My dog has been prescribed rimadyl , for his shoulder.He has had three tablets and last night vomited his dinner up,the same again this morning.He is never normally sick ,could this be the tablets? Should I continue with the tablets , apart from being sick he seems quite happy.

It could be the tablets. Phone the vet asap and tell them hes being sick. They will advise what to do next.

My German Shepherd was prescribed Rimadyl last year for Anal furunclosis, and I was also quite worried about giving them because I did a search on the internet and a lot of people are holding these tablets responsible for killing their dogs.  I was terrified of giving them to him so I rang the vets and they said they treated a lot of animals with them.  He wasn't on them very long though because he had to be put to sleep a few weeks later.  I think that if your dog is being sick then the tablets are definitely not agreeing with him and see if your vet will change them for something else.

The same thing happened to my dog,some dogs cannot tolorate this drug.Hope he is feeling better.
Sheila.

As far as Im aware rimadyl should always be given WITH food and not on an empty stomach

Rimadyl is not recommended for animals with known bleeding disorders and should not be used if a dog has pre existing liver disease, inflammatory bowel disease, or a known tendency towards gastrointestinal ulceration. In fact, these are some of the side effects reported in a small number of cases involving the use of Rimadyl.  Rimadyl should never be given along with any other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) such as aspirin, or along with any corticosteroid hormones such as prednisone, prednisolone, or dexamethasone.

Some side effects are loss of appetite, wobbling, vomiting, seizures and severe liver malfunction

This is not to scare people as rimadyl works for the majority of dogs but it is something to be aware of. I have read of the court cases in USA and when I questioned my vet about it after prescribing this he claimed he had never heard of any controversy ( or so he claimed)

Rimadyl & Arthritis....my dog was diagnosed with arthritis in both hips and prescribed Rimadyl tablets. No mention was made of any side effects to look out for. After 1 week on 1.5 50mg tablets twice a day he started vomiting, wont drink, black stools, sleeps excessively. Having read literature about this drug i will not be letting him have any more.  It has been a week since his last tablet, but unfortunately the vet gave Rimadyl injections twice as he had been vomiting. Now we await results of bloodtests. I really wonder, having discovered the side effects, if the sole cause was the Rimady itself. Talk about kill or cure !!!

So sorry EAdam!  :(  I've been there myself!
If your Vet thinks that your dog's condition is a result of the drug, please ask him to fill in the yellow form to advise the manufacturer.  Unfortunately, most Vets won't accept that these symptoms are a direct result of the drug and therefore fewer official objections are received than distressed owners would like!

Update ...in answer to a few comments, surprisingly my vet has been quite wiling to report the incident. This would not have happened if I had been given the product info sheet, instead i just got the tablets in a brown bottle.  Dog has been on 2 sessions of fluid therapy to try to counteract the effects. How long this will be needed is anyones guess, i cant get a definitive answer from the vet. Blood tests were pretty horrific at the beginning but now lowering but still on the high side, sadly the vomiting continues unabated, (more injections, more bills). Vet quite baffled by this last bit.....

I would ask for a different Med rather than Rimadyl as i really hate what i am reading about that particular Drug and there are plenty of other things your Vet can prescribe instead.

Rimadyl like any drug can can be wrong for some dogs.   I have had 4 dogs pescribed it at different times and 3 it worked wonders for and one was sick so my vet stopped it immeadiatly, the same as again you should stop any drug that is not suitable.
My little dog I have now cannot tolerate many antibiotics but Rimadyl luckily she is fine with and it has helped her back problems no end.
It is a fantastic drug, but like all drugs tolerated by some and not others.
If your dog is sick with any drug, stop it immeadiatly and speak to your vet.

