Previcox Emails

I am so very sorry for your loss.  I have a story to tell about Previcox.

My dog Buster, an 11-year-old Pomeranian, has hip dysplasia and was on Prednisilone for a number of years, then Rimadyl.  A year or so ago the vet switched him to Previcox because she felt it was a safer drug with "no adverse side effects." 

He normally got ¾ of the 58mg pill once a day and seemed to do fine. He's a small dog, about 10 pounds. (I have since read that this is too high of a dose, and a dog under 12.5 pounds shouldn’t even get it).

At one point, without knowing the issues with Previcox, I asked the vet if I could increase the dose to a whole pill because some days ¾ of a pill didn't seem to completely erase his pain.  They said no, because it can cause liver damage if the dose is too high. Instead, Tramadol was prescribed as a suppliment, which I only used sporadically.

Then, on the last prescription refill in early August, I noticed that the pills were much larger.  This has happened before with other medications, which would be a different color or shape than I was used to, and I have called the vet to make sure I got the right prescription.  They always told me it's the same medication, it just looks different.  So I assumed these Previcox pills were bigger because maybe they were made into a chewable tablet. I trusted the vet.

Towards the middle of August he got sick.  He was throwing up and refused to eat.  He was also drinking a lot of water.  I took him to the vet several times and they did blood work and it was normal.  He was getting worse so they did an ultrasound thinking he had pancreatitis. But it also turned out normal. Meanwhile he continued to get worse.  Interspersed with his bad days he would have a good day and eat.  This was baffling as well.

Twice in the last 10 days I woke up in the morning with him next to me and he would be shaking uncontrollably. He is diabetic so I thought maybe it had something to do with his insulin, so I talked to the vet and we lowered his dose.  Meanwhile, he was losing a lot of weight from not eating and was nothing but skin and bones.  On the days he didn’t eat, he would throw up foam.  His diarrhea was just dark colored liquid.

I started keeping a log to keep track of when he ate and didn’t eat, when he got his meds I didn’t give him insulin if he didn’t eat, and I am only able to give him pills in pieces of food so some days he wouldn’t get his medications at all.  Despite the fact that he has Cushing’s, Diabetes, and Hypothyroidism, in addition to hip dysplasia, he's always been a happy, active and energetic dog.  I called him my miracle dog.

I was getting so despondent not knowing what was wrong with him. On Tuesday night (this is Friday) he became very ill.  He paced and moved around a lot, like he was in pain. He sat and tilted his head back, panting, like he couldn’t breathe.  His eyes were slits, again from the pain. He laid down and wouldn’t even look at me or respond to my petting him.  I felt he was dying before my eyes.

I was going to take him to emergency, but since no one knows what’s wrong with him, what could they do?  (My local emergency clinic said they have dealt with many cases of Previcox poisoning, so they probably would have figured it out.)

I lost my last two dogs in the hospital (I was with them) and I always felt bad that they died in a clinical setting with tubes in them and such, which must have been frightening. I thought, if was going to lose him, and they couldn’t help him, I would rather he die at home with me next to him.  So I slept with him on the floor certain he was going to die in the night.

Well, he didn’t die and the next day he ate a little.  I was just so baffled.  My vet was calling me every day to check on him. 

Yesterday (Thursday) we went over all of his medications so I could prioritize what I should give him if I only got one or two shots at it based on how much he was eating. 

I had always made Previcox a priority because I didn’t want him in pain. I mentioned to the vet that the Previcox pills were so large, and could I instead get the smaller ones I used to get because that would be easier to give him.  Suddenly she went silent.  After talking further, she realized they had given me the wrong pills -- the 227mg pills instead of the 58mg.  So he had been getting 10 times the amount he should have been getting.

I went back and reviewed his log and saw a pattern.  On the days he wouldn't eat, he wouldn't get his Previcox.  The next day he would feel a little better and eat some.  So I would give him the Previcox.  The next day he would be sick again and wouldn't get his meds.  The next day he would get a little better.  I should have seen the pattern sooner, but he had been on Previcox for such a long time with no problems.  I feel so horrified that I was poisoning my own dog!

He hasn't gotten any Previcox since Tuesday, and today (Friday) he woke up more like his old self, and ate.  He also wanted to go on a walk.  I am so worried about permanent damage, but the vet reviewed his labs and ultrasound and said everything looked OK.  I'm still worried and will keep a careful eye on him.

I’ve talked to the Merk people, an emergency vet clinic, and my vet, concerned that he should be hospitalized and treated for poisoning.  The feedback is that, as long as he is acting OK and eating, he will probably be fine.  If I see ONE sign that he isn’t (if he vomits, or won’t eat) I will take him in. 

I would never forgive myself if I failed to act and it resulted in his death.  On the other hand, I don’t want to stress him out by going into the hospital and put on an IV if it isn’t necessary. And, I feel very guilty about this, I lost my job 6 months ago, am filing for bankruptcy, and there’s a very good chance I will lose my home. So I really can’t afford it, but I will find a way if it becomes necessary.

The moral of this story is to always double and triple check the vet and your medications, not only the side effects and so on, but the actual medication to make sure it’s the right one and right dosage.

Michelle

Sacramento, CA