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Prozac For Dogs Now Available
At Health Freedom Alliance we don’t always think Big Pharma is just concerned about money, only 99.999% of the time. Sometimes they pretend to have an “altruistic” nature which is why they are now marketing antidepressants for dogs (now that they’ve exhausted the adult and children markets). A dog version of the anti-depressant Prozac has been approved for sale to British pet owners.
The one-a-day tablet, which tastes of beef, is said to help cure ‘canine compulsive disorder’ and ’separation anxiety’ brought on by owners’ long absences during the day. Symptoms include poor behaviour, whimpering or tail-chasing. They says the kids responsible for the “Columbine Shootings” were regular users of anti-depressants, I would think twice before before giving a dog with large teeth the same.
Propaganda follows:
“The drug, called Reconcile, claims to curb the compulsive pacing, chewing and dribbling which its makers claim is a result of depression brought on by their owners’ long absences.
The anti-depressant Prozac has been used to cure compulsive behaviour in humans, and works by increasing the brain’s levels of serotonin, a ‘happiness’ chemical.
Trials involving more than 660 mentally-disturbed pets in Europe and the US produced improvements in behaviour within eight weeks.
Eli Lilly, the drug’s US manufacturer, said: ‘Treatment for companion animals is a relatively new area for us.’
They point to research which shows that as many as 8 per cent of dogs suffer from canine compulsive disorder.
Critics say gods are now being diagnosed with ‘lifestyle’ illnesses so that drugs can be marketed to treat them.
Roger Mugford, an animal psychologist, said: ‘Most breakthroughs in dog behaviour are achieves by carrying a titbit and using it wisely, not by drugs.’
Reconcile has now been granted a licence by the UK’s Veterinary Medicines Directorate.
However, it was first licensed in the US three years ago for separation anxiety from being left alone for long periods.
The American Food and Drug Administration said it should be taken with therapy to modify the dog’s behaviour – and should be taken by puppies as young as six months.
At the time, Steve Connell, Eli Lilly’s manager of consumer services for companion animal health, said that more than 10million US dogs exhibit strange symptoms from being left alone too long.
‘Lilly research shows that 10.7million, or up to 17 per cent, of US dogs suffer from separation anxiety,’ he said. ‘We’re thrilled that our first product for dogs can help restore the human-pet bond.’
He said research showed that 73 per cent of dogs taking Reconcile and undergoing therapy showed better behaviour within eight weeks, compared to dogs receiving therapy alone.
The drug’s website says: ‘While you may not be familiar with canine separation anxiety, you are probably familiar with its symptoms.
‘While you are gone, your dog may do one or several of the following: chew destructively; bark or whine; inappropriate urination and/or defecation; drool; pace; tremble; vomit – or worse.
‘Separation anxiety is a clinical condition in your dog’s brain. Your pet is not a bad dog. Your pet’s behaviour is the result of separation anxiety.’
In Britain, research for Sainsbury’s Bank in 2003 indicated that 632,000 dogs and cats had suffered from depression in the previous year.
Nearly three times as many had suffered from behavioural problems which could be linked to depression, such as attacking furniture.
Clare Moyles, Sainsbury’s pet insurance manager, said: ‘People are leading more stressful lives and unfortunately this can have an adverse effect on the health of our pets.
‘Cats and dogs can be very susceptible to their owner’s feelings and if they sense that they are unhappy they can become agitated or depressed.’
Side effects of Reconcile can include lethargy, reduced appetite, vomiting, shaking, diarrhoea, restlessness, excessive barking, aggression and seizures in a small number of dogs.”
How friggin’ ridiculous can you get. Pushing Prozac for dogs? How greedy can you jerks be?
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Well it’s nice you think sometimes big pharma isn’t only all about money. I don’t believe for one second that they are marketing Prozac for dogs for any reason other than it represents another source of revenue for their drug.
First we vaccinate the HELL out of our poor canine companions (which is exactly WHY they are so messed up), then we feed them processed crap in a bag which doesn’t even come close to resembling what mother nature intended that they eat, and can’t possibly bring about health, and ON TOP OF THAT, for our convenience, so we don’t have to deal with the MESS that WE HAVE CREATED, we now think it’s okay to medicate them with more TOXINS in the form of doggy Prozac? Have you lost your minds at the health freedom alliance?????????? I am completely disappointed in you after reading this article!!