Bev

Couldn't agree with you more Bev.  Rimadyl certainly has got it's place, but many Vets don't tell owners what side effects to look out for.  It does seem to be a "cure or kill" drug, and in my case the latter. :(  My bitch was given it for a bee sting, quite the wrong application as I'd asked for an antihistamine.  She was fine for 3 days, then completely unco-ordinated on the Monday morning when I took her straight to my Vet, and she was dead by noon!
So my purpose these days is to suggest that all owners are aware of this drug by reading about it before their dog needs it, and then be in a position to make an informed choice and watch their dog like a hawk, although in my case I couldn't have been any quicker! 
I would still consider it if I had an old arthritic bitch who needed some quality in her final years, but I wouldn't accept it for a 6 year old with a bee sting who'd never had a days' illness or been to the Vet in her life!

In the manufactueres guidlines for Rimadyl it says can be given with or without food.
[link]http://www.rimadyl.com/display.asp?country=US&lang=EN&drug=RC&species=CN&sec=610[/link]

For those of you who don`t know, you have a woman called Jean Townsend to thank for Pfizer now having to include those guidlines inside the packaging by law . She waged a one woman war on them. She took a class action lawsuit against them in th US for the death of her dog & won! Believed to be the first of its kind :)
And still vets say they aren`t aware of the dangers of it :(
Wendles I think you need to inform your vet asap.
Eadam, please report it as it only needs to be a *suspected* adverse reaction. You can do it yourself if your vet won`t or doesn`t want to. Go to the link below, click on Adverse Reactions on the left, then forms & you can print it out, fill it in & send it of :)
http://www.vmd.gov.uk/
Hope your dog gets better.

Christine, Spain.

That's interesting Christine - I didn't know that lay folk could report adverse reactions!  I was told it had to be from a Vet because, after all, what could lay people know??!!!

I only found out cos my vet wouldn`t do it Val! It wasn`t widely known then, still not now, but someone else who`d been thru the same thing pointed me in all the right directions, no intenet then either so had to do it by fax & snail mail.
Not sure if you can do it for human ones tho, heard it was bing introduced but don`t know if its happened yet.
Did you know that when a manufacturering company is aware of an adverse reaction has happened(well in cases of vaccines, not to sure with drugs etc) they have to make an adverse reaction report themselves as well...by law.

Christine, Spain.

I stopped using the rimadyl after three days because he was so sick, he is going to hydrotherepy now and it seems to be helping, hes even losing weight which is brilliant and no side effects.

My old girl has been on Rimadyl for a year, no side effects. (1 tablet a day.)

my Bart has been diagnosed as this he is a ckcs apperently(i dont care anyway).he is crippled with pain, I have stopped using rimadyl much to the vets reccomendation.what will happen if I just leave him and restrict his off lead exercise,and only let him lead walk,he loves his walks even though he can not manage very much berfore he is crippled again and hobbling.I would do anything to put him right again as we all want him to recover.

Hi Wendles, first I wouldn`t leave my dog crippled with pain, without some sort of pain relief. You need to go back to your vet asap & talk to him about all the options you have for treating his condition, what is osdh by the way? Don`t leave you dog in pain & until you speak to your vet, restrict his walks, you could be making the condition worse by letting him run around.

Christine, Spain.

sorry i just read this through, he has osdh, in his shoulders. He is not a pedigree.

Have you tired Metacam? Buster cant have rimadyl but he is ok on metacam. Worth asking the vet.

Could I just ask those of you who have used Rimadyl (whether with good effect or bad) - did the vet issue you with a Client Information Sheet when prescribing the drug ?
(similar to the info included with many human drugs warning of side effects etc).

No Joyce, I didn't receive a CIS.  I found out about Rimadyl too late! :(

I was very sad to read of your experience with Rimadyl, Val.  Such unnecessary and avoidable heartache.
I read that the manufacturers paid an average of $1,000 to each of 300 owners whose dogs were affected.  I'm assuming this was just in the US and you didn't receive anything ?? (not that money is any compensation for losing a treasured pet).

