keeping her on a maintenance dose

 

annie used to be able to consume ground tires and had a rock solid digestive system. the colitis sprung up over the summer. i thought it was the excessive heat and stress at Grapehounds last july. it was 4 days of high 90s for us, we camp and the only relief from the heat was to be hosed down. annie also does not like shows and just shuts down but when you are a vendor what can you do with your dogs?. so, i also attributed the runs to stress. she did the low fat/chicken diet....NO LUCK!!!! it seemed to take flagyl a good 5 days to start working then 5 days after the end of the 2 week period of flagyl she would resume making puddles of poop. the long term use has been the only relief and i sometimes can skip a day, but more than 2 days off she's back to puddles.

[Guest gordysmom96]

When I call the vet tomorrow I'll ask his opinion about flagyl vs. tylan. I gave her several small servings of low fat chicken/brown rice kibble 7/8% (PetsMart house brand Simply Nourish) with chicken broth and she ate it all. She went out recently and again had loose bowels. Hope she can hold it tomorrow since my husband & I will be at work. Will ask a friend if she can pop by to let her out.

 

Hope this can get resolved soon as she's had issues for over a month. I think how thecraw diet she was on for several years may have exacerbated the GI tract. Doesn't matter at this juncture.

[tbhounds]

Mix in a little W/D--full of fiber and it will firm her right up. You could also introduce Owelo carrots (fiber)

https://www.olewousa.com

[Guest gordysmom96]

Tbhounds.....W/D?

 

I have Olewo, but will try disguising in chicken broth. She didn't like it several weeks ago.

[tbhounds]

Tbhounds.....W/D?

I have Olewo, but will try disguising in chicken broth. She didn't like it several weeks ago.

Sorry-W/D is a prescription food. It's high fiber and low fat. If you want to try Owelo again -after soaking mix it in with the food she's most tolerating now.

[Guest gordysmom96]

Thanks tbhounds.....Deedee is so picky, aka spoiled? Hopefully, she'll eat W/D. Will disguise that with chicken or boiled ground turkey. Oy.

[cleptogrey]

Oatmeal is high fiber. Neither pumpkin or owelo carrots worked for annie. That's when I went back to the vet,did a fecal just in case

[Guest gordysmom96]

Cleptogrey, Deedee, my husband & I traveled to Auburn, NY two summers ago to check out an art exhibit at Schweinfurth Museum of Art. We talked about going to Grapehound sometime. The Finger Lakes is so gorgeous and a greyt location for a greyhound gathering!

 

Hopefully, Miss Deedee's system will respond positively to Olewo. Her vet did not recommend oatmeal b/c of its coarse texture.

[cleptogrey]

Cleptogrey, Deedee, my husband & I traveled to Auburn, NY two summers ago to check out an art exhibit at Schweinfurth Museum of Art. We talked about going to Grapehound sometime. The Finger Lakes is so gorgeous and a greyt location for a greyhound gathering!

 

Grapehound participants LOVE it and generally they go back to their hotels which all have AC(not us, if it's above 40 degrees we camp). last summer the average temp. was 97degrees! that can set anyone off balance, i live on electrolytes and manage when it's that hot. my prince and princess obviously are a different story. if you are thinking of going, DO SO!!!

[Guest gordysmom96]

Deedee's vet will prescribe tylosin since metronidazole hasn't worked. Her appetite is better as she's ingesting Olewo, pumpkin, small amount of boiled turkey burger, kibble and chicken broth. It may take several weeks for her GI to settle.

 

It's difficult to determine her stool consistency since it is dark early in the AM and PM. Her spirit is good, which is a good thing!

[Remolacha]

Glad she seems to be doing better! Unfortunately, GI issues can take awhile to resolve.

[Guest gordysmom96]

Deedee's still has loose bowels. I know it'll take time. I realized she's not getting enough Olewo so that's been increased. I stopped using rice and boiled chicken and instead added 1 TB pumpkin and boiled turkey burger and she's also getting Entero probiotic. The vet is awaiting a shipment of tylosin so that'll be started next week.

 

I feel so bad for her having to go through this for this long. Hopefully, things will resolve with in the month.

[greysmom]

You can buy Tylan powder from Amazon - no rx needed. It's listed as a chicken antibiotic, but it's the same stuff.

[Guest gordysmom96]

Greymom, how much would be given to a 60# grey? I suppose it'll be more $$$ from the vet.

[Guest gordysmom96]

I can get tylosin from the vet for the same price as Amazon. Wahoo!

[Batmom]

gordysmom96, I give @3/8ths teaspoon twice a day for a similarly sized dog, per our vet. Hope it helps!

[tbhounds]

Stop all of the turkey and add ins...... Ask your vet to dispense a low fat higher fiber kibble then if needed add more fiber (w/d or I/d would be my choice). Gotta keep it simple-way too many changes and add ins.