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Jodee Reply:
March 13th, 2010 at 6:32 pm
Diane, there’s no need for you to be disappointed with HFA. I think you missed the sarcasm dripping from the first paragraph of this article, and the clearly printed heading “Propoganda follows:”
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Sorry Diane, you’re flat out wrong on this one. Antidepressants have saved millions of lives from nothing short of sheer hell, and dogs deserve the same opportunity for help. You seem to be under the old impression that mental illness is personal weakness, when often it is chemical imbalances. No matter what Tom Cruise or Deepak Chopra say to the contrary, medication can make life worth living again, and no one has the right to take that opportunity away from others. I know, because MY life was saved.
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BD Stillion Reply:
March 15th, 2010 at 5:09 pm
That’s good that you were helped, JA, but as a Ph.D. animal behaviorist, I can state with absolute confidence that these “abnormal behaviors” the drug companies would like you to “treat” your dogs for are in fact perfectly NORMAL and EXPECTED reactions to the highly artificial and indeed, rather abusive practice of leaving devoted pack animals alone for extended periods of time. It just isn’t natural, normal, or right to a dog (any dog) to be left alone, especially if trapped somewhere (comfy home or not). It is a life-threatening situation, from their point of view (imagine what would happen to them if you did NOT come home, and remember that dogs are not psychic), so anxiety (and thus the various displacement behaviors that can be driven by that anxiety) is a perfectly expected outcome. Saying you should thus drug your perfectly healthy dog who is behaving in a perfectly predictable fashion to this unpleasant situation is like saying your child has a disorder, and thus has a “right” to the “opportunity” for “treatment,” if she reacts with anxiety and/or depression because you keep her chained in a dark basement for extended periods of time. The problem is not the child’s or dog’s neurotransmitters; in each case they are doing what you would reasonably expect them to do under the circumstances. Change the circumstances to healthy ones, and the neurotransmitters will change what they are doing as well. Finally, as a behaviorist who has repeatedly had to deal with the suffering caused by human thoughtlessness in this area, I do have this to say: if you will be gone for long hours every day, you should not have a dog. I’d recommend houseplants. They don’t mind if you are gone most of the time, and they freshen your indoor air.
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Medication for animals needs administered with care and alertness on the part of each vet and pet owner. Today there are many choices in natural medicine to address depression, anxiety and other “behavior issues” in our animal friends. One popular and gentle system is The Bach Flower Remedies by Dr. Edward Bach. This system has been around since 1930 and is sold in more that 70 different countries.
If you must choose chemical medicine, please be aware of all the side effects and take proper time and care for the animals healing process.
I am shocked at the initial tone of this article. But would agree this is another way for Big Pharma to make money.
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Real, severe, clinical depression will not be helped by Bach flower remedies, or St. John’s Wort, or any other such lightweight fluff anymore than any other disease. Only those who don’t know depression would ever assume such things would be enough. If my dogs are ever clearly depressed, and not just needing attention, exercise, and a better diet, I would not hesitate to put them on Prozac. In a heartbeat. Depression is hell on earth.
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Jodee Reply:
March 13th, 2010 at 6:32 pm
JA, you obviously didn’t see Dr. Laibow for your illness. She has the reputation for successfully treating all psychiatric illnesses without ever using drugs. But, I can understand why you’d be a cheerleader for drugs like Prozac. Your personal experience, however, does not make you an expert.
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I have lost all faith in your reporting! Now we’re supposed to poison our pets? How RIDICULOUS can you get?
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admin Reply:
March 13th, 2010 at 12:44 pm
We do NOT advocate drugging pets
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Both ‘canine compulsive disorder’ and ’separation anxiety’ can easily and cheaply be treated with a tsp to a tbsp (depending on weight) of ground flaxseed. They’re both signs of an Omega3 deficiency.
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BD Stillion Reply:
March 15th, 2010 at 5:15 pm
Separation anxiety may also be a “sign” of separation anxiety, Solunas. Dogs are dedicated pack animals and the vast majority of them are just “not okay” with being alone for long periods of time. It is unnatural and truthfully, constitutes a life-threatening situation for them. The fact that so many dogs DO learn to cope with this unnatural and cruel “routine” is testament to the huge adaptability of the canine. But if your dog is showing any of the signs mentioned in this article, first check with your vet to be certain there are no underlying health issues, then check with a certified animal behaviorist to find out how to provide a healthier and saner environment for a dog (hint: what looks like “the good life” to you may be exactly what your dog DOESN’T need!)
BD Stillion (behaviorist)
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Has any one here ever heard of a walk??
All of this talk is utterly ridiculous and shows a total lack of clear thinking on the part of humans.
Depressed dogs are bored: If you are gone for long hours, hire someone to come and walk or run your dog. This will improve their mental and physical health and you will be supporting an individual rather than a drug company.
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BD Stillion Reply:
March 15th, 2010 at 5:16 pm
Hear, hear, Laksmi! Dogs are not “built” to spend long days alone doing nothing, end of story.
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