No Joyce.  I didn't receive anything.  If it was offered I would have told them to stick it where the sun don't shine!!
I left Didgy there saying to my Vet of 15 years "This is Mother's favourite.  Just get her fixed please!"  and saying to my bitch "You be a good girl for Uncle Stephen.  I'll be back for you at lunchtime"  Didgy was nearly 6 years old and had never been to the Vets in her life (I use homeopathic nosodes)and had not had a day's illness either.  The Vet just rang me 4 hours after and said "The surgery has rung me to say your bitch has died.  Do you want me to arrange disposal?"  I went potty!
When I went up to see him afterwards (still ranting I must admit!) he wouldn't accept it was the drug, couldn't offer any explanation as to why she'd died and when I asked for a post mortem he said "I wouldn't know what to start looking for. It's a mystery" so I decided that you just be a waste of money with an attitude like that!
I asked him to fill out a yellow form for Pzifer (I used to be a Veterinary Nurse many years ago!) and was told that only Vets could do that and as he didn't think it was anything to do with the drug, then he wouldn't!  I've only heard from Christine last week that anyone can complete the form.
With the research that I've done since - it will be 4 years in April - without scaremongering, I try to suggest that all dog owners read the Rimadyl reports before they need to use the drug so that they can make a more informed choice should it be offered.  It is used with great effect daily for many dogs, but for those dogs it doesn't suit ........................:(

I was given it by my vet, again without paperwork. Knowing the problems I did not give it to my dog, feeling that as I would be giving it just as a precaution I would be possibly be compounding possible problems rather than avoiding them. My vet buys in bulk and dispenses in brown envelopes. Even such things as Drontal Plus is issued without any warning of possible side effects! I actually brought this up on a previous thread on Rimadyl.

Regards, John

In 1998 reports of adverse reactions to Rimadyl accounted for almost 39% of all Adverse Drug Experience Reports received by the FDA.  The reports were so numerous that the FDA took the unusual step of issuing a public statement about the drug. 
As a result, Pfizer announced significant changes in packaging, confirming that it would begin dispensing a Client Information Sheet to be included with veterinary prescriptions of the drug.

So why aren't vets passing this info on to owners, I wonder.

Val - your experience is one of the most shocking I've heard concerning the use of Rimadyl. 

Joyce, it was awful, partly the effects of the treatment but partly the awful bedside attitude of the Vet, which I'd known was like that all the years that I'd known him!  I don't have time now but will fill you in with the full story when I do.

Thanks, Val, I would be interested to hear more when you've time. Please feel free to e-mail me direct.

I gave my dog Rimadyl.
I only give it him when he was really bad.He had arthritis.
I asked the vet about all the things that where on the net about it and he said he had never seen any side effects from it.And he used it on lots of animals.
I do think it contributed to his early death.
I would never use it again.
That is just my opinion.
I now have a magnetic box.For my boy who has a little arthritis in one of his joints.No Rimadyl for him.
I never knew how painful arthritis was till last year when I started with it myself.
Dog

Contact the vet and tell him what's happening. It could be the Rimadyl, it could be something else.

I've used Rimadyl with my dogs in the past and it's been a marvel, saving them a lot of pain with no ill effects. Other people's dogs have reacted differently.

Just as aspirin has terrible side-effects in some humans, in others most it can be a life-saver. Each individual reacts differently to a drug (allergies to penicillin, for example, are common). That's not the fault of either the drug or the individual. But definitely report any adverse reaction.

We were prescribed Rimadyl for our Rosie who had "an unknown inflammation of the paw" within hours of taking the first dose she was vomiting up blood and went downhill rapidly. We took her back to the vets who after carrying out further tests advised her red blood count was virtually non existent and her spleen was severely enlarged. She was sent to the RVC and kept overnight for further tests but saldy didn't make it through the night. Although no definitive cause was given we were told that Rosie had some rare form of leukemia which had not been detected and that this was why she had had died, we personally hold Rimadyl resposonsible as before having this she had been in reasonably good health apart from a swollen paw. Needless to say, we will never allow Rimadyl to be used on any of our dogs ever again, no matter what the vet says. We currently have an older dog with arthritis and touch wood for the last six months plus he has been doing very well on a combination of liquid glucosamine and metacam.

