# Long-term effects of prednisone?



## Claire's Friend (Feb 26, 2007)

You can give him milk thistle or SAM-e to help his liver cope.


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## Penny & Maggie's Mom (Oct 4, 2007)

Cody had hemolytic anemia and was on high doses of prednisone for months. His dose was 1 mg per lb of body weight, divided into 2 doses/day... so for him 30 mg am & 30 mg evening. He did have a voracious appetite, had to pee probably every hour, and lost muscle mass. He was on this for about 6-7 months. We had to do a very slow taper and that was a bit of a trick with his anemia. We had to go back and forth depending on what his hematocrit was. All that being said, he's been off the pred for 4 years and has done well.


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## cprcheetah (Apr 26, 2009)

I work for a Vet and usually we keep them on the lowest dose possible to get relief from symptoms. We usually try to go for 1 dose every 3-4 days depending on the condition and the dose of the Prednisone. It is usually a last resort for us to use because of the severe side effects it can have. We make sure all outlets have been exhausted (diet changes, etc) before using it, and make sure people understand what it can do to their dogs systems. Yes Milk Thistle can help. In some cases we use Vetalog instead which doesn't have such nasty side effects. My chihuahua has been on a very low dose of Vetalog for 4 years now, but she only gets it every 3 days. So far her blood levels are good, and she hasn't had a lot of issues other than drinking excessively sometimes.


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## Enzos_Mom (Apr 8, 2010)

cprcheetah said:


> I work for a Vet and usually we keep them on the lowest dose possible to get relief from symptoms. We usually try to go for 1 dose every 3-4 days depending on the condition and the dose of the Prednisone. It is usually a last resort for us to use because of the severe side effects it can have. We make sure all outlets have been exhausted (diet changes, etc) before using it, and make sure people understand what it can do to their dogs systems. Yes Milk Thistle can help. In some cases we use Vetalog instead which doesn't have such nasty side effects. My chihuahua has been on a very low dose of Vetalog for 4 years now, but she only gets it every 3 days. So far her blood levels are good, and she hasn't had a lot of issues other than drinking excessively sometimes.


We tried weaning him off (went to 10 mg 1x/day) and he started having accidents in the house again pretty much the next day, so I really don't think we can lower his dosage any more than that. Where can I get Milk Thistle?


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## coppers-mom (Jan 9, 2009)

copper went through all the standard and some not so standard treatments for arthritis and other issues for his last 8 months or so.

He ended up on 30mg of prednisone (15mg 2X a day) for the last couple of months. I lost him to cancer. Like my vet said - it came down to quality of life and I don't think Cop would have done so well without it.

I'd recommend Milk thistle at least to help with liver function. *It is quite inexpensive and available at drug stores and Wal-Mart*. I also used SAM-e to help with liver function and my specialist said it has been shown to help with arthritis too.

it comes down to quality of life and a roll of the dice. sigh.


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## Enzos_Mom (Apr 8, 2010)

Penny & Maggie's Mom said:


> Cody had hemolytic anemia and was on high doses of prednisone for months. His dose was 1 mg per lb of body weight, divided into 2 doses/day... so for him 30 mg am & 30 mg evening. He did have a voracious appetite, had to pee probably every hour, and lost muscle mass. He was on this for about 6-7 months. We had to do a very slow taper and that was a bit of a trick with his anemia. We had to go back and forth depending on what his hematocrit was. All that being said, he's been off the pred for 4 years and has done well.


SO glad to read this! I'm hoping that a few more months on the prednisone will help his stomach so that it's no so inflamed that he's still having accidents and pooping blood. I really hope that we'll be able to wean him off of it after a few months.


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## Enzos_Mom (Apr 8, 2010)

Oh, one more question about the milk thistle. Would it be beneficial to Enzo, as well, if he's not on prednisone?? Or would it be bad to give it to him?? He gets jealous if Hunter gets something that he doesn't (prednisone and sucralfate included! lol). I've been giving him brewer's yeast and glucosamine when Hunter gets his meds, just so he feels like he's getting something, too. lol


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