robinw Posted June 6, 2017 Share Posted June 6, 2017 My vet recently prescribed Anxitane for Xavi to help deal with anxiety. Has anybody ever tried it? What are your experiences? Thanks Quote Xavi the galgo and Peter the cat. Missing Iker the galgo ?-Feb.9/19, Treasure (USS Treasure) April 12/01-May 6/13, Phoenix (Hallo Top Son) Dec.14/99-June 4/11 and Loca (Reko Swahili) Oct.9/95 - June 1/09, Allen the boss cat, died late November, 2021, age 19. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greysmom Posted June 7, 2017 Share Posted June 7, 2017 Can't hurt to try it as it's fairly low impact. Like all natural products, your use may vary depending on what the physical cause of Xavi's anxiety is. L-theanine (generic Anxitane) can help in some cases. I tried it with two of mine, one for general anxiety and one for specific triggering and it did not help either of them. We ended up using a prescription med for both (xanax and trazadone) with much better results. Quote Chris - Mom to: Felicity (DeLand), and Andi (Braska Pandora) siggy by Chris Harper, on Flickr Angels: Libby (Everlast), Dorie (Dog Gone Holly), Dude (TNJ VooDoo), Copper (Kid's Copper), Cash (GSI Payncash), Toni (LPH Cry Baby), Whiskey (KT's Phys Ed), Atom, Lilly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spottydog Posted June 7, 2017 Share Posted June 7, 2017 Just started it for Oakley's big truck noises phobia. Will keep you posted... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NeylasMom Posted June 7, 2017 Share Posted June 7, 2017 I am the L-theanine queen! I love the stuff. I take it, my dogs take it, my client's dogs take it, the Suntheanine folks should pay me. I don't have time to write a lengthy post now, but a few things to know. One, don't bother paying for Anxitane. It is simply l-theanine in a chewable. You can buy 100 mg capsules (Suntheanine only, make sure there is no Xylitol) for very little money. I buy Enzymatic Therapy, which is a little pricier, but still way cheaper than Anxitane. Dosing - per the veterinary behaviorist I refer to, starting dose is 3-5 mg/kg up to 15 mg/kg twice daily. But you cant overdose (its just an amino acid found in green tea). Worst case, they just pee out the extra. Skye was on the lower end and I saw some improvement. When I doubled her dose, the change was incredible. To give you an idea, she takes 100 mg twice a day and is 40 lb. These types of neutriceuticals typically just take the edge off when dogs have more severe issues so I would not be afraid to give at least the 10 mg/mg dose twice a day in order to see if it might help. There's also another product called Zylkene, which is again the expensive doggy version of a human supplement, Lactium, which is made from a milk protein. There is evidence that the two work synergistically and like l-theanine there is a huge safety range. Dosage is 15 mg/kg. Dogs given 20x that amt had zero side effects. Fwiw, while l-theanine does not have any reliable studies to support anxiety reduction in dogs (one study did find an effect, but the sample size was tiny and it was run by the manufacturer of Anxitane) there is a ton of evidence that it reduces stress/anxiety in people (it works on GABA receptors). The Zylkene/Lactium however has a good study to back it up. They found the same effect on reducing anxiety as a pharmaceutical. For dogs with more severe behavioral issues, these may not be enough, but with what I have learned about dosing recently I suspect that some of that may be from people trying far too low of a dose,not seeing much of an effect, and giving up/saying it didn't work. You really can't harm your dog trying these, and at higher doses, and I have never had a client complain of side effects. They do not cause drowsiness. Skye's reactivity and noise sensitivity are dramatically reduced with l-theanine and we've added in the Lactium while I pack and move and it has definitely provided additional help. Hope that helps. Feel free to PM me if you have other questions. Quote Jen, CPDT-KA with Zuri, lab in a greyhound suit, Violet, formerly known as Faith, Skye, the permanent puppy, Cisco, resident cat, and my baby girl Neyla, forever in my heart "The great thing about science is that you're free to disagree with it, but you'll be wrong." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spottydog Posted June 7, 2017 Share Posted June 7, 2017 Thanks for chiming in, Jen. Have to seek out some Lactium too. It's been quite a trial for her...and us. Funny how her anxiety came on after we had had her about 4 or 5 months. We have had her for 8 months now. Just doesn't see right that a pup doesn't want to walk in familiar areas. She's only two in April. Just had her in to the vet to see if anything else going on...nothing apparent... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robinw Posted June 7, 2017 Author Share Posted June 7, 2017 Thanks for chiming in, Jen. Have to seek out some Lactium too. It's been quite a trial for her...and us. Funny how her anxiety came on after we had had her about 4 or 5 months. We have had her for 8 months now. Just doesn't see right that a pup doesn't want to walk in familiar areas. She's only two in April. Just had her in to the vet to see if anything else going on...nothing apparent... I've just recent,y been able to comfortably walk Iker, and that was five years in the making along the same paths! Be patient Quote Xavi the galgo and Peter the cat. Missing Iker the galgo ?-Feb.9/19, Treasure (USS Treasure) April 12/01-May 6/13, Phoenix (Hallo Top Son) Dec.14/99-June 4/11 and Loca (Reko Swahili) Oct.9/95 - June 1/09, Allen the boss cat, died late November, 2021, age 19. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dante2zoe Posted June 8, 2017 Share Posted June 8, 2017 Jen, I tried to PM you, but your mailbox is full. How long does it take to see any effectiveness? Maggie is about 56 pounds and gets 100 mg twice a day. I am looking for something to take the edge off due to her many other issues. Started Monday. Haven't seen anything but am not sure if it is too soon, not high enough, or it just isn't going to work. Good luck with you move! Cindy Quote Cindy with Miss Fancypants, Paris Bueller, Zeke, and Angus Dante (Dg's Boyd), Zoe (In a While), Brady (Devilish Effect), Goose (BG Shotgun), Maverick (BG ShoMe), Maggie (All Trades Jax), Sherman (LNB Herman Bad) and Indy (BYB whippet) forever in my heart The flame that burns the brightest, burns the fastest and leaves the biggest shadow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robinw Posted June 8, 2017 Author Share Posted June 8, 2017 Jen, I tried to PM you, but your mailbox is full. How long does it take to see any effectiveness? Maggie is about 56 pounds and gets 100 mg twice a day. I am looking for something to take the edge off due to her many other issues. Started Monday. Haven't seen anything but am not sure if it is too soon, not high enough, or it just isn't going to work. Cindy Good question! I haven't seen anything yet, either. We started just about a week ago, same dosage same weight. Quote Xavi the galgo and Peter the cat. Missing Iker the galgo ?-Feb.9/19, Treasure (USS Treasure) April 12/01-May 6/13, Phoenix (Hallo Top Son) Dec.14/99-June 4/11 and Loca (Reko Swahili) Oct.9/95 - June 1/09, Allen the boss cat, died late November, 2021, age 19. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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