Just to say to Dog and Bigdooges, how sorry I was to hear what happened to your dogs - personally I think you're both right to blame Rimadyl. I know that many drugs have side effects but when one of the side effects is death, I think we have to be that bit more cautious when Rimadyl is prescribed.

Knowing what I know now, I would avoid Rimadyl at all costs. Some side effects can be overcome, others can't.  Sadly, many heartbroken owners have found this out too late.

I know that with Rimadyl we are in danger of throwing the baby out with the bathwater but the problem is that although it is great for some dogs, others have life threatening reactions. To give it to your dog is almost a "Kill or cure" situation. I personally would give it to an older dog in a case where the alternative is to finish its days in pain but I will not give it to a young dog for purely preventative measurers as has been offered to me. I also firmly believe that information leaflets should be given with all medication as with human medication. This is certainly NOT happening, at the very least in some practises, mine for one. (I will be asking next time though!)

Regards, John

oh no, I'm a bit worried as my puppy has just had a Rimadyl injection at the vets about 5mins ago... decided to do a search on here to find out a bit more about what they gave him and got to this link!.... it sounds worrying... I'm now really worried about the side effects....

Rimadyl is like our pain killers short term they are pain killers
anti inflammatory,its when they are taken over a long time.
Your vet wouldnt give it unecessarily.
Relax :-)

Thanks Carolyn... I am a real worrier as far as little chudleigh is concerned!   Hows little Wellington doing??  xx

Wellington is doing really well and is in the ring next month (where does the time fly)
he is still a baby pirhana :-)

How is your little man?

Chudleigh appears fine in himself.. however took him to the vets yesterday as he had eaten a sharp bit of plastic from a plant pot which got stuck coming out the other end!... was worried that there was more left in him, but the vet didnt think so.... as chud has had the runs ever since the vet gave him an injection just in case the plastic had scraped the inside and caused an infection... he's also got some antibiotics just incase its anything else.  Vet says to avoid walking him in pype hayes park as he said that there is a nasty sickness and diarrhoea bug going around which a fair few dogs have caught, also one came in with parvo....  so best be careful.... 
I'm not feeding chudleigh for 24 hrs then its chicken and rice... so he's starving!.... 
Ring craft is coming along, he is entering his first show in april, which I'll be very nervous about seeing as I havent done it before... chudleigh isnt good at standing still and looking all handsome, still wants to bounce aroound and play.. however the walking on the mat is much better!..  x x

Carolyn - I appreciate that you were trying to allay fears but it isn't true that the problems are only with long term use.  I have read accounts of dogs dying after taking only one or two tablets.
As to saying that vets wouldn't give Rimadyl unnecessarily I'm afraid this isn't true either.  Unfortunately many prescribe it inappropriately (see Val's post above about the bee sting).

Exactly Joyce, even short term/one dose can cause problems. Anyway, I thought the advise given was to have dogs tested before giving it them, to see if they had any liver/kidney problems & then to monitor them on a routine basis?

Christine, Spain.

This is rather worrying... thankfully my little boy (he's 5 months) is okay after his rimadyl injection, the vet didnt mention anything about any heath risks associated with the drug... itsnt that awful.  When I returned back from the vets I decided to do a search on google to see what the drugs where and came to these posts... nearly had a heart attack and worried about him all night... poor thing probably wondered why mummy kept popping down into the kitchen to check on him throughout the night and waking him up!.... hmmmmm think I'll ask about side effects next time.... do you think the vets would have said that 'death' was one of them?.... I'm not sure that they would.  Any vets out there?

To those of you with arthritic dogs,have any of you tried shark cartlidge or glucosamine& chondroitin?

I had a dog years ago with terrible arthritis and all of the above worked wonders,he was like a young pup again,pain free :)
I would always try the natural alternative before the chemical one,got nothing to lose,and by the sounds of this rymadil,i dont think i'de want to risk giving it to my dogs :(

The above mentioned are really worth giving a try,i hate the thought of any dog being in crippling pain with this hideous and debilitating ailment :(

Green Lipped Mussel is another one that can be great for Arthritis. 

My old girl was on Metacam for ages, but got progressively worse after a while & I then got Runaround form Stock Nutrition which has Green Lipped Mussel, Shark Cartilage, Vit C & E - she suddenly was able to run around again and did brilliantly on that for a long time.

She was initially treated by the vet with aspirin, then onto Metacam.  I don't know which it was that did it, or if both contributed, but she developed colitis after that lot which was pretty severe at times, I nearly lost her to the colitis on more than one occasion.

My beardie is about 15 and has suffered with arthritis for a number of years. She was on 2 tabs a day of Rimadyl for several years and luckily had no problems. She is now on Metacam which is effective. I would recommend the liquid version of glucosamine/chondroitin called Synflex which is also effective for humans! www.hwize.com. Cost is about £20 per bottle which will last a dog about 2 months. I had tried all sorts of glucosamine tablets but found the liqiud more effective

Yes, Christine, unfortunately some vets just don't follow the recommended procedures/advice when prescribing.  And what really gets me is the attitude some of them display when you dare to ask about possible side effects.  My (former) vet accused me of looking for information on the internet ! Like it was a crime to search for info which she obviously had no intention of giving me.

Final Update. Sadly we lost the fight 10 days ago, but not before a biposy test had concluded, that subsequent to having been on a course of tablents (albeit for only 4/5 days) Rimadyl Hepatocellular Toxicity was the most likely source of the liver failure. Had he been younger and stronger he might have recovered as there were signs of regeneration of the liver but time was not on his side.

Please dont have to go through an experience like this with your pet, if you're pet is on Rimadyl, and shows any symptoms such as vomiting/jaundice/black stools, dont waste any time, get straight to your Vet and under no circumstances allow an injection of this drug (if vomiting) until the cause of these symptoms has been established. If your vet disagrees with your conclusion that Rimadyl is the cause, don't just accept their word on the basis that they've not heard of any such reaction to the drug - it does happen and is probably more common that both the vet or the manufacturers would have us beleive.

How many dogs have been lost as a result of ignorance or misdaignosis (pre-existing liver failure/cancer/tumors were suggested, and even now question the biopsy results) by the people you put your trust in when your pet is ill? I suspect the answer to that would shock most owners?

I truely beleive that Vets should be more pro-active when prescibing this drug and detail the side effects so that a fully informed decision can be made.

So, so sorry!  I know exactly how you're feeling. :(  So, so sorry.

Hi EAdam,

Your experience is obviously very upsetting - don't know what's best to say but just wanted you to know I feel for you right now and it's very brave of you to relate your tragic story for the sake of others learning more about the possible dangers to their much loved pets.

I'm very sorry.
God bless,  Teri x

I am so sorry to hear your sad news and my thoughts are with you.
I have used Rimadyl with 3 different dogs now and have nothing but praise for how it helped them.  But like all drugs available there will be dogs that react badly to it.
One of my dogs that was on Rimadyl long term and it really helped her dramatically but there was only 2 types of antibiotic available for her to use that didn't have extreme adverse reactions on her.
So I warn all owners to beware when being given any drug, any adverse reaction, stop the drug and contact your vet immeadiatly.

Bev

So sorry Eadam, that is so sad, a tragic loss & understand how you`re feel :(

Has your vet sent in an adverse reaction report? If he hasn`t you can do it yourself at the link below. When you go to the site on the lefthand side you`ll see adverse reactions & on that forms. Pfizer, the makers of rimadyl should also be contacted.
http://www.vmd.gov.uk/

There is a group on yahoo, doghealth2, set up by Jean Townsend for people who`s dogs have been harmed or killed by rimadyl I`ve put the email below. It may be of help to you :)
doghealth2-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Christine, Spain.